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PS937 Positive Psychology - Coggle Diagram
PS937 Positive Psychology
3 Dimensions
Experiences
Focus
momentary feelings and states contributing to well-being
examples
joy, gratitude, love, flow and other positive emotions
Applications
mindfulness practices to savour positive moments
activities promoting flow (deep, absorbing engagement in tasks)
Concepts
Hedonic
high pleasure, low pain
subjective well-being (SWB)
High positive affect + Low negative affect + Life Satisfaction
Eudaimonic
self-actualisation, purpose, achieving potential, acceptance, autonomy
deeper, meaningful states
benefits
better cognitive function
less brain pathology postmortem (Boyle, et. al., 2012)
buffers against comorbid physiological conditions (Friedman & Ryff, 2012)
better sleep (Phelan, et. al., 2010)
Traits
Focus
Enduring personal characteristics that support well-being
examples
Optimism, resilience, courage, kindness and strengths such as perseverance or wisdom
Concepts
character strengths & virtues
signature strengths
Applications
strengths-based coaching
learned optimism / resilience
Institutes
What is it?
The scientific study of
optimal
human
functioning
(Cheavens & Feldman, 2022)
positive psychology is supposed to be connected and informative and add to what we already think we understand about behaviour
Clinical
Positivist interventions treating psychological trauma and/or dysfunction
Individual differences
positive traits impact on behaviour
Positive experiences impact on behaviour
Developmental
positive traits, across the lifespan
impact on adaptation and development
extends beyond wellbeing
focus on what enables and enhance well-being
how to make this optimal
What we do well deserves some attention!
Lottery Winners and Accident Victims: Is Happiness Relative? (1978) Philip Brickman, Dan Coates, and Ronnie Janoff-Bulman
hedonic adaptation
Lottery Winners: Initially experienced a spike in happiness but quickly adapted, returning to their pre-lottery happiness levels.
Accident Victims: Reported significant initial distress but, over time, adapted emotionally and found ways to maintain some level of happiness.
relative comparison and gratification
Lottery winners found less pleasure in everyday activities compared to the control group, suggesting that extreme positive events might make normal pleasures seem less significant.
Accident victims often reported finding meaning and value in smaller victories and new perspectives.
Implications for Positive Psychology: It highlights the importance of internal factors, like mindset and perspective, over external circumstances for long-term happiness.
Happiness x Culture
WEIRD countries - typically focused on hedonic happiness
ascribed happiness with success
"failing to achieve happiness is a great personal failure"
need to understand the influence of social structures
limited power means unhappiness can be pending
Alternative perspective
fear of happiness
happiness may lead to bad things happening
"Happiness cause hazards or mishaps" - a belief from some parts of Asia
hedonic happiness draws you away from Allah - Islam
hedonic happiness is a trap and needs to be considered with caution
What macro level studies show us?
Populations are happy when they are pro-social, healthy and prosperous
benevolence: surged since COVID19 - being pro-social becomes more common
social support: increased positive social connections are more prevalent in happier countries
individuals are happy when virtuous (not everyone - e.g. caregivers)
Positive Individual Differences (PIDS)
Classifications
Talents
no 'moral dimension'
innate
'gifts' that must be nurtured
much more focused on workplace and teambuilding (Asplund, et. al., 2007)
advocates for strengths-based leadership
identify and leverage own strengths and team's strengths
create culture where individual's talents are acknowledged and nurtured
Strengths
psychological "ingredients or pathways" that allow people to live according to virtues - virtues are core characteristics valued by philosophers and religious leaders across time and world cultures
Values in Action (VIA) Inventory of Strengths (Peterson & Seligman, 2004)
6 virtues
24 strengths
Interesting (Part, et. al., 2006)
Most Common
Judgment / Open-mindedness (Wisdom)
Kindness (Humanity)
Fairness (justice)
Gratitude (transcendence)
Least Common
Humility
Prudence
Self-regulation (temperance)
Strengths = Talents + Investment (Effort)
Values
further understanding of motivation for talents and strengths
influence how people interact with their environment
and therefore how they use their strengths and talents
Schwartz (2012) - Theory of Basic Human Values
Slide 30
values help mitigate the following needs
