Hardiness-Resilience

Psychological hardiness is a constellation of personality qualities found to characterize people who remain healthy and continue to perform well under a range of stressful conditions (Kobasa, Maddi & Kahn, 1982; Bartone, 1999; Bartone, Roland, Picano & Williams, 2008).  The key facets of hardiness are commitment – an active engagement and involvement with the world, and a sense of meaning in life (versus isolation), control – a belief that through effort one can influence events and outcomes, and challenge – a receptivity to variety and change. 

The “hardiness” theoretical model was first proposed by Kobasa (1979) as a framework for understanding resilient stress response patterns in individuals and groups.  Conceptually, hardiness was seen as a personality trait or style that distinguishes people who remain healthy under stress from those who develop symptoms and health problems (Kobasa, 1979; Maddi & Kobasa, 1984).  Hardy persons have a strong sense of life and work commitment, a greater feeling of control, and are more open to change and challenges in life.  They tend to interpret stressful and painful experiences as a normal aspect of existence, part of life that is overall interesting and worthwhile (Kobasa & Maddi, 1977).