The EPOCH Measure of Adolescent Well-Being.

Abstract

We introduce the EPOCH Measure of Adolescent Well-Being, which assesses 5 positive psychological characteristics (Engagement, Perseverance, Optimism, Connectedness, and Happiness) that might foster well-being, physical health, and other positive outcomes in adulthood. To create the measure, a pool of 60 items was compiled, and a series of 10 studies with 4,480 adolescents (age 10-18) from the United States and Australia were used to develop and test the measure, including the factor structure, internal and test-retest reliability, and convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. The final 20-item measure demonstrated adequate psychometric properties, although additional studies are needed to further validate the measure, extend to other population groups, and examine the extent to which it predicts long-term outcomes. As a brief multidimensional measure, the EPOCH measure contributes to the empirical testing and application of well-being theory, and offers a valuable addition to batteries designed to assess adolescent positive psychological functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record

Effect of Growth Mindset on School Engagement and Psychological Well-Being of Chinese Primary and Middle School Students: The Mediating Role of Resilience

“…In the literature, research has found that (a) higher resilience leads to higher overall well-being (Karreman and Vingerhoets, 2012; Lü et al, 2014); (b) greater resilience contributes to school engagement and academic performance (Aronson et al, 2002); (c) growth mindset contributes to self-regulation and goal achievement (Burnette et al, 2013). (d) growth mindset is moderately correlated with overall well-being, using the PERMA measurement for adults’ well-being (Kern et al, 2015) and EPOCH measurement for adolescents’ well-being (Kern et al, 2016). In addition, the current finding supports the previous studies that resilience contributes to the well-being of students (Ryff and Singer, 1996, 2000; Ryff et al, 1998).…”

Quality Learning and Positive Education Practice: the Student Experience of Learning in a School-Wide Approach to Positive Education

“…This model is known as EPOCH. This measure has five core characteristics: Engagement, Perseverance, Optimism, Connectedness and Happiness (Kern et al 2016). The authors establish that each of these characteristics influence PERMA in adulthood (Kern et al 2016).…”

“…However, a limited amount of studies have begun to address the second critique. Kern et al (2016), for example, developed a measure of adolescent wellbeing that extends upon PERMA. This model is known as EPOCH.…”

“…These studies provide clear evidence that one of the core target populations for positive education interventions (adolescents) have unique was of engaging with items and concepts associated with PERMA. The EPOCH model of adolescent wellbeing addresses this issue and establishes characteristics that can be developed to enhance adult flourishing (as measured by PERMA) (Kern et al 2016).…”

The student voice in well-being: a case study of participatory action research in positive education

“…A research assistant also separately interviewed two students after the final workshop. The surveys included questions on well-being (EPOCH: engagement, optimism, connectedness, and happiness; Kern et al 2016), self-efficacy (GSE; Schwarzer and Jerusalem 1995), social and emotional competencies (SEARS-A-SF; Merrell 2011). Each student's pastoral care teacher also completed the teacher rated version of the SEARS (SEARS-T-SF) within several days of the T1 and T2 assessments.…”