Category
Applied
Description
Hope at its core is the key motivating factor for patient’s pursual of behavioral health interventions, and is a critical upstream factor in the success of behavioral health treatments. The current understanding of hope is centered around goal-making and pathway engagement (Snyder et al., 1991). Although these concepts contribute to hope’s definition, they don’t fully encapsulate the multifaceted nature of hope. Our current study is a continuation of a previous study that expanded the definition of hope through an explorative lens by developing a multi-dimensional instrument – the Powers of Hope Scale. This scale assesses an individual’s level of hope across six “Powers”: Will power, Why power, We power, Way power, When power, and Where power. Our study expands upon these dimensions and validates them through a confirmatory model with a broader sample size and compares convergent validity with other hope instruments. The 200+ participants in our study completed an anonymous survey, which included the Powers of Hope Scale, Adult Hope Scale, and/or the Herth Hope Index.
Our study aims to improve how hope is understood and support future research that connects data to personally meaningful constructs. Through further validation of the Powers of Hope Scale, a more tangible, realistic conceptualization of hope can be utilized. Understanding how people develop and maintain their perspective of hope can further benefit the clinical mental health field by informing more effective strengths-based interventions that improve one’s resilience, coping, and motivation, all-encompassing and contributing to client retention and positive behavioral health outcomes.
Hope: A Vital Sign in Behavioral Health
Applied
Hope at its core is the key motivating factor for patient’s pursual of behavioral health interventions, and is a critical upstream factor in the success of behavioral health treatments. The current understanding of hope is centered around goal-making and pathway engagement (Snyder et al., 1991). Although these concepts contribute to hope’s definition, they don’t fully encapsulate the multifaceted nature of hope. Our current study is a continuation of a previous study that expanded the definition of hope through an explorative lens by developing a multi-dimensional instrument – the Powers of Hope Scale. This scale assesses an individual’s level of hope across six “Powers”: Will power, Why power, We power, Way power, When power, and Where power. Our study expands upon these dimensions and validates them through a confirmatory model with a broader sample size and compares convergent validity with other hope instruments. The 200+ participants in our study completed an anonymous survey, which included the Powers of Hope Scale, Adult Hope Scale, and/or the Herth Hope Index.
Our study aims to improve how hope is understood and support future research that connects data to personally meaningful constructs. Through further validation of the Powers of Hope Scale, a more tangible, realistic conceptualization of hope can be utilized. Understanding how people develop and maintain their perspective of hope can further benefit the clinical mental health field by informing more effective strengths-based interventions that improve one’s resilience, coping, and motivation, all-encompassing and contributing to client retention and positive behavioral health outcomes.
