Positive psychology: what is it, positive psychologist, criticism, methods, concepts, impact on human life

An amazing formula for happiness, if you look into this topic in more detail, is right in front of us. All you need to do is enjoy life, support and help other people, try to live life to the fullest, develop and show your best qualities as often as possible. All this relates to the field of positive psychology - a direction that not only takes academic research and its results as a basis, but also uses practical methods to achieve well-being and happiness. In this article we will talk about it.

What is "prosperity"?

The word “prosperity” was not chosen by chance, since before that the main words were happiness and well-being. Happiness did not fit because of its subjectivity. After all, a homeless person can be happy if he only received warm clothes and money for lunch, but he cannot be called prosperous or prosperous. The word “well-being” is used quite actively in positive psychology, as it well reflects people's understanding of quality life and optimal functioning. Prosperous people are those who are most prosperous in important areas of human life. This is approximately 20 percent of the population, although this figure varies depending on the country and rating system.

Today, positive psychology studies factors of well-being and prosperity, positive aspects of personality (character strengths, positive emotions, emotional intelligence, state of flow, awareness, etc.). Classical psychology differs from positive psychology in that the orientation of the first is aimed mainly at solving problems and getting rid of pathologies, while the second, on the contrary, studies the good that is in a person, ways of activating and realizing the potential to achieve possible well-being in an individual situation and prosperity.

Theory and concepts

The most important thing to understand about positive psychology is that it really is a science. It is a subfield of psychology, and although it is sometimes derided as "soft science" or "pseudoscience", it is still based on the scientific method of evaluating theories based on evidence. As University of Michigan professor and positive psychology legend Christopher Peterson said:

…Positive psychology should not be confused with untested self-help, perfect affirmation, or secular religion—no matter how good they may make us feel. Positive Psychology is neither a rehash of the power of positive thinking nor a sequel to The Secret. (2008)

Peterson continues to outline the theories and concepts that have emerged from the research. At least until 2008:

For the most part, most people are happy.
Happiness is one of the reasons for good things in life and also contributes to greater happiness.
Most people are pretty resilient.
Happiness, character strengths, and good social relationships serve as a buffer against disappointment and failure.
Crises reveal character.
Other people matter (in terms of what makes life worth living).
Work matters in terms of making life worth living. While we are busy and drawing meaning and purpose from it.
Money has diminishing returns on our happiness after a certain point. But we can buy a little happiness by spending money on other people.
Eudaimonia (well-being, a deeper form of satisfaction than happiness) is more important than hedonism (the sole focus on pleasure and positive emotions) for the good life.
"Heart" has more meaning than "head". This means that empathy and compassion are just as important as critical thinking.
Almost all good days have three things in common: a sense of autonomy, competence, and connection to others.
A good life can be taught.

Image by Natalia Danilchenko from Pixabay

POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY VERSUS POSITIVE PSYCHOTHERAPY

Although their names are similar, positive psychology and positive psychotherapy are two different approaches. One approach is based on positive psychology theory developed by Seligman in 1998. The other is the cross-cultural approach, developed in 1968 by Nosrat Peshkian. It includes psychodynamic and humanistic influences.

Seligman's positive psychology and Peshkian's positive psychotherapy are somewhat similar. They both assume that people are inherently healthy. They also try to encourage personal development. However, there are still some key differences between these approaches.

Seligman's approach does not deny negative experiences. But Peseshkian's approach views all negative experiences in a positive light. He sees them as opportunities for growth.
Seligman's approach is largely Western. Peshkyan's approach is more transcultural.
Seligman's approach distances itself from his humanist influences. Meanwhile, Peshkian's approach embraces his humanistic and psychodynamic background.

Positive, constructive, receptive leader

If you've ever encountered positive psychology (for example, at school, at work, at staff development events) and been asked to talk about successes when you wanted to talk about an annoying problem, then you may have felt awkward, although didn't understand why. Who doesn’t want to be a productive and competent specialist and develop further? In any case, modern managers willingly evaluate and encourage their subordinates. […]

The modern leader no longer acts as a tough and strong authority who gives orders and makes decisions. He practices a form of soft power by “inviting” employees to talk about “success” in order to “achieve maximum enjoyment at work.” Forget that there is still a clear asymmetry of power between management and subordinates, and some goals are much more realistic than others. For example, recently at my (otherwise wonderful) job they asked me to formulate a “vision” for the development of our institute. When I said that we should strive to become a mid-sized institution, there was no excitement. I meant that this is a realistic and achievable goal for a small university in a Danish province. But now everything has to be “world class” or in the “top 5”, and the path there is undoubtedly only accessible to those who are focused on opportunity and success. This can be called forced positivity. Only the best will do, and to achieve it, you just need to not be afraid to dream and think positively.

Main directions

Currently, there are three schools of positive psychology:

Center for Positive Psychology

The Positive Psychology Center (PPC) is located in the United States of America. The first stage of the center’s work was the creation of a classification of the individual’s strengths and positive traits (similar to the “classification of pathologies”, which is the DSM-IV nosological system). In 2004, Seligman and Peterson published a list of 24 positive human traits, divided into 6 groups:

Virtues of wisdom and knowledge: creativity, curiosity, openness, love of learning, perspective.
Virtues of courage: courage, diligence, integrity, vitality.
Virtues of humanity: love, kindness, social intelligence.
Virtues of justice: citizenship, fairness, leadership.
Virtues of temperance: mercy, moderation, foresight, self-control.
Virtues of Transcendence: Appreciation of beauty, gratitude, hope, sense of humor, spirituality

Seligman and Peterson's list was compiled based on which character traits are most valued by different cultures and religions.

Based on responses to the VIA-Survey questionnaire, it was revealed which character traits are most conducive to overcoming depression and achieving happiness. These character traits are:

Hope
Gratitude
Curiosity
Love.

