The Korean Journal of Health Psychology
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- KOREAN
- P-ISSN1229-070X
- E-ISSN2713-9581
- KCI
Character Strengths by Age Groups: Comparisons of Character Strengths Among Korean Age Groups and Cultural Characteristics
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to systematically clarify the profile of character strengths by age groups and to empirically identify the strengths that can contribute to mental health. Also, the author identified Korean adults' key strengths by comparisons with those in other countries. In this study, it was suggested that the profiles of character strengths by age groups were generally similar, because the correlations between ipsative scores of character strengths were statistically significant over moderate levels. In all age groups, love, optimism, and gratitude were in the top five, and love of learning was in the bottom five. The character strengths with the largest deviation by age groups were authenticity and curiosity. Authenticity that increased with age ranked first in the late-middle-age group. Curiosity that decreased with age was in the bottom five in the middle-age and the late-middle-age group. The character strengths of Korean adults were most similar to those of East Asian countries, whereas the similarities with European countries were the least similar. While love, gratitude, kindness, authenticity, and fairness were the top five in Korea as in other countries, optimism is in the top five only in Korea. In all age groups, optimism and gratitude were significantly associated with the high level of satisfaction(or happiness) and the low level of depression. Finally this study's limitations and the suggestions for further research are discussed.
- keywords
- character strengths, satisfaction with life, happiness, depression, Korean, cross-cultural, 성격강점, 삶의 만족, 행복, 우울, 한국인, 비교 문화
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