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A Preliminary Examination of Covitality as Integrated Well-Being in College Students

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Abstract

The emergence of positive psychology has generated increased interest about the correlates of positive psychological functioning. Researchers have identified and studied various positive psychological constructs (e.g., hope, optimism, self-efficacy, gratitude, and life satisfaction) and found them to covary and to be positively associated with optimal human functioning and negatively associated with mental illness. This study of 528 college students examined the co-occurrence of selected positive psychological traits and explored their relations with a proposed second-order latent construct called covitality and with psychological well-being. Structural equation modeling examined each first-order positive psychology construct related to the second-order concept of covitality. Findings supported the second-order latent factor model of covitality, which was also significantly related to indicators of psychological well-being. Implications for theory development related to understanding positive human resources and applications within the context of college student populations are discussed.

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Acknowledgment

This work was partially supported by the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Research Fund granted to Sukkyung You and is based on the doctoral dissertation of Camille Jones.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, USA

    Michael J. Furlong

  2. Cypress-Fairbanks School District, 10300 Jones Road, Houston, TX, 77065, USA

    Camille N. Jones

  3. Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, 270 Imun-dong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, 130-791, Korea

    Sukkyung You

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  1. Camille N. Jones
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Jones, C.N., You, S. & Furlong, M.J. A Preliminary Examination of Covitality as Integrated Well-Being in College Students. Soc Indic Res 111, 511–526 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-012-0017-9

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