The VIA-Survey can be used in psychotherapy by asking clients to evaluate their strengths using the VIA-Survey and then try to use those strengths in a variety of new ways (eg, try a new way every day of the week). It is also recommended to note in your diary each day three happy events that happened that day, and also write down what actions led to these happy events.

What influence does direction have on the human psyche?

A positive perception of the world allows a person to mobilize internal resources. Directing your energy toward solving a problem rather than immersing yourself in a negative influence increases your chances of successfully overcoming a crisis situation. The ability to find positive moments helps to avoid despair and maintain a stable sanity.

Positivity contributes to another important component of human relationships - the creation of new social connections. People who have a positive attitude and overcome difficulties with a smile find it much easier to establish contacts. In a small social group (class, work team, sports team), an individual has a higher social status. He has a greater chance of creating a successful career and a prosperous family.

"Think positively"

The cult of positive thinking, which psychology professor Barbara Held calls the “tyranny of positivity,” is more popular now than ever. Even people who are seriously ill or going through a life crisis are expected to “learn from” their situation and become stronger. Not only do we experience stress and experience our own personal tragedies, but we also have to glow with enthusiasm.

What remains for those who cannot think positively non-stop? Feeling guilty for not being happy enough, and another reason for self-criticism. But our lives are not filled only with rosy events. We all make mistakes, we are sad, we quarrel with loved ones, we are disappointed, we get sick - and no amount of affirmations will change this. The point is to learn to see the bad without embellishment.

“I respond to pain with screams and tears, to meanness with indignation, to abomination with disgust. In my opinion, this, in fact, is called life.” A.P. Chekhov

Stoic philosophers teach to enjoy life without the filter of rose-colored glasses and to be grateful for what you have. Seneca writes that everything in life is “loaned” to us, and fortune can take it away at any moment. “Anything that can happen at any other time can happen today.” In other words, memento mori - remember death. This helps to appreciate life in all its manifestations.

The meaning of themes such as flow and prosperity

Speaking of prosperity, this is a concept that we have already touched on in this article, but have not yet defined. We also mentioned the topic of flow, albeit indirectly, which is also an important concept in positive psychology.

Understanding these concepts is vital to understanding the field of positive psychology. Read on to find out more about them.

Prosperity

Flourishing is one of the most important concepts in positive psychology because it encompasses and extends to many other positive concepts.

In short, “thriving” refers to the state we are in when we pay attention to every aspect of the PERMA model and develop a stronger sense of well-being. We thrive when we develop our talents and strengths. Developing deep and meaningful relationships, experiencing pleasure and enjoyment, and making meaningful contributions to the world.

We thrive when we find satisfaction in life along with the achievement of more traditional goals associated with success, when we truly live the “good life.”

Positive psychologist and professor Dr. Lynn Soates describes thriving as follows:

Prosperity is the result of seeking and engaging in an authentic life that brings inner joy and happiness through the achievement of goals. Connecting with life's passions and enjoying achievements through the highs and lows of life.

Additionally, Soates emphasizes that thriving is not a trait, a characteristic, or something you “either have or don’t have.” Rather, thriving is a process that requires action. While it may be frustrating that it's not easy, it's reassuring to know that truly anyone can thrive!

Image by Victoria_Borodinova from Pixabay

Flow

Another prominent theme in positive psychology is flow.

The concept of flow was first scientifically researched and defined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (our second “founding father” of positive psychology).

In the last few decades of the 1900s, Csikszentmihalyi noticed that many artists fell into a certain state while working. This state was characterized by particularly intense focus and great concentration on the task at hand. To the point of losing track of time for several hours.

He continued to study this topic and noticed it in others. Professional athletes, musicians, writers, and people from a variety of artistic and creative professions have often reported losing themselves in their work in similar ways.

As he collected more descriptions of this phenomenon, he observed six factors that characterize the experience of flow:

Intense and focused concentration on the present moment.
Merging action and awareness or being fully present in your actions.
Loss of reflective self-awareness (lack of self-attention).
A sense of personal control or free will in a situation.
Distorted sense of the passage of time.
Experiencing an activity or situation as inherently beneficial.

Those who enter a state of flow become completely immersed in what they are doing. This immersion occurs when the tasks facing us are significant and roughly equal to our skills.

When we have a high level of skill and a low level of difficulty, we get bored. High challenge and low skill level, we are overwhelmed. When we have “low skill and low complexity,” we are apathetic. Only when both our skills and our challenges are high do we enter a state of flow.

Entering flow is an inherently rewarding and often enjoyable experience. Flow also appears to be associated with greater happiness and well-being, more academic (and subsequently career) success, and more positive and healthy relationships.

Image by Oluwaseyi Aiyeobasan from Pixabay

Notes

Seligman M.
Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment. - New York: Simon and Schuster, 2002. - 275 p. — ISBN 0-7432-2297-0.
↑
↑ Peterson C., Seligman MEP
Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. - Oxford University Press, 2004. - ISBN 0-19-516701-5.
Park N., Peterson C., Selimgan MEP
Strengths of character and well-being // Journal of social and clinical psychology. - Vol. 23. - P. 603-619.
(unavailable link). Access date: November 4, 2012.
. medportal.ru
. Copper News (July 27, 2012). Date accessed: August 27, 2020.
. Higher School of Economics (2020). Date accessed: August 27, 2020.
Schneider, K.
Toward a Humanistic Positive Psychology. Existential Analysis: Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. - 2011. - pp. 32-38.
Seligman, Martin E.
The Optimistic Child. Houghton Mifflin Company. - 1995. - P. 295-299.
Barbara S. Held.
.

