Positive Changes Following Adversity

Throughout human history the theme of positive changes following adversity is found in literature, religions, and philosophies. Most notable is Nietzsche’s famous dictum, “What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” It was an idea also common to the existential and humanistic traditions of psychology of the mid-twentieth century. Viktor Frankl wrote about the will to meaning following his experiences in Theresienstadt and Auschwitz, and Abraham Maslow noted that confrontations with tragedy were often precursors to self-actualization. Scientific interest was sparked when a handful of studies appeared in the late 1980s and early 1990s, reporting positive changes in, for example, rape survivors (Burt & Katz, 1987), male cardiac patients (Affleck, Tennen, Croog, & Levine, 1987), bereaved adults (Edmonds & Hooker, 1992), and combat veterans (Elder & Clipp, 1989).