Are positive beliefs about the world linked to greater well-being and social connection?

Details

Positive world beliefs, such as believing the world is safe, are associated with higher well-being and more social connections. These associations have often been interpreted as causal, but little is known about their origins.

Researchers used a large Swedish twin sample of approximately 9,000 people to investigate familial confounding: genetic influences and family environmental effects that affect both world beliefs, also called primals, and social well-being. They tested whether the associations were consistent with a causal effect.

Positive world beliefs were associated with higher well-being, less loneliness and less social isolation. After adjustment for familial confounding, the associations weakened substantially but remained significant, consistent with a causal association. Bivariate twin models strengthened this finding, indicating that genetic effects explained approximately half of the covariation. When personality differences were also accounted for alongside familial confounding, a small but significant association remained.

The findings suggest that familial influences and personality differences explain a substantial part of the observed associations between primals and social well-being. They also support a small potentially causal effect, although its direction remains unknown. The researchers discuss the implications for primals research and positive psychology.