Strengths and virtues and the development of resilience: A qualitative study in Suriname during a time of economic crisis

Tom Hendriks* (Corresponding Author), Tobi Graafsma, Aabidien Hassankhan, Ernst Bohlmeijer, Joop de Jong

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

    11 Citations (Scopus)
    551 Downloads (Pure)

    Abstract

    Background: Resilience can be described as the capacity to deal with adversity and traumatic events. The current economic situation in Suriname and its social economic consequences may demand a great amount of resilience for people living in Suriname. In this explorative study, we examined the relation between strengths and resilience among the three major ethnic groups in Suriname.

    Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 participants. We sought to gather viewpoints from community representatives, health care professionals and academic scholars about the personal resources used by people in Suriname to help them deal with the consequences of the current socio-economic crisis.

    Results: We identified major five strengths that were associated with resilience: religiousness, hope, harmony, acceptance and perseverance. While these strengths contribute to the development of resilience, they can under certain circumstances have an ambiguous influence.

    Conclusion: Our findings suggest that religiousness is the bedrock strength for the development of resilience in Suriname. We recommend that future positive psychological interventions in non-Western countries integrate positive activities with religious elements into program interventions to achieve a better cultural fit.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)180-188
    Number of pages9
    JournalInternational Journal of Social Psychiatry
    Volume64
    Issue number2
    Early online date25 Dec 2017
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2018

    Keywords

    • 2019 OA procedure
    • positive mental health
    • Positive psychology intervention
    • Religiousness
    • Resilience
    • Strengths
    • Global mental health

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