Year: 2025
Type: conference-paper
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Sensory processing sensitivity (SPS), a significant hereditary personality trait, plays a crucial role in how individuals perceive, process, and respond to stimuli.It is characterized by heightened sensitivity, deep cognitive engagement with sensory input, and a strong capacity for empathic responses.Individuals with high SPS, often referred to as highly sensitive persons (HSPs), are distinguished by their ability to detect subtle environmental changes and their predisposition toward reflective behaviors.While previous studies have emphasized the potential challenges faced by individuals with high SPS, there is a growing focus on understanding how these individuals can achieve greater well-being, given that they are more responsive and flexible to negative and positive environmental effects and can significantly benefit from psychological interventions.Apart from the complexity of sensory processing sensitivity, character strengths represent another psychological concept of interest.According to Peterson and Seligman (2004), these strengths are positive attributes that manifest in thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.Recognition and application of character strengths are associated with enhanced well-being, life satisfaction, and resilience.This research examines the relationship between SPS and the 24 VIA character strengths, aiming to provide insights into how SPS influences positive psychological traits.Using the HSP scale (Aron and Aron, 1997) and the VIA Character Strengths Survey (Peterson and Seligman, 2001) data were collected from 204 undergraduate students (61% female).Spearman's correlation analysis was conducted to examine their relationships.Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.Results indicate that SPS is positively correlated with 15 of the 24 character strengths: curiosity, love of learning, open-mindedness, social intelligence, perspective, bravery, honesty, kindness, teamwork, fairness, leadership, prudence, appreciation of beauty, gratitude, and humor.No significant correlation was found between SPS and the following strengths: creativity, perseverance, love, self-regulation, hope, spirituality, humility, forgiveness, and zest.These findings highlight the cognitive and social advantages of high SPS.The significant associations with strengths such as curiosity, love of learning, judgment and appreciation of beauty align with theoretical assumptions that highly sensitive individuals engage in deeper cognitive processing and demonstrate a heightened awareness of their surroundings.Also, the connections with honesty, kindness, teamwork, leadership, fairness, prudence, gratitude and humor reflect a heightened sense of interpersonal dynamics, moral considerations, and social harmony.The results indicate that although SPS is often linked to emotional reactivity, it also fosters strengths that enhance well-being.Future research and interventions can leverage these insights to support highly sensitive individuals more effectively.
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4410354950