The saying "thanksgiving leads to having more to give thanks for" is more than just a popular proverb: it's been proven in preliminary UC Davis studies examining "attitudes of gratitude" and goal attainment. The studies "suggest the benefits of an attitude of gratitude extend beyond mood and well-being," says psychology professor Robert Emmons, "to encompass more specific indicators of successful life functioning -- the attainment of concrete goals in life." The studies examined the effect of adopting a thankful or grateful attitude in everyday life. Emmons divided the study participants into three groups: one group would record the most significant events in their day-to-day lives, another would record minor complaints and hassles, and one group would record those things in their lives for which they were thankful. Participants logged their emotions, physical symptoms, health and coping behaviors for 10 weeks. Emmons found that those participants asked to focus on what they appreciated in their lives reported better well-being. Interestingly, that same group reported having spent significantly more time exercising than the other two groups in the study. Those asked to focus on the positive experienced higher personal well-being than did those people who were asked to write about hassles or neutral events, Emmons concludes. "The higher well-being was evident in more energetic mood, more favorable overall appraisals of one's life and lower levels of physical symptoms." The same three groups of study participants concurrently participated in a longer-term study of goal attainment in daily life. Emmons found that those who had been in the "gratitude condition" made more progress toward their goals, on average, than participants in the other two groups. The studies, Emmons says, "provide empirical confirmation of the ... benefits of 'counting one's blessings, one by one.'" Emmons presented his findings this week at a public seminar on campus. Media contacts: Robert Emmons, Psychology, (530) 752-8844, raemmons@ucdavis.edu; Lisa Klionsky, News Service, (530) 752-9841, lrklionsky@ucdavis.edu.