How Adlerian individual psychology influenced our vision of personality

In Adlerian psychology, all personality problems are interpersonal problems. Adler never considered himself a student or follower of Freud. He was much more interested in our relationships with other people, rather than unconscious traumas and complexes. Therefore, he called his own theory “individual psychology” - from the word individuum, that is, “indivisible.” The personality here acts not as a field of endless struggle between consciousness and the unconscious, but as a single whole

If Freud focused on the past, Adler emphasized the importance of goals for the future. It is our goals that determine how we live today.

Adler was indeed friendly with Freud for some time and in 1910 even headed the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. But their views quickly diverged. Adler did not like Freud's focus on sex and unconscious motives for behavior. Freud considered individual psychology too simple and superficial, and called Adler himself nothing less than a traitor to psychoanalysis.

Some believe that it was Adler, not Freud, who had the greatest influence on the development of modern psychotherapeutic approaches. In his book The Discovery of the Unconscious, psychiatrist Henry Ellenberger wrote: “It is difficult to find another author from whom so much has been borrowed without giving him any credit as Alfred Adler.” Abraham Maslow and Viktor Frankl, Carl Rogers, Rollo May, Karen Horney and Erich Fromm - all these famous psychologists took a lot from Adler.

Negativism of memories

Memory stores all events that had a negative or positive impact on the individual. Traumatic memories are hidden in the subconscious: a person may not be aware of them, but the influence of the memories does not stop.

Negative influence reduces cognitive functions: a person sees all events in a negative light and loses the ability to notice positive aspects. His life becomes empty, he loses the meaning of life, he is afraid to make plans for the future.

Positivist scientists are of the opinion that the development of depression occurs due to the predominance of negative memories over positive ones. Negativism prevents a person from focusing on living the moment. He gets stuck in negativity, and over time his adequate perception of reality is distorted. Failures are perceived as commonplace, self-esteem drops, and the person learns to live with depression, considering it a normal condition.

To relieve symptoms of depression, the patient should work with traumatic memories rather than avoid them. Positive revision of events that caused a negative perception of the world helps to create a new vision, focus on the present and not be afraid to make plans for the future.

Benefits of Positive Thinking

Focusing attention. Positive thinking allows you not to waste energy on negativity, but helps you concentrate on solving problems. That is, you get back into your usual routine faster. You are wondering what you can do instead of staying depressed for a long time. Negative emotions - regret, irritation - stop going around in your head. From now on, you are focused on the experience gained and direct your thoughts in the direction of finding solutions.

Self-control. The ability to think positively drives away gloomy thoughts. This prevents you from doing reckless things that you might regret. When you are in a bad mood or angry, sometimes you act stupid or lose control of yourself. In most cases, responding negatively to a situation only makes it worse. The worst action is to bury yourself deeper into problems.

Thoughts are material

You receive from the universe what your attention is focused on. If you have negative thoughts and are fixated on bad events, then your life will be filled with nothing but problems. And with positive thinking, you always attract positive situations into your life.

And with positive thinking, you always attract positive situations into your life.

Positive thinking creates reality, not just directs your thoughts in the right direction. By learning to think positively, you will plunge into a positive life, because such thoughts contribute to positive actions that lead to the achievement of your goals.

Having developed positive thinking in yourself, you will be able to see what others are not able to see, look at the situation from a different perspective. This will happen because you change your mindset and redirect your focus.

For example, in any trouble that happens you will always notice not only one negative, you will be able to look at the situation from the other side, learn to focus on the positive aspects of what is happening

Benefits of Positive Thinking

If a person is always negative, he will be able to see only the bad in current events, missing the positive aspects, even if they are obvious. Having formed a worldview, things that are outside its boundaries are perceived very difficult. The point is that you will constantly be in a state of mental peace and regard all the events that happen in your life as nothing more than just an experience, even a very bitter one.

The benefits outlined above are not a complete list of the benefits you get by mastering positive thinking. In some ways, you will become almost fearless by developing a certain mindset and learning to think positively.

Fearlessness comes from knowing that no matter what happens to you, at any time in your life, you will be able to accept it without losing your positivity.

Living without fear and having the determination to live against all odds is an invaluable quality in our time. Once you master it, you will become stronger as a person, and nothing can break you on the way to your desired goals.

Teachings and research

Positive psychology teaches how to harness the power of changing perspective to maximize the potential for happiness in many areas of our daily behavior.

Each of these results gives us specific insight into how to improve our quality of life:

People greatly overestimate the impact of money on their happiness. This does have some impact, but not as much as we might think. Therefore, focusing less on achieving wealth will likely make you happier.
Spending money on pleasant experiences brings more happiness than spending money on material goods.
Gratitude is a major contributor to happiness, suggesting that the more we cultivate gratitude, the happier we will be.
Oxytocin can make people more trusting, compassionate, and moral. This means that hugging or other displays of physical affection can greatly improve your overall well-being.
Those who intentionally cultivate a positive mood benefit from a more genuine experience of positive mood. In other words, "putting on a happy face" won't necessarily make you feel happier, but with a little effort, you are more likely to do so.
Happiness is contagious. Those who have happy friends and loved ones are more likely to be happy in the future.
People who show kindness to others not only improve their well-being, but are also more accepted by their peers.
Spending time volunteering for a cause you believe in improves your well-being and life satisfaction and may even reduce symptoms of depression.
Spending money on other people brings more happiness to the giver.

Image by Victoria_Borodinova from Pixabay

Positive psychology also leads to improvements in the workplace, with field studies showing that:

Positive emotions increase the efficiency of our work.
Positive emotions in the workplace are contagious. One positive person or team can have a ripple effect that ripples through the entire organization.
Small simple actions can have a big impact on our happiness. It doesn't take much to encourage your workplace to become a happier, more positive place.

