Resilience

Resilience, or resiliency, is the ability to survive, and thrive from, stressful experiences while building up protective skills to manage future hardship. Psychological resilience involves cognitive, emotional, social, and physical skills. Researchers have identified many factors that facilitate resilience and healthy adaptation to negative events and threats. For example, strong interpersonal social skills foster subsequent positive and prosocial behavior and relationships. Strong interpersonal skills help buffer stress and encourage support from others. Emotional intelligence (El) is another trait or skill that buffers Stressors and builds resilience. Emotional intelligence skills include self-awareness, other-awareness, modulation of emotions, identifying emotions in others, and responding appropriately and effectively in a positive manner. Cognitive skills that build resiliency include learning how to identify and dispute negative thinking, using critical thinking strategies in order to make more effective and accurate appraisals of negative events, thinking optimistically and having a sense of control and management over hardship, and refraining thoughts or ideas into proactive ones. In the physical realm, [Page 838]demonstrating prosocial behavior that encourages and facilitates personal development, through giving, sharing, and helping others, builds resilience.

Although there has been some disagreement in the definitions of resilience across cultures, researchers agree that certain skills and strengths acquired in childhood help build resilience. Strong social skills and relationships in youth help buffer stress. Those who are involved in extracurricular activities like sports or music seem to have strong interpersonal skills that boost confidence and maturity. Involvement in activities also increases contact with others that facilitates solid support systems. The ability to interact and have rewarding relationships with peers and adults using effective communication and demonstrating appropriate personal boundaries builds self-esteem. The ability to problem solve is an active demonstration of resiliency. The ability to manage one's own emotions and assess the emotional response of others is paramount in developing and maintaining resilience.

Environmental factors related to resilience include higher socioeconomic level, levels where caregivers are not overly stressed and focused on financial security. Stability in schools and an educational environment where creativity and talent are nurtured and respected are additional factors in cultivating resiliency.

Other factors that foster resiliency are stable healthy families that encourage healthy developmental outcomes in children and consistent parenting that promotes autonomy, cooperation, independence, competence, and self-regulation with appropriate boundaries. Temperament is also related to resilience. Children are born with certain traits that endure over time and are modified and shaped by environment. A “good” fit between parents and children is crucial to bonding and subsequent development.

Resilience develops over time and is not considered a trait. Research on resilience has included terms like adaptive coping, emotional coping, psychological resilience, learned optimism, hardiness, thriving, and flourishing. These terms are used somewhat interchangeably.