Study: A positive outlook can help individuals cope with trauma

By Staff Writer

The findings of a new study set to appear in the January issue of the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology found that soldiers who remained positive in traumatic situations were less likely to develop mental health problems.

A research team from Michigan State University surveyed 648 soldiers in nine combat units stationed in Iraq. The study took place in 2004, about 15 months after it was declared that major combat operations had ended.

According to the researchers, the purpose of the study was to scientifically investigate resilience during wartime. In the study, traits such as hopefulness, optimism and ego resilience were analyzed.

Results show that individuals with high resiliency levels still experienced stress and symptoms of health problems. However, their more positive outlook allowed them to cope with a situation better and move on at a faster rate.

Researchers believe that the results of this study can be beneficial to first-responders who face trauma and deal with events such as death on a regular basis. Training police officers and firefighters to maintain positive outlook may prevent potential mental health conditions, such as depression and post traumatic stress disorder.