One of the benefits of a positive psychological outlook is, in a broad sense, success! Not only does success make us happier, but positive emotions actually increase our chances of success.

However, do not think that giving up any negative emotions or attitudes will help you achieve success. An important finding from positive psychology research is that forcing people who are not naturally optimistic to “just think positive” can do more harm than good.

Another broad benefit of the positive psychology movement is a clearer understanding of what a “good life” is.

Some of their more specific findings included the following:

Satisfying your wants and needs increases happiness but has little effect on meaningfulness. This indicates that focusing on getting what you want will increase your happiness. But you may need to take supplements to get a deeper sense of meaning.
Happiness is present-oriented, rooted in the moment, while meaningfulness is more focused on the past, future, and how they relate to the present. This finding suggests that you can focus on the present to increase your happiness. But you can think more about your past and future to find meaning.
Givers feel more meaning, and takers feel more happiness. If you find that you lack meaning, try giving something to others. If you lack happiness, try accepting the generosity of others to support yourself.
Worry, stress and anxiety are more likely to be experienced by those whose lives are full of meaning and low in happiness. This indicates that you should not worry too much about negative emotions. If you have a strong sense of meaning - a little negative emotion can be a really good thing!
The intention to express one's authentic self and a sense of strong personality are associated with meaning, but not with happiness; if you are looking for meaning, try working on your authenticity practice.

Findings such as these have led to a number of interesting theories that contribute to the positive psychology literature.

Image by Afishera from Pixabay

Criticism

According to Kirk Schneider, positive psychology cannot explain past negative events, such as the actions of the Nazi Party or Stalin's repressions. In addition, Schneider pointed to research where a positive illusion distorts reality. Positive moods can become incapable of psychological growth and tend to hold onto racial prejudice. Negativity, sometimes manifested as mild to moderate depression, is, in contrast, correlated with less distortion of reality. Therefore, negativity can play an important role in the dynamics of human flourishing. Seligman recognized the view of positive illusion in his work.

Ian Sempel in The Guardian, Fr. Sempel cites Stephen Wolin, a clinical psychiatrist, that positive psychology research is simply a repetition of older ways of thinking, and that there is not much scientific research that can support the effectiveness of this method.

Barbara Held has argued that although positive psychology makes contributions to the field of psychology, it has its limitations. She suggested understanding topics such as the negative side effects of positive psychology, the negativity in the positive psychology movement, and the current division in the field of psychology caused by the differing opinions of psychologists about positive psychology. She also raised the issue of the simplistic approach some psychologists take in applying positive psychology.

Grumbling

Barbara Held suggests an alternative to forced positivity: complaining. She even wrote a book where she tells how to learn to grumble. It's like self-help literature for complainers. The book is called Stop Smiling, Start Kvetching. “Kvetch” is a Yiddish word, and it is most accurately translated as “grumbling.” I'm no expert on Jewish culture (most of my knowledge of it comes from Woody Allen films), but I think the tradition of complaining about anything and everything contributes to happiness and contentment. How nice it is to get together and grumble! This provides extensive topics for conversation and a certain sense of solidarity.

The main idea of Held's book is that everything in life is never absolutely good. Sometimes things just aren't that bad. This means there will always be reasons for complaints. Real estate prices are falling - you can complain about the depreciation of capital. If real estate prices are rising, you can complain about how superficially everyone around you discusses your growing capital. Life is difficult, but according to Held, that in itself is not a problem. The problem is that we are made to think that life is not difficult. When asked how we are, we are expected to say, “Everything is great!” Although in reality everything is very bad, because your husband cheated on you. By learning to focus on the negative—and complain about it—you can develop a mechanism that helps make life more bearable. However, grumbling is not only a way to cope with difficult situations. The freedom to complain comes with the ability to face reality and accept it as it is. This gives us human dignity, in contrast to the behavior of the eternally positive person who vehemently insists that there is no such thing as bad weather (only bad clothes). It happens, Mr. Lucky. And how nice it is to complain about the weather while sitting at home with a mug of hot tea!

We need to take back our right to grumble, even if it doesn't lead to positive change. But if it can lead to them, then all the more important. And note that grumbling is always directed outward. We complain about the weather, the politicians, the football team. It's not us who are to blame, it's them! A positive approach, on the contrary, is directed inward - if something is wrong, you need to work on yourself and your motivation. We have ourselves to blame for everything. Unemployed people should not complain about the social assistance system - otherwise they can be considered lazy - because they can simply pull themselves together, start thinking positively and find a job. You just have to “believe in yourself” - but this is a one-sided approach that reduces the most important social, political and economic problems to a question of the motivation and positivity of the individual. […]

Notes

Seligman M.
Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment. - New York: Simon and Schuster, 2002. - 275 p. — ISBN 0-7432-2297-0.
↑ 1 2 3 Forest J. et al.
La psychologie positive et l'approche basée sur les forces : : // Le magazine de l'Ordre des psychologues du Québec. - 2011. - Vol. 28, No. 1 (juillet).
Fredrickson BL
The value of positive emotions // American Scientist, 2003. - Vol. 91. - P. 330-335.
Positive Psychology Center
↑ 1 2 Peterson C., Seligman MEP
Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. - Oxford University Press, 2004. - ISBN 0-19-516701-5.
Park N., Peterson C., Selimgan MEP
Strengths of character and well-being // Journal of social and clinical psychology. - Vol. 23. - P. 603-619.
Center of Applied Positive Psychology (unspecified)
(unavailable link). Retrieved November 4, 2012. Archived October 15, 2012.
Press conference dedicated to the opening of the VI European Congress on Positive Psychology (unspecified)
.
medportal.ru
. Copper News (July 27, 2012). Retrieved August 27, 2021. Archived August 27, 2021.
Master's program "Positive Psychology" (undefined)
. Higher School of Economics (2020). Retrieved August 27, 2021. Archived August 27, 2021.
Schneider, K.
Toward a Humanistic Positive Psychology. Existential Analysis: Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis. - 2011. - pp. 32-38.
Barbara L. Fredrickson, Marcial F. Losada.
Positive affect and the complex dynamics of human flourishing // The American Psychologist. - October 2005. - T. 60, issue. 7. - pp. 678-686. — ISSN 0003-066X. - doi:10.1037/0003-066X.60.7.678.
Seligman, Martin E.
The Optimistic Child. Houghton Mifflin Company. - 1995. - P. 295-299.
Sample, Ian
.
How to be happy (English), The Guardian
(19 November 2003). Retrieved July 5, 2021.
Barbara S. Held.
The Negative Side of Positive Psychology
(undefined)
.

