COVID-19 and Growth
A global pandemic affecting the wellbeing of everybody in the world might seem the worst of conditions for positive outcomes including personal growth. Yet out of seeming adversity and challenge great things do occur.
Just ask Nobel Prize winning economist Dr Paul Romer. He is of the opinion that a "a crisis is a terrible thing to waste." COVID-19 could be remembered for all the negative, and wrong, reasons. Evidence suggests that good things can come out of extremely trying circumstances.
In the 1990’s psychologists Dr Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun, developed a concept called post-traumatic growth (PTG)—a variation of the more common PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. They researched the impact of trauma and the long-term outcomes following an impact on mental or emotional functioning.
The evidence showed that people did suffer post a traumatic event, but the unexpected outcome was that half to two thirds of PTSD patients experienced PTG and the ability to thrive after adversity.
The scale
The scale they developed is called the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory[1]. It looks for positive responses in five areas:
- Appreciation of life.
- Relationships with others.
- New possibilities in life.
- Personal strength.
- Spiritual change.
