Sustained mood improvement by the positive photo appreciation program in older adults

Abstract

The challenge of preventing depression among older adults is a pressing issue worldwide. Hence, we developed the Positive Photo Appreciation (PPA) program which aims at preventing depressive mood by enhancing positive emotion, autonomy, and intrinsic motivation based on positive psychotherapy (PPT) 1 and positive selfexpression through photography. The PPA program confirmed safety and a significant short-term mood improvement effect using a randomized controlled design. 2 However, the duration of the effect remains unclear-if this is sustained, it could be used to effectively and efficiently improve the mood of older adults with relatively little cost and time.