New positive psychology: ways and methods of achieving happiness in Russian reality

The article gives a definition of happiness within the framework of the new positive psychology, describes possible types of happiness and the conditions for achieving a long-term state of happiness, taking into account the Russian mentality. The results of a pilot study conducted to determine the types of happiness that people strive for, their life satisfaction, and the possible need for psychotherapy are presented.

Key words: happiness, types of happiness, new positive psychology, ways to achieve happiness.

The article defines happiness within the new positive psychology, describes the possible types of happiness and the conditions for achieving a long state of happiness, taking into account the Russian mentality. The results of a pilot study to determine the types of happiness to which people aspire and their satisfaction with life, the possible need for psychotherapy.

Keywords: happiness, types of happiness, the latest positive psychology, ways to achieve happiness.

Each of us at least once in our lives has thought about how to become happy, what happiness really is, what we need to do to be happy, or who can help us with this? Is this a long period of time in life or a short-term phenomenon, an experience of the moment? The phenomenon of happiness has been the subject of research in many sciences: philosophy, psychology, physiology, sociology and economic theory. Positive psychology has come closest to solving it, and with its help people are able not only to cope with difficulties in life, but also to become happier.

In 2008–2013 A study was conducted on the impact of psychotherapy on understanding the happiness of men and women aged 19–48 years who found themselves in a crisis situation. Testing took place in two stages: before psychotherapy, which lasted 2.5 months, and after it. The following psychological approaches were used in the work: rational-emotive psychotherapy (A. Ellis), gestalt therapy, art therapy, positive psychotherapy (N. Pezeshkian), cognitive psychotherapy (A. Back), and body-oriented psychotherapy. Based on the results of the study, it can be assumed that after turning to a psychologist, ideas about happiness became larger, desires and needs became more specific. Personal resources were revealed, confidence in one’s own abilities to manage one’s life appeared, which was the goal of psychotherapy [2].

“For the last half century, the science of psychology has essentially dealt with one single problem - human mental disorders. ... While engaged in healing the sick, psychotherapists completely forgot that their help is also needed by the healthy. After all, people not only want to get rid of illnesses, they need to find the purpose and meaning of their lives,” this is how M. Seligman’s book “New Positive Psychology: A Scientific View of Happiness and the Meaning of Life” begins. In it, he says that preventing mental illness is easier than treating it. He developed a new science that studies positive feelings to develop positive character traits. “The common belief that happiness is fleeting and uncontrollable is the first obstacle to scientific developments (and, of course, practical results) in this area. The second and more serious obstacle is the belief that happiness and any other life-affirming moods are in fact deceptive.”

We find true happiness by discovering positive qualities in ourselves, using individual virtues (our virtues). “True happiness is brought by positive feelings that arise as a result of the manifestation of the best traits of our character, and not through artificial tricks, that is, happiness must be earned,” says M. Seligman. His words are based on experiments with students, when they were asked to do something useful for themselves and for their own pleasure, and then share their impressions. As a result, the feelings from good deeds exceeded in strength and significance the joy from ordinary daily pleasures [6].

There are many reasons to become happy, as evidenced by scientific works written by various scientists. In Western research, a consistently reproducible pattern is the relationship between subjective well-being and close relationships [2]. Marriage can be a source of positive emotions and happiness, self-realization and satisfaction with life in general. Thus, a Harvard study conducted in America over 75 years suggests that the most important factor in happiness is good relationships in the family: happy people are more successful, have better health and longevity [18]. In addition, happy people are more competitive in the modern world, they make friends more easily, are more productive, achieve greater heights in their careers, and, therefore, are financially prosperous. B. Fredrickson developed the theory of positive emotions in 2000 and proved that positive emotions increase intellectual, physical and social capabilities and create reserves that are always available in case of threat or need [9,13,14].

Scientists from the University of Minnesota have proven the transfer from generation to generation of the level of cheerfulness [17]. Each of us has a certain level of positive and negative emotions, corresponding to the inherited level of happiness [15]. Taking this fact into account, M. Seligman [7], as the founder of positive psychology, proposed his formula for happiness: C=I+O+B, where C is happiness, I is an individual range, genetically predetermined, determining happiness by approximately 50%; O - circumstances that are responsible for approximately 10% of happiness and B - factors amenable to volitional control, that is, conscious, intentional actions that a person can choose for himself, responsible for approximately 40% of happiness.

The goal of positive psychology is to make a person lastingly happy, over a long period of time, and not short-term, from passing joys and pleasures (food, exercise, material goods, etc.).

If genetic predisposition cannot be changed, then some external factors can be adjusted and still account for 10–15% of the experience of happiness. For example, for a person to be happy, it is desirable:

Living in a rich democratic country, and not in a poor state with a dictatorial regime (an important factor).
Having a family (also an important factor, but not the main one).
Avoid troubles and negative emotions (a factor of medium importance).
Communicate with people as much as possible (an important, but not the main factor).
Believe in God (factor of medium importance).

