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Mega-study analyzes the impact of gratitude interventions

Phys · · 872 words · By Frances Jones
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What to know about Mega-study analyzes the impact of gratitude interventions

The article reports on a multinational study published in PNAS involving over 10,000 participants across 34 countries to analyze the effectiveness of various gratitude interventions. The findings indicate that while most interventions improved psychological well-being, the impact varied significantly by country and culture, with social connection being a key driver of success.

Propaganda risk 0%
Claims checked 16
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center100%
Right0%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Mega-study analyzes the impact of gratitude interventions Sadie Harley Scientific Editor Robert Egan Senior Editor Are some interventions designed to induce gratitude more effectively than others?

Why it matters

In which countries and cultures do they work best to improve mood, strengthen bonds between people and promote social reciprocity?

Common ground

A study aimed at answering these questions—conducted in 34 countries with more than 10,000 participants—had its results published in PNAS.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

The article reports on a multinational study published in PNAS involving over 10,000 participants across 34 countries to analyze the effectiveness of various gratitude interventions. The findings indicate that while most interventions improved psychological well-being, the impact varied significantly by country and culture, with social connection being a key driver of success.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-08-mega-impact-gratitude-interventions.html

analyticsAnalysis

0%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 100%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 16 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 6
verified Verified 3
check_circle Corroborated 3
verified Verified By Reference 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
verified
Claim 1: “Thirty-six researchers are listed as authors of the paper, including experimental psychologist Michael McCullough, a professor at the University of California, San Diego.”
VERIFIED
The source 'Massive Study Examines How Gratitude Interventions Affect Well-Being' confirms there were 36 authors and specifically mentions experimental psychologist Michael McCullough of the University of California, San Diego.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Corvidae is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, magpies, jackdaws, jays, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers. In colloquial terms, the crow family is…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvidae
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Physarum polycephalum, an acellular slime mold, or myxomycete, is an amoeba with diverse cellular forms and broad geographic distribution. The "acellular" moniker derives from the plasmodial stage of…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physarum_polycephalum
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Wellpath, formerly known as Correct Care Solutions is a healthcare company based in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. and "one of the nation’s largest for-profit healthcare providers for prisoners." The comp…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellpath
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 2: “The degree of impact of the proposed measures was influenced by cultural rigidity or flexibility, power distance and the population's religiosity.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
verified
Claim 3: “A study aimed at answering these questions—conducted in 34 countries with more than 10,000 participants—had its results published in PNAS.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for claim 0 consists of generic links to study platforms and Wikipedia entries about the National Academy of Sciences in general, but does not mention the specific gratitude study involving 10,000 participants in 34 countries.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bengaluru was founded by Indian Physicist and Nobel Laureate C. V. Raman, and was registered as a society on 27 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it began with 6…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Academy_of_Sciences
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Membership of the National Academy of Sciences is an award granted to scientists that the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) of the United States judges to have made “distinguished and continuing achi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_of_the_National_Academy…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The National Academy of Sciences, India, also known as NASI, was established in 1930 and is the oldest science academy of India. It is located in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Prof. Meghnad Saha was the f…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Academy_of_Sciences,_…
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 4: “the intervention with the least impact was the most popular one: making a list of five things for which one is grateful.”
VERIFIED
The source 'Massive Study Examines How Gratitude Interventions Affect Well-Being' explicitly states that the least effective intervention was writing a list of five things for which one is grateful.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Are some interventions designed to induce gratitude more effectively than others? In which countries and cultures do they work best to improve mood, strengthen bonds between people and promote social …
https://phys.org/news/2026-08-mega-impact-gratitude-interven…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — By contrast, the least effective intervention was also the most familiar: writing a list of five things for which one is grateful. Although gratitude lists remain popular in wellness programs and self…
https://scienmag.com/massive-study-examines-how-gratitude-in…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Participants assigned to the intervention condition were asked to write daily gratitude lists for 14 days, listing moments they had been grateful for during the day. The outcomes analyzed were affect,…
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6437090/
help
Claim 5: “The authors found that gratitude interventions led to immediate and measurable improvements in psychological states linked to what is known as human flourishing.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim.
help
Claim 6: “They observed increases in positive affect and feelings of social reciprocity, reductions in negative affect and envy, and greater life satisfaction and optimism.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim.
verified
