Positive Psychology

Established and Emerging Issues

Dana S. Dunn

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN:
  9781138698659
• eBook ISBN:
  9781351603737
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Applied Psychology
• Index: Psychology

This volume is a comprehensive review of theoretical and empirical contributions to positive psychology. It provides a scientific understanding of how human strengths help people psychologically and physically, showing how stressful circumstances do not inexorably lead to negative prognoses. It examines how individuals confront challenges, appreciate others, and regard daily experiences as meaningful. Many of the chapters also challenge the negative, disease-model approach that dominates much of the research concerning health and well-being. Chapters also address applications and future directions for the field. The broad scope makes it a key resource for undergraduates, graduates, researchers, and practitioners in social, clinical, and positive psychology.

1
PUTTING POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY INTO PERSPECTIVE

Dana S. Dunn

Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.

(Aristotle, 384–322 BCE)

In retrospect, perhaps, it is no surprise that a discipline dedicated to the study of factors affecting mental and physical health would eventually examine the positive qualities that make life worth living. Yet it took a quite a while for the discipline’s zeitgeist to shift from dealing with negative states and traits—reacting to and alleviating distress and dysphoria—to promoting prevention via the identification and cultivation of beneficial behaviors (e.g. Seligman, 1999). However, what could be described as something of a sea change did occur, and positive psychology morphed from an idea to a movement to an established subfield in psychology in a relatively short period of time. Journal articles, monographs, textbooks, conferences, graduate degrees, and even dedicated journals—the Journal of Happiness Studies, The Journal of Positive Psychology—now espouse the strengths and benefits associated with positive psychology. In large part, positive psychology is the study of positive subjective states, traits, and institutions that enable people to flourish—to enjoy high levels of well-being and low levels of mental illness (Keyes, 2009)—in their daily lives. As these burgeoning resources attest, pursuing and living a good life is a worthy goal (Franklin, 2010).

Though now well established in mainstream psychology, positive psychology is not without its critics (Richardson & Guignon, 2008). The late stress and coping theorist, Richard Lazarus (2003), for example, wondered whether the field would be a fad, mostly because in his view its message was not a terribly new one. To be fair, it is sometimes hard not to wonder whether at least some work in positive psychology is not merely “old wine in new bottles”; for example, the late social psychologist, Alice Isen, established that positive affect had a variety of beneficial effects for people (e.g. Isen, 1987) long before the term “positive psychology” was even coined. And at least one subfield of psychology—humanistic psychology—sees positive psychology as treading on its intellectual turf (Friedman, 2014; Schneider, 2011; Waterman, 2014), while acknowledging the respective subfields’ reliance on distinct views of humanity, the construal of well-being, and particular empirical methods (Waterman, 2013).

I am confident, however, the scholarship in this book will convince readers that positive psychology is not a passing fancy or mere “happiology” (e.g. Seligman, 2011), that the subfield does not offer overly simplistic—or, worse, solipsistic—views of people and their lives. We know that positive interventions can promote happiness and other beneficial states (e.g. Quoidbach, Mikolalczak, & Gross, 2015; Seligman, Steen, Park, & Peterson, 2005). Thus, the aim of this edited book is twofold: To provide readers with current perspectives on established, key subject areas in positive psychology, and to introduce them to emerging topical areas where positive psychology is making constructive inroads. As a result, chapters in this book are spread among three parts: positive subjective experiences, positive traits and states, and positive institutional perspectives and new directions. We will review the contents of each part in turn.

Positive Subjective Experiences

Human experience is inherently subjective: We know our own experiences and we guess, assume, or posit the experience of other people (e.g. Wegner & Gilbert, 2000). Positive subjective experiences are those favorable states that people associate with “being happy” and “feeling good” about themselves and their place in the world. The chapters in Part I of the book explore various approaches to understanding and explicating the benefits that can be accrued from positive subjective experiences.

Current perspectives on subjective well-being (SWB) are the focus of the chapter by Heintzelman and Tay. SWB is a more comprehensive indicator than the more familiar construct of “happiness,” and the authors review definitional and assessment issues, benefits and validated promotional triggers, and possible future directions for research. Le Nguyen and Fredrickson discuss emotions and well-being in the next chapter, linking positive emotions to the well-known broaden-and-build theory, including evidence indicating how positive emotions promote well-being and its components, such as resilience. The authors also examine connections between positive emotions and health, emotional contingencies linked to dosage, emotion type, and cultural influences, as well as evidence-based ways to pursue happiness and well-being.