In order to feel happy and enjoy life, it is not at all necessary:

Earn a lot.
Being healthy (subjectively perceived health).
Have an excellent education.
Move to a country with a hotter climate.

Next, we move on to factors that can be controlled and, according to M. Seligman, make up 40% of happiness. These include positive feelings associated with the past (satisfaction, sense of accomplishment, pride, calm), the present (joy, delight, calm, enthusiasm, excitement, pleasure and most importantly, love of life) and the future (optimism, hope, confidence faith in oneself). It is desirable that a person experiences them equally.

“It is emotions that usually result from thinking,” said Aaron T. Beck, a leading theorist of cognitive therapy. Supporters of Z. Freud claim the opposite - feelings set thought in motion. Most likely, feelings appear in response to external events, memories, ideas of their future, but a person is able to track the process of the emergence of feelings and launch the thinking process in the right direction, reducing, or vice versa, increasing, the level of his experiences, giving them one color or another. Domestic scientific research time after time shows that subjective well-being depends on the styles and strategies of human behavior [3,8]. It should be remembered that our future and our health depend on the choice of one or another behavioral strategy. For example, if adherents of psychodynamics considered it necessary to clearly express their emotions, to “throw them out”, now it has been proven that outbursts of anger and vindictive emotions lead to heart disease and even greater anger, and suppressed anger does not lead to the development of heart disease [11,12].

Studying all the features that make different people happy will allow us in the future to expand the scientific view of the phenomenon of happiness and formulate effective strategies for psychological and psychotherapeutic assistance. For example, people who practiced gratitude by writing them down every day felt less depressed, happier, had better sleep quality, and exercised more often. People of all ages become happier when they focus on experiencing positive emotions, when their lives have meaning, serving a higher purpose, something greater than themselves (philanthropy, eudaimonism), when they live in a state of “flow” (when a person is completely absorbed in an interesting activity, in which he realizes his potential to the maximum, is maximally concentrated, time stops for him [7]), developing his strengths and transforming his thinking in a positive direction.

The desire for pleasure in itself does not affect satisfaction with life, due to the fact that a person quickly gets used to pleasures and enjoyments, and the brightness of sensations is lost. The greatest satisfaction comes from striving for meaning and serving other people. Only if there is a high desire for meaningfulness and all-absorbing activity does pleasure turn into true pleasure. Having only a desire for meaningful life or only an all-consuming activity gives high satisfaction, but with a full life, the effect of all three components leads to the highest indicator. If a person does not have any of the aspirations, his life is empty [18] (Table No. 1).

Table 1

Levels of life satisfaction and corresponding types of happiness

Satisfaction level	Type of happiness
Higher	Positive emotions + Eudaimonic preoccupation + Meaningfulness of life
High	Eudaimonic absorption	Meaningful life
Low/none	Positive emotions

We conducted a pilot study among residents of one of the cities of Russia. The sample consisted of 70 people (31 men and 39 women) over 18 years old, of average income, who had not sought psychological help or undergone psychotherapy. Respondents were asked one open-ended question: “What do you do to be happy.” The purpose of the study was to determine their type of happiness according to M. Seligman (“positive emotions”, “eudaimonic absorption”, “meaningfulness of life”) and the level of life satisfaction, and as a consequence, the possible need for psychotherapy. Answers without emotional overtones or semantic content were excluded from the sample, for example: “I live...”, “I don’t do anything”, due to the complexity of their interpretation. The remaining data were analyzed, reduced and distributed according to types of happiness (Fig. No. 1).

Results.

Men and women experience positive emotions and passion for their activities approximately equally (50% and 47.36%, respectively), but only women (7.89%) experience meaningfulness in life, 2.63% of which are combined with positive emotions, and two types Women experience happiness (positive emotions and eudaimonic absorption) 7 times more often than men (21.05% and 3.33%, respectively). 46.67% of men and 23.68% of women live only by the pursuit of pleasure, and, therefore, have the lowest level of life satisfaction. Thus, women are more often in a state of long-term happiness, more happy than men (Fig. 1). This conclusion coincides with the results of a study by D. Galati [10] conducted in Italy. Noteworthy is the fact that none of the respondents’ answers can be attributed to all three types of happiness at once; therefore, all people need positive psychotherapy and increasing the level of life satisfaction, learning to stay in a state of happiness for a long time.

Rice. 1. Survey results (men and women)

In some countries, happiness is already taught. For example, in the USA, the new “Happiness Course” is popular at Harvard University; in California, a new academic subject “Self-Science” was introduced. The Department of Wellbeing has been established in Cambridge. As part of a national project, a Happiness course based on positive psychology was developed there (Martin Seligman and others). At the Economic Gymnasium in Heidelberg (Germany), teenagers also study the subject “Happiness” for two hours a week. The course program includes the following topics: “Soul”, “Body”, “Society”, “Readiness for Success” and “Positive Thinking” [5].

In the conditions of modern Russia, one of the primary accents of psychological educational, correctional and educational work must be the formation and development of programs for psychologically competent and positive communication. Most interpersonal and even intergroup conflicts occur first at the level of inadequate communication, which gives rise to a lot of secondary problems that have no real basis other than communicative ones, which, in turn, give rise to tertiary, etc. problems. Just developing a person's diverse abilities and skills is not enough. We desperately need programs for the formation of the honor and conscience of a person and a citizen. Such programs are not emphasized in American and European positive psychology. In the conditions of domestic reality, where there is many years of experience in the erosion of religious, moral, moral, legal and other norms, where the postmodern tradition of confusing the boundaries of good and evil, righteous and unrighteous has reached a kind of apogee, in which nothing is scary and nothing is ashamed (lying, stealing , kill, be indifferent, etc.), this direction is urgently necessary and most relevant [4].

