Resilience - our dossier topic in September

The other day I asked our six-year-old daughter who she particularly likes at nursery school. «Well, Paul and Josefine are nice, Finja has great toys and Jonda can even pick me up,» she replied as if shot from a pistol. Then she looked at me with big eyes: «And do you know who I like best? Me!»
There are few things that make parents happier than when a child is in harmony with themselves and the world. When they are invited to children's birthday parties, have friends, are not teased or bullied. And when they can cope with difficult moments and know how to deal with disappointment, frustration and defeat. Science calls this special protection of the soul «resilience». It helps us to cope with major challenges and not break down in the face of serious crises.

«You could also
just like yourself.
Just think of all the time you have to spend with yourself.»

Jerry Lewis, US-American comedian,
singer and actor (1926-2017)

Resilience research is still relatively new; it is only since the Second World War that researchers have been intensively studying the question of how we stay healthy, what protects us when dealing with stress and how we achieve well-being. What we know for sure today is that resilient people have a strong sense of self-awareness, they can regulate their emotions, analyse problems and cope with them in a solution-oriented way. In particular, they are comparatively good at enduring negative thoughts and putting them aside; they focus on their strengths, are generally optimistic and less anxious.
We asked psychologists Fabian Grolimund and Stefanie Rietzler to explain how children acquire this resilience. And what parents can do to help. The good news: resilience can be learnt.
«The path to inner strength» is also the topic of our next in-house event at Kulturpark Zürich. On 24 October, the authors of this dossier (and the dossier «What makes children strong» from spring 2015) will be our guests. You can watch the recording of the fully booked event here.

I hope you enjoy reading this issue.