INTRODUCTION

. What is positive psychology?

Positive psychology is the scientific study of optimal human functioning and what makes life worth living. In other words, it is the psychology of characteristics, conditions and processes which lead to flourishing. Researching what goes right for individuals, communities and organisations is every bit as important to us as understanding what goes wrong.

When positive psychology was originally launched over a decade ago, it distanced itself from other branches of psychology. However, there is no doubt that it has its roots in the work of William James in the late 19th century, humanistic psychology of the mid-20th century, as well as in the work of ancient philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato. The main difference is that, as a science, it focuses on discovering the empirical evidence for thriving. But it’s not science for its own sake – it’s the application that is of interest to psychologists. So, how can empirical research be used to improve our own well-being?

It is fair to say that some of the research topics which now fall under the umbrella of positive psychology are not new; some even pre-date it. Topics such as optimism, motivation and emotional intelligence had been studied for many years before positive psychology came along. There are, of course, many other areas of optimal functioning which were under-researched, and about which we knew very little, such as gratitude, hope and curiosity.

The vast majority of psychology studies carried out over the past 40+ years have focused on the negative sides of life, such as anxiety, depression, low self-esteem and post-traumatic stress disorder. Positive psychology redresses this imbalance by focusing on the human traits and circumstances which lead to thriving. Although some of the research evidence may seem like common sense, there is a great deal which is new, surprising, and even counter-intuitive.

. Where does positive psychology come from?

Positive psychology originated from the University of Pennsylvania in the United States, where there is now a Positive Psychology Centre. One of the founders is psychology professor Martin Seligman, who is well known for his pioneering work on learned helplessness and later on learned optimism. The positive psychology movement began around 1998, when Seligman chose it as the theme for his inaugural address as President of the American Psychological Association. Since then, thousands of new research articles and books on the subject have been written, several new academic journals published – for example, the Journal of Positive Psychology, the Psychology of Wellbeing, the Journal of Happiness Studies, and the International Journal of Wellbeing. Also established is the international professional association, the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA).

As yet, over a decade after positive psychology appeared as a formal branch of psychology, there is no sign that our interest in the topics of happiness, wellbeing and flourishing is diminishing. In fact, the growth in the field, whether in university research projects, conferences and academic degree courses, or in books, blogs and workshops for the general public, gives every indication that positive psychology is here to stay. Even in the last few years, successive British governments have been interested in the idea of developing public policy for wellbeing, and since 2010 the Office for National Statistics has had a “Measuring National Wellbeing” programme which was set up to produce accepted and trusted measures of the wellbeing of the nation. The first ever UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on Wellbeing Economics has also been established to challenge GDP as the government’s main indicator of national success and to promote new measures of societal progress.