Beyond Self-Protection: Self-Affirmation Benefits Hedonic and Eudaimonic Well-Being

Limited work has examined how self-affirmation might lead to positive outcomes beyond the maintenance of a favorable self-image. to address this gap in the literature,we conducted two studies in two cultures to establish the benefits of self-affirmation for psychological well-being. in study 1,south korean participants who affirmed their values for 2 weeks showed increased eudaimonic well-being (need satisfaction,meaning,and flow) relative to control participants. in study 2,u.s. participants performed a self-affirmation activity for 4 weeks. extending study 1,after 2 weeks,self-affirmation led both to increased eudaimonic well-being and hedonic well-being (affect balance). by 4 weeks,however,these effects were non-linear,and the increases in affect balance were only present for vulnerable participants-those initially low in eudaimonic well-being. in sum,the benefits of self-affirmation appear to extend beyond self-protection to include two types of well-being. © 2014 by the society for personality and social psychology,inc.