What are the 4 key concepts of positive psychology?
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Our Mission: The mission of the Positive Psychology Center is to promote research, training, education, and the dissemination of Positive Psychology. Positive Psychology is the scientific study of the strengths that enable individuals and communities to thrive. Dr. Martin E.P. Seligman is the Director of the Center and Zellerbach Family Professor of Psychology. Show The Rationale: During its first century, psychology justifiably focused most of its attention on human suffering. Marked progress as been made in understanding and treating numerous psychological disorders - depression, anxiety, and phobias, to name a few. While alleviating suffering, however, psychology has not paid much attention to what makes life most worth living. Positive Psychology is founded on the belief that people want more than an end to suffering. People want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play. We have the opportunity to create a science and a profession that not only heals psychological damage but also builds strengths to enable people to achieve the best things in life. The Three Pillars: Positive Psychology has three central concerns: positive experiences, positive individual traits, and positive institutions. Understanding positive emotions entails the study of contentment with the past, happiness in the present, and hope for the future. Understanding positive individual traits involves the study of strengths, such as the capacity for love and work, courage, compassion, resilience, creativity, curiosity, integrity, self-knowledge, moderation, self-control, and wisdom. Understanding positive institutions entails the study of the strengths that foster better communities, such as justice, responsibility, civility, parenting, nurturance, work ethic, leadership, teamwork, purpose, and tolerance. Our Goals: Some of the goals of Positive Psychology are to build a science that supports:
Current Activities: Activities at the Center include:
Management and Support: Martin E.P. Seligman, Ph.D., is director of the Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania.He is currently Zellerbach Family Professor of Psychology and former president of the American Psychological Association. He has written more than 275 articles and 20 books. Peter Schulman is the Executive Director of the Center. Since the 1970s, research at the Center has been funded by the generous support of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the U.S. Department of Education, the John Templeton Foundation, the Templeton Religion Trust, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies, the Gates Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Annenberg Foundation, the Mayerson Foundation, the Hovey Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, among others. Contact Us : E-Mail: Phone: 215-898-7173 A powerful way to boost your happiness in life is by leveraging the principals of positive psychology. As its name suggests, positive psychology focuses on growth by building on what’s positive. It helps you by tapping into positive emotions such as curiosity, awe, surprise and more. It emphasizes developing a person’s emotional intelligence, well-being and happiness. Some of the most insightful books I’ve read on positive psychology include Positive Intelligence by Shirzad Chamine and The Mind Monster Solution by Hazel Gale. Leaders can apply the basic concepts of positive psychology to impact leadership and performance in a positive way. You can use it in your own life in a practical manner to help you tap your best inner resources. Let’s look at a few key principles and how working on them will benefit you. 1. Focus on your strengths. Any action and thought that you continually work on, you strengthen. In your own life, look for skills and interests that play to your strengths. If you’re someone who can write a good article, loves numbers or has any other personal desire, it’s a good idea to work on that by doing online courses. Also, network with people in the same field — you may find new directions for your career and learn new things. When you continue to work on what you’re good at and feed your best values and emotions, you begin to create your best self. In time, you’ll have the mental toughness to meet challenges easily. 2. Express gratitude. When you express gratitude, you bring your attention to the positive aspects of your life. Practicing gratitude rigorously and on a daily basis is a powerful way to retrain your brain. As you focus on what’s good in your life, it will become a normal way of living. Create a gratitude journal to help you consciously and deliberately count your blessings. By working on your “gratitude muscle,” you’ll find that you’ve reached an attitude of positivity. 3. Find the silver lining. I believe that happy people are those who can point out the positive in every situation. Positive psychology encourages people to work toward finding a helpful lesson in every challenge. This attitude is extremely powerful and useful because you need to have a proactive mindset to manage important issues. Take steps to apply this important principle in your life by finding the silver lining in small problems. As you rewire your brain to pick solutions and look at positives, you’ll find it easier to troubleshoot bigger and harder issues. In this way, positive psychology can lead to long-term happiness because you feel confident in your ability to handle changes in life. 4. Move toward rather than away. When it comes to achieving goals, there are two main approaches: the carrot or the stick. In other words, your goals are either taking you away from something that’s challenging or toward something that helps you grow. Make a list of your goals, and ask yourself if they are taking you toward a great outcome or away from an unpleasant situation. Can you switch your “away” goals into “toward” ones? For example, if you’re trying to learn new skills and are motivated by the fear of losing a job, you’ll be preoccupied and stressed and will find it hard to learn. Transform your goal by focusing on the possibility of getting a new and rewarding job in a new place. This takes you toward a happier goal and taps into positive energies. Observe your feelings when you check your goals. In my experience, your “toward” goals will make you feel uplifted, expanded and heading toward growth. Away goals are more about self-preservation and protection. Turn your goals into something you move toward in your life. You’ll tap into positive feelings such as excitement and courage to keep you motivated. 5. Be present. It’s easier to make the other principles a part of your behavior when you’re more present. It’s only when you’re in the moment that you’re able to make deliberate choices in the direction you want to go. How do you become more present? I start by taking deep breaths and following the movement of air within my body. Pay close attention to the movement of your chest, your stomach and the sensations within. For a few seconds, you’ve become completely present. If you find it hard to focus on the present moment for long periods of time, try to do so for just ten seconds. In his book Positive Intelligence, Shirzad Chamine recommends practicing PQ reps, or small moments of being present, 100 times a day. You can do this while showering, walking and even while eating — which will help you enjoy your food more and understand when you’re not hungry. Keep repeating these 10-second sessions as many times as you can, and you’ll soon feel charged and energetic. Grow with the principles of positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on building what’s good in your life. You’re more likely to experience growth and happiness when your mind is in a positive space. You’ll focus on emotions such as awe, surprise, joy and other vibrant feelings. We’ve looked at some of the principles of positive psychology that could help you. Now, give them a try in your life. What are the three main ideas of positive psychology?Research topics
According to Seligman and Peterson, positive psychology addresses three issues: positive emotions, positive individual traits, and positive institutions. Positive emotions are concerned with being content with one's past, being happy in the present and having hope for the future.
What are the four positive individual traits in positive psychology?Understanding positive individual traits consists of the study of the strengths and virtues, such as the capacity for love and work, courage, compassion, resilience, creativity, curiosity, integrity, self-knowledge, moderation, self-control, and wisdom.
What are the 5 ways to practice positive psychology?Here are 5 positive psychology strategies to try and put into practice this week:. Prioritise close relationships. Your income has a surprisingly small impact on your experience of happiness. ... . Cultivate kindness. ... . Find your “flow” ... . Express Gratitude. ... . Discover your strengths.. What are some examples of positive psychology?According to Scott Glassman, PsyD, director of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology program at PCOM, examples of positive psychology in practice include:. Focusing on your strengths. ... . Recording your experiences. ... . Being grateful. ... . Showing gratitude. ... . Developing skills to increase positivity.. |
