Setbacks to Strengths: A Scoping Review of Positive Psychology Constructs Among Veterans and Service Members With Traumatic Brain Injury
Model System:
TBIReference Type:
Journal articleAccession No.:
Journal:
Rehabilitation PsychologyYear, Volume, Issue, Page(s):
, Not Available Yet, Not Available Yet, Not Available YetPublication Website:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13613196/Abstract:
Objective
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major health concern for military personnel, and recovery and rehabilitation have historically focused on pathology and deficits. Recent efforts have shifted toward strength-based approaches, with a focus on positive psychology factors in TBI recovery. This study conducted a scoping review of the current research on positive psychology constructs (PPCs) among military personnel with TBI.
Design
Using Joanna Briggs Institute and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews guidelines, we identified English peer-reviewed studies published from 2000 to 2024 across four databases (MEDLINE, Embase, APA PsycInfo, and Web of Science) using search terms representing PPCs investigated among adults with military background and TBI. After abstract and full-text screening of 942 studies, data were extracted from 55 studies that met the inclusion criteria for this scoping review.
Results
The majority of studies represent veterans (n = 42) who sustained a mild TBI more than 12 months before the study. Social support (n = 18), resilience (n = 14), and quality of life (n = 14) emerged as the most studied PPCs. Studies were primarily based in the United States (n = 49) with positive constructs examined through quantitative, cross-sectional methods (n = 32) using diverse self-report measures. Positive psychology intervention studies among military personnel are sparse (n = 3).
Conclusions
An ecological framework situates PPCs across individual, social, and environmental domains, contextualizing multiple spheres of influence on recovery from TBI. Future rehabilitation research would benefit from intentional study design planning with coherent theoretical frameworks that clarify the relationships between PPCs, outcomes, and contextual factors.