Assessing well-being in clinical research and treatment

Abstract

People with higher well-being fare better on important life outcomes from financial stability to mortality risk. Enhancing well-being is important to patients and clinicians, and changes in well-being during and after a treatment may indicate meaningful improvement. Despite strong incentives for well-being measurement, well-being remains understudied in scientific literature on the course and treatment of psychopathology. To catalyze new inquiry, this Perspective illustrates ways that assessing well-being can enhance observational and treatment studies of psychopathology and provides recommendations to address measurement challenges that researchers face when targeting well-being. This Perspective equips researchers to test critical questions concerning resilience and recovery, optimize clinical interventions and enhance population mental health. This Perspective discusses methodological and theoretical challenges for measuring well-being in clinical research and the importance of including well-being measures in clinical studies.