Kurtz discusses the growing psychosocial literature concerning savoring, arguing that people’s ability to focus on, value, and even amplify pleasure associated with particular experiences has beneficial consequences. Although some people are predisposed to savor more than others, savoring is elicited by predictable factors found in the environment; besides considering future directions for research, Kurtz also considers various techniques that boost enjoyment of activities and special moments. Having more money might not lead to greater happiness, but as Hanniball, Aknin, and Wiwad show in the next chapter, there are decided strategies for spending money well that lead to positive subjective states. Part I closes with a chapter by Boothby and Clark, who demonstrate that there is something quite positive and beneficial about close relationships. They show that the mere presence (i.e. no interaction) of a familiar, close partner can dampen perceived threats and challenges, and amplify pleasures.

Positive Traits and States

An important claim made by Peterson and Seligman (2004) in their book, Character Strengths and Virtues, is that many positive traits can be learned. In other words, it need not be the case that by the luck of the draw some people are blessed with a positive demeanor that promotes well-being while others struggle to cope with tepid outlooks on the world. Some beneficial characteristics can be learned, even later in life. And, fortunately, research in positive psychology suggests that there are behavioral steps people can take to adjust their cognitive and emotional outlooks regarding ongoing experiences. In Part II of the book, researchers consider how positive traits and states can influence well-being.

In the opening chapter of Part II, Langer and Ngnoumen examine how mindfulness—a desirable mental state where awareness is focused on the present moment—can enhance health and well-being. As the authors show, a substantial body of research demonstrates that mindfulness promotes positive affect and creativity, diminishes stress, heightens quality of life, and improves physical health and psychological outlooks. In the next chapter, Bouchard, Carver, Mens, and Scheier discuss how optimism—the expectation that future occurrences will generally be positive—favorably influences people’s physical and mental conditions. These investigators highlight how optimism affects goal pursuit, the values attached to particular goals, and an individual’s confidence in achieving desired ends. Part II’s third chapter explores how forgiving people for their transgressions can impact both physiological and emotional well-being. In doing so, vanOyen Witvliet and Root Luna present forgiveness as a moral response for challenging relational injustice. The final chapter in Part II, which was written by Pury and Saylors, focuses on courage and courageous actions as positive psychological constructs. They define features constituting courage, indicating how it is similar to, but distinct from, related constructs, and review social psychological concepts that render brave actions as understandable and representative of courage.

Positive Institutional Perspectives and New Directions

To date, most empirical and theoretical investigations of positive psychological phenomena focus on positive subjective states, traits, and related phenomena. Less research deals with positive psychology’s third pillar (Peterson, 2006), the role of positive institutions in people’s growth and development. Positive institutions are settings or organizations that impart civic virtues, encourage individuals to be conscientious citizens, and promote the collective good. Two important positive institutional settings, the workplace and the university campus, are discussed in this third part. The opening chapter by Luthans and Frey explores the role of positive psychological capital or PsyCap in the workplace. The authors review how PsyCap influences workers’ attitudes, actions, and performance at work, as well as the development of beneficial psychological resources linked to employment. In the next chapter, Schreiner considers what factors allow students to thrive academically during college and in their postgraduate life. Student success and well-being is much more than solid grades and degree completion; indeed, Schreiner argues successful student growth is dependent on a process of academic, psychological, and social engagement during their college years.

The remaining chapters here cover emerging topical areas in positive psychology, many of which build bridges between other areas of psychology, such as social psychology, clinical psychology, and rehabilitation psychology, to the established areas of positive psychology. In their chapter, Christy, Rivera, Chen, and Hicks address the role of finding meaning in life and how doing so influences positive psychological functioning and outcomes. A chapter by Dunn outlines recent advances concerning positive psychological factors linked to the experience of disability, rehabilitation services, and psychosocial outcomes. DePaulo, a social psychologist, offers a positive psychological perspective on single life, presenting powerful evidence that, despite the ways single people are frequently stereotyped, stigmatized, and ignored, they nonetheless lead happy lives, reporting and showing markers of high levels of well-being.

