Article
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Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed
Perceptions of Adulthood and Mental Health
Version 1
: Received: 22 March 2024 / Approved: 25 March 2024 / Online: 25 March 2024 (09:59:22 CET)
A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.
Tavakkoli, M.; Valarezo, E.; García, L.F. Perceptions of Adulthood and Mental Health. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2024, 21, 773. Tavakkoli, M.; Valarezo, E.; García, L.F. Perceptions of Adulthood and Mental Health. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2024, 21, 773.
Abstract
Abstract:
Background: In contrast to conventional definitions, the contemporary conceptualization of adulthood emphasizes psychological characteristics over sociodemographic milestones. Concurrently, there is a growing proposition that individuals' perceptions of adulthood exert a substantial influence on the mental well-being of adolescents and adults. However, empirical examination of this hypothesis has been notably limited to date.
Method: This study applied some adulthood markers, and multiple mental health indices (including Well-being, Optimism, Alexithymia, Satisfaction with life, Goldberg's index of mental health, Dark triad, and dimensional personality disorders) to a community sample comprising 1772 individuals in Spain, spanning ages from 16 to 93 years.
Results: The findings support the overarching hypothesis, as perceptions of adulthood exhibit significant associations with almost all measured mental health indices, especially with those conforming a factor of Negative emotions. These associations persist even after accounting for age and socioeconomic status, and in alignment with the psychological paradigm of adulthood, they demonstrate stability across different age cohorts.
Conclusions: The study establishes that such perceptions of adulthood represent a modifiable factor contributing to positive mental health. The implications of these findings for the formulation of public policies aimed at promoting mental health in the context of adulthood are deliberated, as well as a number of future studies.
Keywords
Perceptions of Adulthood; Subjective adult status; Mental health; Well-being; pathological personality
Subject
Public Health and Healthcare, Public Health and Health Services
Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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