Lesson 1: Introduction to Resiliency

Purpose

The purpose of this lesson is to examine the history of the resiliency movement and to explore the multiple conceptions of resilience that appear in the research literature.

Return to Top

Learning Objectives

After completing this lesson, you should be able to

  • define the term "resilience" in your own words.
  • synthesize differing conceptions of research in the area of resiliency.
Return to Top

Reading Assignment

  • Resiliency: What We Have Learned (Chapter 1)
Return to Top

Commentary

Miguel is the 13-year-old son of migrant workers. His parents speak little English, but he and his four younger siblings are bilingual. Miguel misses many days of school in order to stay home and care for his youngest siblings, Maria, 4, and Alfonso, 2. When Miguel is at school, he often falls asleep at his desk. He is failing every subject except math.

What are your first thoughts about Miguel? Is it surprising that he is not doing well in school? Would you consider him "at-risk" for school failure and dropping out? For what other negative life outcomes would you consider Miguel to be at-risk? Drug or alcohol abuse? Delinquency? Early sexual activity?

At some point you've probably wondered why some students who come from apparently healthy families meet with negative outcomes everywhere they turn, and yet other students who are raised under the most adverse circumstances grow up to become very successful. Some students are simply more resilient than others. They have an inner strength that empowers them to constrain problem behavior despite the factors working against them. But what exactly is resilience? The following commentary will provide you with a better understanding of resilience and its origins.

Defining Resilience

In order to accurately represent the construct of resilience, several researchers have sought to define its meaning. Early work in resiliency defined the construct by using words such as "invulnerable" and "invincible" (Wolin & Wolin, 1993). However, further work in the area deemed these words inaccurate, for they imply that resilience is static over time and would suggest that a person with resilient characteristics would innately have complete resistance to harm (Rutter, 1984). But no one is completely resistant. We all know individuals who fare well in the face of adversity yet still falter at times.

Resilience, therefore, clearly requires a more detailed definition. However, the attempt to develop such a definition has not necessarily resulted in consensus but rather a myriad of definitions and, at times, ambiguous terminology. Janas (2002) described it rather simply as the ability to bounce back from adversity and negative life stressors. But other definitions are:

  • "Positive changes in maintaining active or latent coping and adaptation capacities through various mechanisms (such as healing, restitution, refinement, and enhancement) that may not be immediately apparent but become evident over time" (Foster, 1997, p. 190).
  • "A dynamic process encompassing positive adaptation within the context of significant adversity" (Luthar, Cicchetti, & Becker, 2000, p. 543).
  • "Manifested competence in the context of significant challenges to adaptation or development" (Masten & Coatsworth, 1998, p. 207).
  • "Those factors and processes that interrupt the trajectory from risk to problem behaviors or psychopathology and thereby result in adaptive outcomes even in the presence of adversity" (Zimmerman & Arunkumar, 1994, p. 4).

Clearly defining resilience is not a simple endeavor. Is resilience merely overall well-being? Does it reside in the individual (e.g., character and emotional intelligence) or does it emanate from the individual's surroundings (e.g., the family context)? Is "adversity" a necessary component? Can one be resilient in one aspect of life but not resilient in others?

To further this understanding (or perhaps this confusion), Werner and Smith (1982) believe that resilience refers to a dynamic process residing in individuals as well as in the environment. From this perspective, resilience reflects human development as opposed to being a genetic trait that only a few "superkids" possess. In addition, Rutter (1984) states that "resilience cannot be seen as a fixed attribute of the individual…If circumstances change, resilience alters" (p. 57). Furthermore, Masten, Best, and Garmezy (1990) classify three types of resilience:

  1. positive outcomes despite experiencing high-risk environments;
  2. competent functioning in the face of acute or chronic major life stressors; and
  3. recovery from a traumatic event.

Whatever the definition, resilience is a trait that is important for successful life-functioning, and one that educators agree must be fostered in our children.

The Resiliency Movement

In response to research findings that indicated that the majority of children who experience adversity somehow manage to "beat the odds," the resiliency movement was born. According to Henderson and Milstein (1996), the resiliency research has shown that most people who experience "risk" in their lives find a way to bounce back. In fact, some children actually manifest adaptive, rather than pathological, characteristics when confronted with significant personal disadvantages (Wyman, Sandler, Wolchick, & Nelson, 2000). Curiosity about this group of children encouraged scholars to further explore how these resilient children successfully adapt to their hostile or otherwise deprived environments.

According to Doll and Lyon (1998), two generations of resiliency research have led to our current understanding of the concept. The first generation began by examining disadvantaged children, with the primary focus being attachment and single risk factors. The second generation also focused on risk factors, but expanded the focus to include multiple factors. This generation of research also developed the concept of protective factors, and explored the interaction between protective and risk factors. Each of these research initiatives led to the central question of why some children adapt successfully to their environment despite adversity, while others experience significant difficulties developmentally and behaviorally. In other words, risk research ultimately gave birth to the study of resiliency.

