Gratitude and Mental Health: What the Research Actually Shows
Every November, gratitude gets a lot of attention. You'll see gratitude journals in store displays, "thankful" posts all over social media, and at some point someone at the Thanksgiving table will ask everyone to say what they're grateful for.
As a psychologist, I get a version of this question every year: does any of it actually help? The short answer is yes, but not in the way most wellness content suggests. Gratitude has been studied seriously for more than two decades. Some practices have good evidence behind them. Others fade within weeks. And the overall effects are smaller than the hype.
Here's what the research shows, what it doesn't, and how to use it this Thanksgiving.
What the Research Supports
Positive psychology is the branch of the field that studies what helps people do well, not only what goes wrong. Gratitude is one of its most studied topics. A few findings have held up well enough that I'm comfortable recommending them.
Writing down what you're grateful for
The study most people cite is Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough's 2003 paper, "Counting Blessings Versus Burdens." They randomly assigned people to list things they were grateful for, list daily hassles, or record neutral events. The gratitude groups reported higher well-being on several measures, though not all of them. The most consistent change was in positive mood.
That last detail matters. Gratitude journaling tends to make people feel somewhat better day to day. It doesn't transform anyone's life.
Less often can work better
This one surprises people. In a 2005 study, Sonja Lyubomirsky and her colleagues had students count their blessings either once a week or three times a week. The once-a-week group got happier. The three-times-a-week group didn't.
The likely explanation is that a practice done too often turns into a chore. When you're filling in a list because you have to, you stop noticing anything.
Habits outlast grand gestures
Martin Seligman and his colleagues tested several exercises in 2005. One was the "gratitude visit": write a letter thanking someone who mattered to you, then read it to them in person. It produced the biggest immediate boost of anything they tested, but the effect was gone within a few months.
A simpler exercise lasted longer. People wrote down three good things each night for one week, along with why each one happened. They reported more happiness and fewer depressive symptoms at follow-ups out to six months. One reasonable explanation is that many of them kept doing it after the study ended.
Saying it out loud
Gratitude isn't only a private feeling. Sara Algoe's research suggests that expressing thanks helps people notice who is good for them and draws them closer to those people. She calls this "find, remind, and bind." In my work with couples, I see how much a specific thank-you can do, and how quickly relationships wear down when appreciation goes unspoken.
Savoring
Savoring means deliberately paying attention to a good experience while it's happening, or remembering it on purpose later. Fred Bryant has studied it for decades. It overlaps with gratitude, and Thanksgiving gives you plenty of chances to practice it.
What the Research Doesn't Support
This is the part most gratitude articles skip.
When researchers pool the studies together, the effects are real but modest. A 2021 meta-analysis by Cregg and Cheavens looked at 27 studies with more than 3,600 participants. Gratitude interventions produced small reductions in depression and anxiety symptoms. The effects looked bigger when gratitude was compared with doing nothing, and smaller when it was compared with another activity. The authors concluded that people trying to reduce depression or anxiety should probably choose approaches with stronger evidence.
An earlier meta-analysis by Davis and colleagues (2016) found something similar. Gratitude exercises beat no intervention, but their advantage over other positive activities was small.
None of that means gratitude is useless. It means a gratitude journal is a reasonable thing to add to your life, not a treatment for depression or an anxiety disorder.
There's also a risk worth naming. When someone is struggling, being told to "just be grateful" often makes things worse. It can add guilt on top of whatever they're already feeling, as if being unhappy were a failure of attitude. I see this often around the holidays, when people feel pressure to be thankful while they're grieving, isolated, or dreading time with family. Gratitude works best when it's chosen, not demanded.
How to Use This at Thanksgiving
Here's how I'd turn the research into something practical this week.
Make your thanks specific. "Thanks for everything" is easy to say and easy to forget. "Thank you for driving Mom to her appointments this fall. It took a lot off my plate" lands. Name what the person did and what it meant to you.
Pause before you eat. Take thirty seconds to notice the food, the room, and who's there. That's savoring, and it doesn't need to be announced.
Try three good things over the long weekend. Each night from Thursday to Sunday, write down three things that went well and why they happened. They can be small.
Then cut back to once a week. Based on Lyubomirsky's findings, a weekly list is more likely to stick, and more likely to keep working, than a daily one.
Write a letter to someone who isn't at the table. A former teacher, an old friend, a relative you've lost touch with. Send it if you can. Even if the boost fades, the relationship may not.
Make the gratitude circle optional. If your family goes around the table, let people pass. Gratitude that's coerced tends to produce performance, not connection.
Frequently Asked Questions About Gratitude and Mental Health
Does gratitude reduce anxiety?
Somewhat. A 2021 meta-analysis of 27 studies found gratitude exercises produced small reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms. They can help, but they aren't a substitute for treatment if anxiety is interfering with your life.
How often should you practice gratitude?
For a gratitude list, once a week may work better than daily. In one study, people who counted their blessings weekly became happier, while people who did it three times a week did not.
Can gratitude help with depression?
Gratitude exercises are linked to small improvements in depressive symptoms. For clinical depression, therapy has much stronger evidence. Being told to "be grateful" while depressed can also increase guilt.
What is the best gratitude exercise?
The "three good things" exercise has some of the longest-lasting results. Each night, write down three things that went well and why they happened. In Seligman's 2005 study, benefits lasted up to six months.
The Bottom Line
Gratitude is worth practicing. It reliably nudges mood in a better direction, it strengthens relationships when you say it out loud, and the simplest versions take a few minutes a week. Just keep your expectations realistic. It's a good habit, not a cure.
Support for Holiday Stress in Houston
If the holidays bring up more than gratitude for you, whether that's family conflict, grief, or anxiety that doesn't let up, talking with someone can help. Our therapists at Houston Therapy work with adults, couples, and families.
We offer in-person therapy in Houston and online therapy throughout Texas. Every clinician offers a free 15-minute phone consultation.
References
Algoe, S. B. (2012). Find, remind, and bind: The functions of gratitude in everyday relationships. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 6(6), 455–469.
Bryant, F. B., & Veroff, J. (2007). Savoring: A new model of positive experience. Lawrence Erlbaum.
Cregg, D. R., & Cheavens, J. S. (2021). Gratitude interventions: Effective self-help? A meta-analysis of the impact on symptoms of depression and anxiety. Journal of Happiness Studies, 22, 413–445.
Davis, D. E., Choe, E., Meyers, J., et al. (2016). Thankful for the little things: A meta-analysis of gratitude interventions. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 63(1), 20–31.
Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2), 377–389.
Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K. M., & Schkade, D. (2005). Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainable change. Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 111–131.
Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 60(5), 410–421.
This article is educational and does not replace individualized medical or mental health care.
About the Author
Dr. Daniel Katz is a clinical psychologist and founder of Houston Therapy. He works with adults dealing with ADHD, anxiety, depression, relationship concerns, and executive functioning difficulties. His approach focuses on understanding the whole person rather than simply treating a list of symptoms.
