Now, a landmark study led by Adelaide University and Be Well Co has brought alignment to one of mental health’s most fundamental questions – what does it actually mean to be well?
Conducted in partnership with Australian and international academics, and published in Nature Mental Health, the study is the first to achieve international consensus on what constitutes positive mental health and what does not.
Surveying 122 global experts across 11 disciplines, researchers achieved agreement (75%+ consensus) on 19 dimensions, with near‑unanimous agreement (90%+ consensus) on six factors that are essential to positive mental health:
- Meaning and purpose – feeling life is worthwhile and goal‑directed
- Life satisfaction – overall evaluation that your life is good
- Self‑acceptance – positive and non‑judgemental view of self
- Connection – close, caring relationships with others
- Autonomy – feeling in control of choices and self‑expression
- Happiness – frequent positive mood and cheerfulness
- The definition is designed to inform how mental wellbeing is measured, supported and promoted across healthcare, workplaces and public policy
“By agreeing that positive mental health isn’t a single feeling, but a combination of how we feel, how we function and how we connect with others, the study brings much‑needed clarity to the field,” said Adelaide University researcher Dr Matthew Iasiello.
“For too long, mental wellbeing has been defined in different ways across research, healthcare and government, making it almost impossible to compare evidence or design effective policy.
“Imagine if there were 150 different ways of measuring blood pressure – the results would be meaningless. That’s why it’s important to agree on what positive mental health is, and what it isn’t.”
Factors such as physical health, income, housing, coping strategies and spirituality were determined not to define positive mental health, instead being considered important drivers of it.
Importantly, the study confirms that positive mental health is separate from mental illness, meaning people can experience mental wellbeing even while living with a mental health condition.
“Positive mental health isn’t about feeling good all the time,” Dr Matthew Iasiello said. “It’s about having a combination of emotional wellbeing, psychological functioning, and social connection that helps you live a meaningful, manageable life, even when things might be hard.
“In this way, positive mental health is less about feeling good all the time, and more about having the right combination of factors to cope, live well, and experience life as meaningful.
“When people can better recognise which parts of their wellbeing are strong, and which might need support it gives them a clearer sense of where to focus their efforts.”
“You can’t build what you can’t define,” said senior author and Associate Professor Dan Fassnacht, University of the Sunshine Coast. “For the first time, we have a scientifically agreed blueprint for what good mental health actually looks like – and that changes everything.”
