138 chapter 5 transilience and/or moderate the extent to which it relates to relevant outcomes; as such, this remains an interesting question for future research. Understanding Variables and Factors Influencing Transilience Which Factors Influence Transilience? To advance our understanding of human transilience in the face of adversity, it is important to study which individual, social and contextual factors may influence transilience. Such factors may either strengthen (or weaken) transilience, which in turn may encourage (or inhibit) people to engage in adaptation actions and to display good mental health. Alternatively, such factors may moderate the relationship between transilience and adaptation actions, or the relationship between transilience and mental health. First, future research could examine which individual variables affect transilience, such as personality factors or demographic characteristics. It may be that certain personality styles, such as having a strong tendency to commit to whatever one is doing, to believe that one can influence events in life and to consider moments of change as challenges rather than threats (all characteristics of so-called ‘hardiness’; Kobasa et al., 1982) strengthen transilience in the face of an adversity (cf. Maddi, 2005). Additionally, certain demographic variables, such as age, may influence the extent to which people perceive transilience in the face of adversities. For instance, older people tend to be more resilient in the face of life stressors (Bonanno et al., 2007), including the COVID-19 pandemic (Holingue et al., 2020), due to more life experience and capacity to regulate emotions. Yet, other studies suggest that age may moderate the relationship between resilience and relevant outcomes, such as experiencing psychological distress (Matzka et al., 2016). As such, more research is warranted to determine whether and how individual factors influence transilience. Second, future studies could examine to what extent social factors, like perceived social support, influence transilience. Interactions within local communities can offer emotional support, encouragement, and enhance the perceived possibility for collective problemsolving (Feeney & Collins, 2015; Jennings & Bamkole, 2019; Thoits, 2011). As such, having strong social ties and a strong sense of perceived social support may impact the extent to which people develop and maintain transilience in the face of adverse events. Indeed, studies have consistently shown that social support can promote resilience, both at the individual (Bonanno et al., 2007) and at the community level (Ntontis et al., 2021), as well as people’s capacity to grow after the confrontation with adverse events (Prati et al., 2009). At the same time, some studies suggest that social support may moderate the relationship between resilience and mental health outcomes (Li et al.,
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