Positive affect, well-being and the human conserved transcriptional response to adversity: a descriptive review

Abstract

The theoretical and philosophical foundations of human well-being are well-described in psychology research. Within the construct of well-being, psychologists distinguish eudemonic positive affect and hedonic positive affect, although they are not only nor mutually exclusive approaches. Empirical findings demonstrate a correla - tion between the general positive affect and favorable health outcomes. Recent discoveries also show a biolo - gical pattern, which underlines the correlation. Thanks to describing the conserved transcriptional response to adversity (CTRA) mechanism, a new direction of research is emerging, exploring a relationship between profile of gene expression in immune cells and positive affect.