Frederich Nietzsche, and many others, wrote:  “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” A new study entitled “Whatever Does Not Kill Us: Cumulative Lifetime Adversity, Vulnerability and Resilience,” appearing soon in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology attempts to prove this theory.

The study, authored by Mark Seery, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at the University at Buffalo, E. Alison Holman, PhD, assistant professor of nursing sciences, University of California, Irvine, and Roxane Cohen Silver, PhD, professor of psychology and social behavior and medicine at UC Irvine, examined a sample of people across the nation who reported some history of adverse experiences in their lifetime. According to the lead author, past research indicated that such exposure to adverse events in life usually predicts negative effects on mental health, and accordingly, the greater the level of adversity, worse outcomes.

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This new study, however, found that individuals exposed to some adverse events reported better mental health and well-being outcomes than people with a high history of adversity or those with no history of adversity. “Exposure to adverse life events typically predicts subsequent negative effects on mental health and well-being, such that more adversity predicts worse outcomes. However, adverse experiences may also foster subsequent resilience, with resulting advantages for mental health and well-being. . . . These results suggest that, in moderation, whatever does not kill us may indeed make us stronger.”