physical
social
group survival & welfare
I S S U E S
most are based on anecdotal evidence, opinions or qualitative analyses
most are pretty new
large degree are correlational not causation
they are messy, intuitively
there's variability between and within cultures
profit driven
VIA
StrengthsFinder
Strengths Profile
INTERVENTIONS
Transcendence
Humour
Gratitude
Hope
Issues
Difficult to be specific
when it is specific, it is only because they are compared against 'negative conditions'
Tend to be general (e.g. wellbeing)
'I shouldn't
have
to be positive'
can feel coerced into having to - with ideas espoused by positive psychology
Authentic Happiness
Hedonic + Eudaimonic
Pleasant Life
a life spent enjoying things
Good Life
a life spent engaging in our strengths
changing and adapting so that we focus on what we are good at
Meaningful Life
spend a life affiliating with purpose / belonging
connecting with things larger or more impactful than oneself
PERMA
elements
Engagement
Relationships (new)
Meaning
Accomplishment (new)
achieving goals
experiencing pride & fulfilment
Positive Emotions
PERMA+
Vitality
Sleep
Nutrition
Physical Activity
Energy management
Health
Nutrition
Lifestyle
Exercise
Stress Management
Sleep rest & recovery
PERMA+4
Physical Health
Types
biological assets
physical fitness, health BMI, heart-rate variability, pulse, blood pressure (Seeman, 1989)
mindful reflection on one's personal health history or health habits
Functional assets
how well can individuals function in the execution of their physical duties in life or at work (Seligman, 2008)
may include self-reported reflections on physical activity or fitness at work (Donaldson and Donaldson, 2021)
Psychological Health
"subjective"
a function of how one feels
involves aspects that enhance perceptions of physical health (when engaged in physical activity) - (van Berkel, et. al., 2013; Seligman, 2008)
sense of dedication
vigour
absorption
vitality
absence of
subjectively perceived health complaints
aches and pains
sense of durability or confidence about one's body
a feeling of control over health-related matters
optimism about longevity and future health
high levels of overall life satisfaction (Jackson, 2007, Seligman, 2008; Ng, et. al., 2021)
within an individual's range of possible physical health levels, those that learn to function at the high end of their range are more likely to feel and function well
can also be developed at work and effectively supplement the effects of more traditional work-related wellbeing programs (Biddle, et. al., 2021)
Mindset
growth
e.g. I can improve my job
People who hold the belief that their talents can be developed through hard work and deliberate practice usually report higher levels of well-being and performance than those who view their talents to be innate or fixed (Dweck and Yeager, 2019)
my intellectual abilities and talents are malleable and can be developed over time (Tang, et. al., 2019)
Work Environment
physical
psychosocial
quality of the physical work environment matters in influencing how people experience and engage with their work (aligned to preferences of the individual)
spatiotemporal
elements
spatial (physical)
design of the workplace
location
layout
ambient conditions
work schedules
rhythms
access to natural light, fresh air
physical safety
positive psychological climate
temporal (time-related)
deadlines
shifts
work-life balance
Economic Stability
perceptions of economic or financial security and stability required to satisfy individual needs
ability to choose, fulfil basic needs
Control over financial matters is one of the strongest predictors of wellbeing (Margolis, et. al., 2021)
also refers to the impact one's level of income, savings and spending on well-being (Zemtsov & Osipova, 2016; Donaldson & Donaldson, 2021)
making sound financial decisions and exerting control over financial matters are pertinent to overall wellbeing (Salignac, et. al., 2020)
Seligman (2018) PERMA is not a psychometric but a building block for wellbeing
as POP interventions?
Concepts
PsyCap
Fred Luthans
HOPE
Setting goals and finding pathways to achieve them
OPTIMISM
Positive expectations about the future
RESILIENCE
Bouncing back from setbacks
EFFICACY
Confidence in taking on challenging tasks
Strengths-Based Approaches
VIA Strengths Assessment
Clifton StrengthsFinder
Appreciative Inquiry
collaborative and strengths-focused approach to change management - envisioning positive futures
Job crafting
redesign own jobs to align with personal strengths, interests and values
Examples
Coaching Leadership Programmes
micro-coaching
positive performance appraisal systems
onboarding, retention, CSR (sense of purpose - alignment with ESG)
Workplace interventions are limited at best