Claim 7: “all six interventions designed to induce gratitude had a greater impact than the three control practices”
VERIFIED
The source 'Massive Study Examines How Gratitude Interventions Affect Well-Being' confirms that all six interventions outperformed the control conditions (questionnaire, writing about past events, or interesting events).
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Are some interventions designed to induce gratitude more effectively than others? In which countries and cultures do they work best to improve mood, strengthen bonds between people and promote social …
https://phys.org/news/2026-08-mega-impact-gratitude-interven…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — All six interventions outperformed the control conditions. Participants in the control groups either answered a questionnaire, wrote generally about a past event or described interesting events from r…
https://scienmag.com/massive-study-examines-how-gratitude-in…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Join me on a rainy evening spent writing in my home office. I like to use the pomodoro method, so in this video I’m doing two 30-minute blocks of writing wit...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68pRPX_3ay8
schedule
Claim 8: “About 50% of studies on gratitude originate in the United States.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 9: “The practices had a greater impact in Mexico but almost no impact in Norway.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 10: “Brazil fell in the middle of the scale, according to the study.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 11: “In Brazil, the project received the help of researchers and 598 volunteers who responded to intervention prompts via an online tool.”
CORROBORATED
The claim that 598 volunteers from Brazil responded to intervention prompts via an online tool is explicitly confirmed by the 'Massive Study Examines How Gratitude Interventions Affect Well-Being' source.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brazil officially entered World War II on August 22, 1942, when it declared war against the Axis powers, including Germany and Italy. On February 8, 1943, Brazil formally joined the Allies upon signin…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazil_in_World_War_II
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa) refers to a South American tree of the monotypic genus Bertholletia in the family Lecythidaceae as well as the tree's commercially-harvested edible seeds. It is one o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazil_nut
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Brazil had an official resident population of 203 million in 2022, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Brazil is the seventh most populous country in the world and…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Brazil
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 12: “feeling more positive was an almost universal effect of the interventions.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 13: “Nicholas A. Coles et al, A multinational megastudy of the effects of gratitude practices on subjective well-being, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2026). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2537789123”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 14: “Boggio and his former graduate student, Beatriz Bezerra de Souza, are the two Brazilian co-authors of the article.”
CORROBORATED
Two independent web search results ('Mega-study analyzes the impact of gratitude interventions' and 'Massive Study Examines How Gratitude Interventions Affect Well-Being') explicitly name Paulo Sérgio Boggio and Beatriz Bezerra de Souza as the Brazilian co-authors.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Boggio and his former graduate student, Beatriz Bezerra de Souza, are the two Brazilian co-authors of the article.
https://lifeboat.com/blog/2026/08/mega-study-analyzes-the-im…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Brazilian research team included Boggio and Beatriz Bezerra de Souza, whose master’s research received support from the São Paulo Research Foundation.
https://scienmag.com/massive-study-examines-how-gratitude-in…
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web search NEUTRAL — Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2024292118
check_circle
Claim 15: “Of the six interventions tested in various countries, the one that had the greatest effect asked people to write and send a message to someone they felt gratitude towards.”
CORROBORATED
Both 'Mega-study analyzes the impact of gratitude interventions' and 'Massive Study Examines How Gratitude Interventions Affect Well-Being' confirm that writing and sending a gratitude message was the most effective of the six interventions.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Are some interventions designed to induce gratitude more effectively than others?Of the six interventions tested in various countries, the one that had the greatest effect asked people to write and se…
https://phys.org/news/2026-08-mega-impact-gratitude-interven…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In addition to sending a gratitude message, participants could write a letter of appreciation without sending it, practice Naikan reflection, or record five events from the previous day for which they…
https://scienmag.com/massive-study-examines-how-gratitude-in…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The gratitude interventions used in the studies varied between gratitude diaries, conversation programs, training, and visits, expression of gratitude to others (verbally or in writing), publishing pi…
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10393216/
verified
Claim 16: “The study was coordinated by Nicholas Coles, a researcher at the University of Florida.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The evidence provided for claim 4 contains general information about the University of Florida and unrelated topics, but does not mention Nicholas Coles or his role in coordinating the study.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Utah Utes football team is an American football team that will represent the University of Utah as a member of the Big 12 Conference during the 2026 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Utah_Utes_football_team
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The city of Jacksonville, Florida, has been home to many notable people, groups, and organizations. Those listed may have been born or raised in Jacksonville, been influenced by the city while living,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Jacksonvil…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — William Backhouse Astor Jr. (July 12, 1829 – April 25, 1892) was an American businessman, racehorse owner/breeder, and yachtsman who was a member of the prominent Astor family. His wife, Caroline Sch…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Backhouse_Astor_Jr.
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.