One of the first researchers to undertake the study of resilience was Norman Garmezy. In his studies of children of schizophrenic mothers, with fellow researcher Neuchterlein (1972), he found that the vast majority of children who were at-risk for developing schizophrenia or related disorders were "invulnerable" or "stress-resistant." He then sought to determine why some children were vulnerable to the development of mental disorders, whereas others were not. This led to his focus on "competence" as the central predictor of resilient behavior in children who are exposed to stressful events and trauma.

Another seminal study is Werner's (1989) longitudinal investigation of 698 children, who were born on the island of Kauai in 1955, from their infancy through to adolescence and then adulthood. This study provided a remarkable picture of the human capacity to survive and even thrive in the face of adversity. As you read in Chapter 1 of Benard (2004), the majority of high-risk children were no longer at risk in adulthood. They were competent, confident, and caring individuals. (Findings from more recent resiliency studies generally coincide with those found by Werner.) Here is an excerpt from Werner's (1989) Children of the Garden Island:

They were children such as Michael, a boy for whom the odds on paper did not seem very promising. The son of teen-age parents, Michael was born prematurely, weighing four pounds five ounces. He spent his first three weeks of life in a hospital, separated from his mother. Immediately after his birth his father was sent with the U.S. Army to Southeast Asia, where he remained for two years. By the time Michael was eight years old he had three siblings and his parents were divorced. His mother had deserted the family and had no further contact with her children. His father raised Michael and his siblings with the help of their aging grandparents.

Then there was Mary, born after 20 hours of labor to an overweight mother who had experienced several miscarriages before that pregnancy. Her father was an unskilled farm laborer with four years of formal education. Between Mary's fifth and 10th birthday her mother was hospitalized several times for repeated bouts of mental illness, after having afflicted both physical and emotional abuse on her daughter.

Surprisingly, by the age of 18 both Michael and Mary were individuals with high self-esteem and sound values who cared about others and were liked by their peers. They were successful in school and looked forward to the future. (p. 108)

The remaining lessons in Part One (Lessons 1–7) of this course will help you to further clarify what is meant by the term resilience, and how this area of study fits into and overlaps with other key areas of child development. Note that throughout this course the terms "resilience" and "resiliency" will both be used. Though historically these words have been used interchangeably, the emergence of the resiliency movement seems to call for a clearer conceptualization of the terms' broader use. For the purposes of this course, we will use the word resiliency when referring to a body of research or a movement, and the word resilience when referring to the characteristic residing in the individual.

Return to Top

Study Questions

  1. Why does the term "resilient" better describe this concept we’re discussing than the term "invulnerable"?

    Although the term "invulnerable" was widely used early on in the resiliency movement, it implies that an individual can overcome adversity and come through it unscathed, which is not accurate. The majority of children who experience stressful life events do go on to become successful adults. However, many continue to, in some way, suffer emotionally. Also, "invulnerable" is an absolute concept, whereas "resilience" is more of a relative concept dependent on context. (In other words, you can be resilient in one area of life but not in another.)
  1. Approximately what percentage of children are able to bounce back from adversity and make decent lives for themselves?

    From Benard (2004, p.7): In most studies, the figure is about 70%–75%. She muddies the water a bit on page 8 in her discussion of the predictive power of risk factors and protective factors. We’ll sort this out later on. For now, the 70%–75% estimate is a good one to remember.
Return to Top

Essay Assignment

When you can accomplish the learning objectives for this lesson, you should begin work on the essay assignment described below. You may use any assigned readings, your notes, and other course-related materials to complete this assignment. (2 questions, 15 total points)

  1. Using your own words, write a definition of "resilience." (Be sure to save this definition, as we will return to it at several points during the course.) (5 points)
  2. What does Kagan mean by "infant determinism" (see Benard, 2004, p. 9)? Give specific examples from your reading or your own experience that provide an argument against this idea. How does this notion of "infant determinism" relate to the extent to which an individual is resilient? (10 points)

Uploads to prepare: 1

For this progress evaluation, you must compile your answers to the questions into one document in .doc or .rtf format.

    Directions for uploading files:
  1. For each required upload, create a new Word (.doc) or Rich Text (.rtf) document using Microsoft Word (versions 97–2003/XP) or another office suite that saves in one of these formats, such as the open-source OpenOffice or GoogleDocs online. At the top of each document, please include your name, CDIS ID (the 6-digit ID number you used to log on to this course), preferred e-mail address, and the course title. Then write your response to the question(s) or assignment described above.
  2. Save each document, either to your computer or another storage device, using a descriptive filename (ex. 02-bookSummary.doc). Do not use spaces or special characters in the filename.
  3. When you are finished, upload your document(s) to the Center for grading by clicking the "Submit" link below and following any additional instructions. Remember to keep a copy of your work for your records.

Submit this Assignment
(Also use to check feedback once submitted.)

Return to Top