The resilience literature has been instrumental in illuminating pathways that individuals may follow in the aftermath of adversity. Limitations of this research include its reliance on long-intervals between assessments, not differentiating amongst domains of adversity, and overwhelming focus on well-being. This study examines whether lifetime and recent incidence of adversity has a differential impact on character strengths and well-being. We used data from a sample of participants in midlife (n=362, ages 50–65) who are assessed monthly for two-years of time. More lifetime adversity was associated with poorer well-being, but higher levels of compassion and empathy. Bereavement showed the strongest association with higher levels of compassion and empathy, whereas social-environmental stress was more predictive of lower well-being. Similar findings were observed when examined longitudinally with recent incidence of adversity. Our discussion focuses on potential mechanisms underlying our findings and the promise of intensive longitudinal research designs for examining resilience to adversity.
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