Different Types of Resilience
According to Genie Joseph, M.A. adjunct professor at Chaminade University in Hawaii, and the creator of the Act Resilient program, there are three basic types of resilience (Joseph, 2012).
1. Natural Resilience
Natural resilience is that resilience you are born with and the resilience that comes naturally. This is your human nature and your life force.
Those with natural resilience are enthusiastic about life’s experiences and they are happy to play and learn and explore. Natural resilience allows you to go forth and do your best even if you get knocked down and taken off track.
One example of natural resilience is that of young children under the age of seven. Assuming they have not had any major trauma in life, children of this age typically have an abundant and inspiring approach to life.
2. Adaptive Resilience
Adaptive resilience is the second type. This might also be thought of as ‘trial by fire.’ This occurs when challenging circumstances force you to learn and change and adapt. Learning how to roll with life’s punches can help you build resilience and grow stronger as a result.
3. Restored Resilience
The third type of resilience is known as restored resilience. This is also known as learned resilience.
You can learn techniques that help build resilience, and, as a result, restore that natural resilience you had as a child. Doing so can help you deal with past, present and future traumas in a healthier fashion.
Each of these methods can be thought of as a resilient tank. Although it would be great if someone were strong in all three types of resilience, it’s not always necessary. Greater amounts of resilience in one type can compensate for lower amounts in others.
Stress and trauma tend to lower resilience over time, especially multiple repeated incidents of trauma. Trauma tends to get stuck in the brain leaving you on high alert or fight or flight mode continually. This can continue to manifest, even if the trauma is no longer present.
Being in a constant state of trauma can be emotionally and physically draining.
Each of us is, in essence, hard-wired for survival. The oldest part of your brain, the reptilian brain, is always working to protect you and guard you. While this may have served the caveman well, it doesn’t necessarily help you feel calm or relaxed.
Dr. Herbert Benson, director emeritus of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital has devoted much of his career to learning how people can counter the stress response.
Benson recommends several techniques that can help elicit the relaxation response, which includes:
- Deep abdominal breathing.
- Focusing on a soothing word like peace or calm.
- Visualizing a tranquil scene like a beach or a park.
- Engaging in repetitive prayer.
- Doing something physical like Yoga or Tai-Chi.
Many people find it hard to manage stress, because stress has become a way of life. A certain amount of stress can serve as a motivating factor, but a little goes a long way.
When you sense danger, whether it is real or imagined, your body’s fight or flight response and your nervous system kick into high gear.
Your body is well-equipped and even hardwired to handle most types of stressful situations but too much stress can cause you to break down. In a sense, stress is your body’s warning system and a signal that something needs to be addressed.
The relaxation response is a simple technique that you can learn that can help you counteract the toxic effects of chronic stress. It slows your breathing rate, relaxes your muscles and can even help reduce your blood pressure.
Chronic stress can take a toll on your mind and body. According to the Harvard Medical School, low-grade chronic stress can even lead to things like high blood pressure, increased muscle tension and an increased heart rate. (According to Harvard Medical School, 2011)
People who have low resilience may feel:
- Depressed
- Victimized
- Demoralized
- Hopeless
- Disconnected
- Tired or fatigued
- Stressed out
- Find it difficult to continue
What are the Key Components and Elements of the Resilient Life?
According to Shing (2016), one major factor that contributes to resilience is the experience of harnessing positive emotions, even in the midst of an especially trying or stressful time.
Positivity improves resilience in a number of ways according to Shing. First, positive emotions help you build up social, psychological, and physical resources over time, which could help you develop coping skills during future times of stress.
According to Fredrickson’s broaden-and-build theory (Fredrickson, 1998), positive emotions can help broaden your momentary thoughts, actions, and attention to your surroundings. One example of this is the emotions of joy and interest, which help encourage you to approach loved ones and forge stronger bonds and interpersonal connections.
Positive emotions help build personal resources, which can act as a buffer from psychological distress in stressful situations. Positive emotions may even undo the harmful effects of negative emotions when experienced in the midst of a stressful situation.
Beyond positive emotions, resilience is also associated with the experience of autonomy, mastery, and vitality (Shing, 2016) This can help you be more effective at managing challenging tasks and help you live life with more energy and vitality.
Decades of research in wellbeing suggest that satisfaction in life may not solely be derived from positive emotions alone, but also through feeling a sense of independence and competence, as it pertains to personal goals and values.
This tendency is known as eudaimonic wellbeing and it has to do with your individual perception of fulfillment in life. This eudaimonic perspective on resilience is coupled with other psychological constructs as well, such as hardiness.
Those who are hardy tend to possess a greater sense of control over their surroundings and event outcomes. As a result, they view stressors as less distressing overall. Those who are hardy also tend to believe they have more personal resources at their disposal, which helps them feel more resilient.
Henry Emmons M.D. talks about creating the chemistry of calm. As an integrative holistic psychiatrist Emmons has worked with thousands of patients, many with severe disabling conditions.
What our readers think
This is the best information that I have read in a very, very, long time. Thanks for sharing.
I would love a copy of this book on resilience if there is a book available. And if so where can I purchase a copy.
Hi Welton,
Thank you for your question. I’d love to help.
Could you specify exactly which book you’d like to purchase? Then I can help you find a link.
Thanks in advance.
-Caroline | Community Manager
hello maam
your article was very informative and effective. I am Planning for a research in this topic can you plz tell me how do i relate it to wellbeing of employees . How can i test it
Hi Sujatha,
So glad you found this post useful. So you’re looking to assess resilience as a predictor of wellbeing? Your approach should depend, in part, on whether you plan to run a natural field study or an experiment. For instance, if you’re interested in an experiment, you could look at running some resilience training with staff and then measure changes in subjective well-being pre- and post- the training.
For advice on how best to measure wellbeing in this context, definitely take a look at our dedicated blog post on subjective well-being scales.
– Nicole | Community Manager
Very impressive nd helpful. And can relate totally with this.
Amazing work.
This is one of the best articles on resilience, I have read, well done professor Leslie for posting such a good articles to motivate people. It is real community help to build positive energy.
Narendra Kushwaha.