Thus, the impetus to the beginning of a happy life can be given by methods developed and tested within the framework of the new positive psychology, taking into account the specifics of Russian society.

In the report of A. S. Ognev, Doctor of Psychology, Professor “On the results of the II International Congress on Positive Psychology, held in the summer of 2011 at the University of Pennsylvania,” it was said that the idea of “happiness” as the main concept of this direction has already been significantly transformed: the most commonly used concepts on the “banners” of positive psychology already include “prosperity” and “success in life.” Such a replacement may mean that a significant part of people may simply not want to be happy [4].

In our future work, we will try to find out the level of desire and motivation of Russians to be happy, as well as their willingness to make efforts to achieve this, how this correlates with their age, gender and marital status.

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Rosenova M.I., Kiselev S.N. Positive psychology in Russia: problems of terminology and goals // Bulletin of the Moscow State University for the Humanities. M.A. Sholokhov. Pedagogy and psychology // Publisher: Moscow State University for the Humanities. M.A. Sholokhova (Moscow) 2013.
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Criticism

Laws

In fact, the concept is not at all difficult to master. There are laws of positive thinking - there are only 4 of them. By adhering to them, you can radically change your life by 280°.

Law of Attraction

All things and living beings in this world attract similar things. Evil tends to evil, bad - to bad, good and good - respectively. The more negative the thoughts and the more disgusting the mood, the worse life becomes. If you think about the bright, believe in the positive, be an optimist, everything around will be the same: environment, circumstances, luck.

Law of Giving

Before you can receive something, you must first give. If you want to be loved, love yourself. If you need money, donate. If you feel lonely, show attention and tenderness to others yourself. Don't swear at home, but hug your loved ones. Don't intrigue at work, but help someone. Provide clients with only high-quality services. And then the Universe will return everything to you in full.

Retroactive law

When irritation rises in your soul and accusations and offensive words are ready to come out of your mouth, you need to do everything exactly the opposite. Smile and say something nice. If you want to cry, laugh. If you hate someone, sympathize with that person. This will allow you to create a positive world around you. If you train, negative emotions and thoughts will come less and less often.

Law of Positive Thoughts

You need to sit down and think about your life. But not in the same way as before: everything is bad, nothing works out, I don’t want anything. First, a positive, bright goal is set. Then the tasks that need to be solved to achieve it are written down. All these attitudes must be optimistic. No negativity or negative particles. If you reread (preferably out loud) your goals and objectives every day, soon the Universe itself will help you achieve what you want.

Positive Psychology: Helpful Techniques

Let us repeat: despite the fact that positive psychology itself causes quite heated debate, useful practical advice can be derived from this theory. They will help you change the way you think, become more optimistic, stronger and feel happier.

Look for the positives in everything

Let's say you have to give an oral presentation on your work, and the thought of speaking in front of an audience is terrifying. Before your emotions overwhelm you, step back and think about the situation with a cool head. You will make a report in front of your colleagues. What does this mean? For example, that the boss values your opinion and trusts you. What benefits can be derived from this? You have the opportunity to establish yourself on a positive side and promote your ideas.

When you see the benefits, you will feel a surge of strength and optimism.

, which will help you cope with the task.

Identify your strengths

Instead of dwelling on your weaknesses, spend your energy and resources on cultivating your talents and strengths.

. If you have a clear affinity for programming, taking courses like this will help open the door to your dream job. Perhaps what you thought was a disadvantage will work for you. Meticulousness and pickiness can be turned into punctuality, which is highly valued in many areas of work.

Keep an emotional diary

Set an alarm on your smartphone and record your emotions and feelings on paper several times a day. This will make it easier for you to analyze your condition and improve.

Write a letter of gratitude

Dedicate it to a specific person. It is best to hand over the letter in person or speak the contents out loud. This will help you get rid of negativity and feel happier.

Keep a gratitude journal

If every day before going to bed you write down three things for which you are grateful for the past day, then within a couple of weeks your life satisfaction will significantly increase

. It could be something ordinary, but pleasant: good weather, a delicious dinner, or help from a loved one.

Forgive the insults

Forgiveness is needed not so much for the person who harmed you, but for you yourself, in order to stop being burdened by negative emotions

. It's not always easy, especially when you have to forgive someone who has caused you a lot of pain. For difficult cases, Seligman offers a step-by-step methodology.

Recreate the events that happened in your memory, but at the same time abstract from emotions. Do not feel sorry for yourself under any circumstances and distance yourself from negativity towards others, turn into a dispassionate observer. Imagine yourself in the place of the offender, think about his feelings at the moment when he commits an act that offends you. It won't be easy, but you need to sympathize with him. The third step is an altruistic gesture. We need to forgive the offender

It is important that you do this not for yourself, but for him. Reach that state so that you can sincerely say: “Resentment and revenge are not for me.” The next moment is a symbol that you have truly forgiven

It can be expressed creatively: through drawing or writing. It will be good if you tell your loved one about your decision. The most important thing is not to fall back on negative emotions. This does not mean that you will be able to forget what happened, but it will be much easier for you to move on because your emotional response to the event will change.

We cannot say that we fully agree with this approach to resentment and forgiveness. Read our article about resentment to understand what it is like, what forgiveness is like, and what to do in various situations.

Research-backed ideas that are guaranteed to improve your quality of life

If you pretend you feel good, you will.
Emotions are no less contagious than viruses - you unwittingly adopt the way of thinking of those around you. If there are positive people around, then you will become one of them.
The hormone oxytocin, which is produced through hugs and other physical contact, really affects and improves well-being.
Happiness can be bought by spending money on other people. The more free acts of kindness you dedicate to others, the better you will feel.
The desire for a good and quality life increases satisfaction with life in general.
Developing character strengths and happiness work as a buffer against failure and negative life situations.

