From presents to presence: High-quality targets amplify the benefits of gratitude expression.

Authors

S Katherine Nelson-Coffey, Karissa Beesley, John K Coffey, Tina L Vuong, Madelynn Rumsey

Published in

Emotion (Washington, D.C.). Sep 10, 2026. Epub Sep 10, 2026.

Abstract

Drawing on the robust literature on the benefits of gratitude, we present two preregistered studies demonstrating the advantages of expressing gratitude in the context of high-quality relationships-namely, gratitude for people who foster feelings of being cherished, protected, or accepted (i.e., safe haven gratitude). In a longitudinal experiment conducted in 2023 (N = 485), expressing gratitude for safe haven relationships and gratitude for gifts predicted immediate improvements in positive emotions and perceived partner responsiveness, along with reductions in negative emotions, relative to control, which predicted greater well-being and relationship quality 1 week later. Safe haven gratitude also predicted greater perceived partner responsiveness than gift gratitude, suggesting a unique mechanism differentiating this form of gratitude expression. Second, in a 2 (gratitude target: safe haven, gift) × 3 (gratitude expression: safe haven gratitude, gift gratitude, control) longitudinal experiment (N = 755) conducted in 2023-2024, we found that prompting people to consider a safe haven target led them to choose someone they perceived as more responsive than someone who gave them a gift. Further, when expressed to a safe haven target, both forms of gratitude expression were similarly beneficial; however, when expressed to a general target, focusing on the ways the person made participants feel cherished, protected, or accepted led to even greater feelings of gratitude than gift gratitude expression or control, which in turn predicted well-being and relationship quality 1 week later. Taken together, these findings highlight the well-being benefits of expressing gratitude for high-quality relationships and responsive behaviors. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

PMID:
42721322
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 11 Sep 2026.

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