A teacher asks students to write a letter thanking a mentor and deliver it in person. What intervention is this?
- Gratitude visit/letter intervention: expressing thanks to a benefactor to increase positive emotion and strengthen relationships. (correct answer)
- Flow induction: creating a high-pressure, skill-mismatched speech so students become absorbed through anxiety and time distortion.
- Meaning-only focus: finding a life mission without acknowledging specific benefits received from another person's help.
- Replacing treatment: using gratitude letters instead of evidence-based interventions for severe suicidal depression in all cases.
Explanation: This represents a gratitude visit or gratitude letter intervention, which is a well-established positive psychology practice that involves expressing thanks to someone who has been particularly helpful or meaningful in one's life. When students write letters thanking mentors and deliver them in person, they are engaging in an intervention designed to increase positive emotion, strengthen relationships, and enhance appreciation for benefits received from others. This practice has been shown to boost well-being both for the letter writer and the recipient. This is not flow induction, which requires optimal challenge-skill balance and absorption rather than creating high-pressure situations. While meaning involves connecting to larger purposes, gratitude letters focus specifically on acknowledging particular individuals' contributions. Gratitude interventions complement rather than replace evidence-based treatments for serious mental health conditions.