As a scientist, he insists on the value-neutral purity of the research he directs, yet presides over a movement that even its fans say seems to have some of the characteristics of a religion. To many of its followers, the movement is a godsend, answering a need to belong to something larger than themselves and holding out the chance of better, fuller lives through truly effective techniques backed by science.
But how valid are these concerns, and do they matter if positive psychology makes people happy? Positive psychology has grown at an explosive rate since Seligman ushered it into the public conscious, surprising even Seligman himself. The field has attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in research grants. Its World Congress was attended by 1, delegates from 70 countries. It inspires tens of thousands of research papers, endless reams of popular books, and supports armies of therapists, coaches, and mentors.
Its institutional uptake has been no less impressive. Scores of K schools have adopted its principles. In , Yale University announced that an astonishing one-quarter of its undergraduates had enrolled in its course on happiness. Since that inaugural presidential address in , Seligman has distanced positive psychology from its original focus. At its inception, the field sought to map the paths that end in authentic fulfillment.
But with Flourish , Seligman changed course. The purpose of life, he said, is well-being, or flourishing , which includes objective, external components such as relationships and achievements.
Martin say it has left the field of science and entered the realm of ethics — that it is no longer a purely factual enterprise, but is now concerned with promoting particular values. There are worries about its replicability , its dependence on unreliable self-reports , and the sense that it can be used to prescribe one thing and also its opposite — for example, that well-being consists in living in the moment , but also in being future-oriented.
And for a science, positive psychology can often sound a lot like religion. Consider its trappings: It has a charismatic leader and legions of rapturous followers. It seemed that the nuns who expressed positive emotions more intensely and more frequently in their daily journals also happened to outlive many of the nuns who clearly did not. Another study used high school yearbook photos of women to see if the ultimate expression of happiness a smile might also be used as an indicator as to how satisfied they might be 20 years later.
In short, positive emotions are frequently paired with happy circumstances. And while we might be tempted to assume that happiness causes positive emotions, Seligman wonders, instead, whether positive emotions cause happiness. If so, what does this mean for our life and our happiness? The strengths and virtues […] function against misfortune and against the psychological disorders, and they may be the key to building resilience.
He and Dr. They used good character to measure its efficacy because good character was so consistently and strongly linked to lasting happiness. In order to remain true to their efforts to create a universal classification system, they made a concerted effort to examine and research a wide variety of religious and philosophical texts from all over the world Seligman , p.
Seligman clarifies the difference between talents and strengths by defining strengths as moral traits that can be developed, learned, and that take effort. Talents, on the other hand, tend to be inherent and can only be cultivated from what exists rather than what develops through effort Seligman , p. For example, many people consider musical ability as more or less inherent and can only be strengthened.
On the other hand, one can cultivate the strength of patience, which can lead to the virtue of temperance. Seligman provides a detailed classification of the different virtues as well as a strengths survey that is available on his website: www. Positive emotion alienated from the exercise of character leads to emptiness, inauthenticity, depression and, as we age, to the gnawing realization that we are fidgeting until we die Seligman , p.
Here Seligman states, rather dismally, that there are no shortcuts to happiness. Investing oneself into creative work creates a greater sense of meaning in life and accordingly, a greater sense of happiness.
Seligman goes one step further than Csikszentmihalyi by exploring the experience of flow and the loss of self-consciousness that is involved in acts of altruism and of kindness. Kindness […] consists in total engagement and in the loss of consciousness. The exercise of kindness is a gratification in contrast to pleasure. As a gratification, it calls on your strengths to rise to an occasion and meet a challenge, particularly in the service of others.
How can we use our strengths and virtues to achieve a meaningful life? One example could be a gifted martial artist who experiences great pleasure in perfecting her skills in karate and winning prizes in tournaments. Some of the major findings of positive psychology include:. Positive psychology is often confused with positive thinking, and misconstrued as self-help tactics rather than research-backed theories. Positive thinking is a way of thinking ourselves into better behavior and greater resilience, rather than behaving our way into a different frame of mind.
Positive psychology, on the other hand, is the scientific study of what makes people thrive. It focuses on behaviors that can lead to a more optimized frame of mind as well as on thought patterns that lead to more functional behaviors. Shortly after WWII, the primary focus of psychology shifted to the first priority: treating abnormal behavior and mental illness.
In the s, humanist thinkers like Carl Rogers , Erich Fromm , and Abraham Maslow helped renew interest in the other two areas by developing theories that focused on happiness and the positive aspects of human nature. Here are a few more significant dates in the history of positive psychology:. Other important figures in positive psychology have included:. General interest in positive psychology has grown tremendously since the concept was introduced. Today, more and more people are searching for information on how they can become more fulfilled and achieve their full potential.
Ever wonder what your personality type means? Sign up to find out more in our Healthy Mind newsletter. Psychology Today. What is positive psychology, and what is it not? May Seligman ME, Csikszentmihalyi M. Positive psychology. An introduction. Am Psychol. Sour beer enthusiast. French Fry connoisseur. Aggressive typer. Can also ski. Logo White Created with Sketch. Home About Contributors Research. Home About Contributors. Mabbly Logo.
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