What is Positive Psychology

POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY is the science of optimal functioning and psychological well-being, often described as the science of happiness, strengths, positivity, optimism or flourishing.  It was established in the late 1990s by Martin Seligman (Learned Optimism, Authentic Happiness, Flourish) and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience ) as a reaction to the prevailing focus of mainstream psychology on the negative aspects of our minds and behaviour. Positive psychology looks at what it takes for us to increase our well-being, play to our strengths and to thrive in both our personal or professional lives.

Positive psychology covers a broad range of areas which includes well-being, optimism, positive emotions, emotional intelligence, resilience, values, motivation, goals and strengths – our natural talents. The good news is that when it comes to our happiness, 40% of it is under voluntary control and can be increased through intentional activities. Routes to happiness can be found in meaningful, engaging and pleasurable activities.

This branch of psychology does not deny the negative aspects of life but goes beyond ‘positive thinking’ to try and find a positive in the negative, for example, in the study of resilience, the ability to bounce back from life’s hard times and post-traumatic growth, the search for meaning in life’s shattering experiences.

Most therapists and psychologists such as clinical psychologists, are working mainly in the disease model with a goal of reducing suffering, curing illness and achieving an absence of symptoms (reaching ‘neutral’). A positive psychologist, on the other hand, works in the health model with a goal of moving from whatever the starting point, beyond neutral and into the plus scale of well-being. I’m sure you’ll agree that an absence of depression, for example, is not the same as the presence of happiness. There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that working in the health model is an effective approach to increasing happiness. It seems to be true that ‘what you focus on is what you get.’ So if you want more happiness, focus on activities that promote your happiness. The diagram below gives you more of an idea of how the two models work.