Gratitude and health behaviours: A temporal affective self-regulation resource analysis across 24 samples

Although research increasingly highlights the relevance of gratitude for understanding consequential health outcomes, including health behaviours, the reasons why gratitude plays a role remain unclear. The current study investigated the extent to which gratitude is associated with the practice of health-promoting behaviours, and the factors that contribute to this association. Guided by the Temporal Affective Self-Regulation Resource model, we examined the contributions of positive and negative affect, and future time-orientation (FTO) as self-regulation resources for explaining the association between gratitude and health behaviours across multiple samples.

Twenty-four samples (N = 6967) from community, student and medical populations reporting correlations between state or trait gratitude and the practice of health-promoting behaviours were included. Random effects meta-analyses were conducted on the raw and semi-partial correlations of gratitude with health behaviours controlling for positive and negative affect and FTO. Moderator analyses evaluated the impact of demographic, methodological and conceptual factors.

Gratitude was significantly associated with health-promoting behaviours (r_avg = .270; 95% CIs [.24, .30]). Subgroup and meta-regression moderator analyses were not significant. Meta-analyses of the semi-partial correlations revealed significant but lower magnitude associations between gratitude and health-promoting behaviours after controlling for positive affect, negative affect and FTO.

The current study provides initial evidence indicating that gratitude is associated with the practice of health-promoting behaviours, and insights into the self-regulation factors that contribute to this association. Taken together with previous intervention research, these findings highlight gratitude as an alternative, strengths-based approach to health behaviour change across different populations and contexts.