A Multicountry Study of Cross-Cultural Differences in Psychological Wellness of Adolescents

Relative to positive psychology, a focus on increasing psychological well-being has been recently supported. Positive psychology is the study of influences and processes that contribute to the successful and optimal functioning of individuals. Nurturing and encouraging wellness competencies creates a buffer against mental illness and fosters intensification of adaptive coping skills. The purpose of this study was to highlight results from a descriptive study of a large-scale sample of Asian youth (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand) who responded to the Child and Adolescent Wellness Scale (CAWS) and compare them with a sample from the United States. The CAWS items reflect characteristics and cognitions of psychologically healthy and resilient children. As predicted, students generally perceived themselves as psychologically well, with all scores being above the theoretical midpoint score of 2.5. The average total CAWS score for the sample was 2.85 (on a 4-point Likert scale). Japanese students scored the lowest in most of the 10 dimensions. There were significant differences in each of the dimensions. The utilization of CAWS for practice with adolescents within a cross-cultural context and future studies is also discussed.