Healthy Relationships and Your Well-Being

Vocabulary flashcards covering key psychological, neurobiological, and cultural terms from Lesson 5 on healthy relationships and well-being.

Harvard Study of Adult Development

A scientific study begun in 1938 with over 80 years of data on human flourishing, which found that warm, close, and supportive relationships were the single most consistent predictor of health and happiness into old age.

Predictor

Something that helps researchers estimate what might happen in the future.

Optimizing

Trying to make something as successful or effective as possible.

Optimizing for the wrong thing

Working very hard to achieve goals like wealth, grades, or career success while neglecting relationships that are more important to overall well-being.

Oxytocin

A hormone and brain chemical known as the bonding hormone that plays an important role in social bonding, trust, warmth, and connection with other people.

Dopamine

A pleasure neurotransmitter involved in the brain's reward and motivation systems that is activated during enjoyable social experiences, food, and music.

Parasympathetic nervous system

The body's rest and relax system that helps the body slow down, recover, and physically relax during safe and genuine social interactions.

Cortisol

The chronic stress hormone that becomes elevated during social isolation.

Kapwa

A core concept in Filipino psychology (Enriquez, 1992) meaning shared identity or fellow being, which establishes that the Filipino self is fundamentally relational.

Malasakit

Genuine care that acts as a resource for relationship health within the context of kapwa.

Quality of relationships

The warmth, closeness, and genuine mutual care in connections, which consistent research shows predicts well-being regardless of the quantity of followers or friends.