Does positive psychology have implications for clinical interventions? In their chapter, Smirnova and Parks argue that findings from positive psychology have beneficial clinical applications that can be used to ameliorate depression and other negative symptoms that some people experience. A chapter by Wehmeyer and Shogren shares applications of the self-determination construct to both positive psychology and social psychology. Self-determination, a general psychological construct, is an account of human agency and volition, one where self and other caused action are attributed to human will. In this volume’s closing chapter, Lomas discusses applied positive psychology within the context of a multidimensional, meta-theoretical model designed to promote human well-being.

Positive Psychology in Perspective

In many ways, the rapid rise of research in positive psychology is remarkable. As the chapters in this book attest, positive psychology has emerged as a viable, exciting, and even dynamic subfield of psychology. In formal terms, positive psychology is a little less than 20 years old (though psychological research stipulating salutary approaches to understanding mental health and physical well-being appeared long before, if not in such an organized way). Yet readers will likely view much of the discussion in the chapters in the first two parts of this book as scientifically mature or maturing—a base of established data and theory are allowing investigators to make confident claims about positive perspectives on behavior. Chapters in Part III offer readers the pleasure of discovering new areas of inquiry that push positive psychology in new empirical directions. The contributors to this book and I very much hope readers—researchers, students, interested lay people—will not only learn from the collective work presented herein but will apply some of it to their own lives. And we will be gratified if some readers use ideas and findings from the present chapters to plan their own positive psychological investigations.

References

Franklin, S. S. (2010). The psychology of happiness: A good human life. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Friedman, H. (2014). Are humanistic and positive psychology really incommensurate? American Psychologist, 69, 89–90. doi:10.1037/a0034865.

Isen, A. M. (1987). Positive affect, cognitive processes, and social behavior. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 20, pp. 203–253). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. doi:10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60415-3.

Keyes, C. M. (2009). Toward a science of mental health. In S. J. Lopez & C. R. Snyder (Eds.), Oxford handbook of positive psychology (2nd ed., pp. 89–95). New York: Oxford University Press.

Lazarus, R. S. (2003). Does the positive psychology movement have legs? Psychological Inquiry, 14, 93–109.

Peterson, C. (2006). A primer in positive psychology. New York: Oxford University Press.

Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Quoidbach, J., Mikolalczak, M., & Gross, J. J. (2015). Positive interventions: An emotion regulation perspective. Psychological Bulletin, 141, 655–693. doi:10.1037/a0038648.

Richardson, F. C., & Guignon, C. B. (2008). Positive psychology and philosophy of social science. Theory & Psychology, 18, 605–627.

Schneider, K. (2011). Toward a humanistic positive psychology: Why can’t we just get along? Existential Analysis, 22, 32–38.

Seligman, M. E. P. (1999). The president’s address. American Psychologist, 54, 559–562.

Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourishing: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. New York: Free Press.

Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 60, 410–421.

Waterman, A. S. (2013). The humanistic psychology-positive psychology divide: Contrasts in philosophical foundations. American Psychologist, 68, 123–133. doi:10.1037/a0032168.

Waterman, A. S. (2014). Further reflections on the humanistic psychology-positive psychology divide. American Psychologist, 69, 92–94. doi:10.1037/a0034966.

Wegner, D. M., & Gilbert, D. T. (2000). Subjective experience in social cognition and behavior. In H. Bless & J. P. Forgas (Eds.), Social psychology: The science of human experience (pp. 1–9). Philadelphia, PA: Psychology Press.

PART I
Positive Institutional Perspectives and New Directions

2
SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING

Payoffs of Being Happy and Ways to Promote Happiness

Samantha J. Heintzelman and Louis Tay

The desire to be happy is a near-universal motivation. Additionally, reflections aimed to describe the features of happiness, debates about its foundations, and disagreements about its moral value and impact on individuals and societies have been prominent for centuries in diverse fields such as philosophy, theology, literature, and politics. Recent decades have seen an ascent of happiness into the psychological arena as well. The science of happiness in psychology has taken great strides by establishing robust measures of happiness and providing evidence regarding the antecedents and consequences of this experience (De Neve, Diener, Tay, & Xuereb, 2013; Diener, Inglehart, & Tay, 2013). This effort has enabled psychology to add valuable insights to inform our conceptualizations of happiness and strategies to maximize this experience.

These burge...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Contributing Authors
• Preface
• 1 Putting Positive Psychology into Perspective
• PART I Positive Institutional Perspectives and New Directions
• PART II Positive Traits and States
• PART III Positive Institutional Perspectives and New Directions
• Index