Positive psychology has become very famous and has even been used in the training of more than 1 million US Army soldiers.

Positive Psychology: Concept and Impact on Human Life

So, Seligman points out that psychology should attach the greatest importance to perseverance in achieving goals, hope and faith in the best, the ability to be creative and other positive aspects of human life. Based on this, he indicated three directions that need to be focused on:

Social institutions that help develop a person and contribute to his happiness. Here we are talking about healthy local social communities, healthy workplace environments, free media, healthy families, democracy, etc.
Positive character traits of a person. These include empathy, altruism, generosity, humor, forgiveness, the search for meaning, creativity, kindness, honesty, love, spirituality, wisdom, etc.
Positive emotions and individual feelings of happiness. This refers to constructive thoughts, fullness of vital energy, self-confidence, optimism, satisfaction with life, etc.

In modern classical psychology you can find an incredible number of different mental illnesses, and it must necessarily look for their cause and eliminate them. But eliminating the causes is not all, because after this a void appears “inside” a person that cannot be filled by anything else.

In addition, in most cases, individual life experience, as well as the experience of past generations, teaches a person how to live in a state of constant unhappiness and how to accept the causes of this state. This is the very formula of learned helplessness that Martin Seligman derived.

For hundreds of years, no one, except for certain outstanding personalities, actively taught people how to become happy. For this reason, the emptiness that appears after standard treatment will most likely be filled again with destructive thoughts and sensations that interfere with normal living.

However, it is possible to guide people along a different path by showing them the strengths of the mind and teaching them how to use them; showing how you can independently create feelings of happiness and joy. As a result, people will get rid of learned helplessness and gain conscious optimism, and from this their lives will begin to change radically.

Positive psychology is a move away from the outdated concept of increasing a person's self-esteem. Adherents of this movement believe that the cause of many mental disorders lies far from it, just as high self-esteem does not at all guarantee a happy life. Self-esteem is simply an indicator of how satisfied a person is with their life. So putting all your energy into working on self-esteem doesn’t make any special sense.

Both professional psychologists and people themselves should direct their efforts in the three directions that we have already mentioned above (social institutions, character traits, emotions). Based on this, every person, regardless of the circumstances that surround him, faces several choices.

First choice:

Continue to think negatively, blame yourself and others for your failures, focus on problems, give up and stop believing in yourself, cultivate a desire for revenge, etc.
Start to think positively, learn to draw conclusions based on your experience, look for a way out of difficult situations, cultivate faith in your ability to change something, and do everything possible to realize joyful and positive events.

Second choice:

Accept the circumstances.
Try to change circumstances and look for other options.

Third choice:

Communicate with pessimistic people, be involved in conflicts with others, accept everything bad as it is, engage in useless things.
Change your social circle and surround yourself with positive people, try to understand other people and their views, try to bring about positive changes, find a more useful activity for yourself - something that develops and makes you grow.

Try to take a closer look at these elections and think about them - most likely you will notice that this is exactly what great thinkers and bright minds tried to tell us about in ancient times. A person has a choice - he can decide for himself how best to live, and not continue to exist as his ancestors did, and not follow the destiny destined for him by someone. And here we can point out another powerful message: any person who takes responsibility for what is happening in his life becomes the one who determines his own future path!

This all sounds cool and great, but how to achieve this? What are the real methods or exercises that allow you to achieve such outstanding results and fill your life with happiness and joy?

Practical positive psychology involves an individual approach to each individual person. Special programs are being developed that use visualization methods, the question and answer method, the method of speaking key ideas, art therapy methods, etc.

But, of course, not everyone can just go and turn to a specialist for help. And for people who do not have this opportunity, Seligman and his colleagues have developed manuals that contain the most detailed descriptions of the most effective techniques and exercises for independent use and implementation. Of course, we won’t tell you about all of them, but we will still look at a few popular ones.

And for a deeper study of the topic of positive psychology and related practices, we advise you to read Seligman’s books “The Path to Prosperity”, “In Search of Happiness” and “The New Positive Psychology”

"Don't doubt yourself"

Positive psychology is based on the premise that high self-esteem is an obvious good. But this statement does not have sufficiently compelling grounds. According to writer and journalist Will Storr, who has studied this issue in detail, self-confidence is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, people with low self-esteem are shy and lack confidence in their abilities. They don't like to stand out and therefore may miss out on good opportunities or suffer from impostor syndrome. On the other hand, a high opinion of oneself often leads to aggressive behavior and narcissism.

However, do not confuse cause and effect. High self-esteem does not contribute to improved performance in school and career advancement, but our successes reinforce self-esteem. No matter how much a person has self-confidence, this will not make him an excellent professional without the necessary education and work experience. Thinking that you can achieve anything you want just by believing in success is a harmful delusion.

Self-doubt is normal. After all, even Socrates doubted his own wisdom. Unshakable confidence, based not on objective merit, but on positive affirmations offered by coaches, reduces criticism of one’s own actions. High self-esteem increases the likelihood of failure, and those who have it do not recognize their own weaknesses or incompetence. “In addition, such people are more likely to give up difficult tasks, because the difficulties that arise painfully contradict their ideas about themselves,” emphasizes Will Storr.

How to improve your day?

It is very difficult for a person in a depressive episode to stop focusing on the negative aspects of life. Changing your worldview takes time and effort. It seems that the new day will be as gray and joyless as the previous ones, and nothing in the world can change that.

But the impact of positive psychology is impossible without the desire of the person himself. Lack of intrinsic motivation cannot be instilled from the outside. Therefore, you should try to start by trying simple techniques that can improve an ordinary day and make it special. Everyday techniques include:

Doing an unpleasant task. After completing an unpleasant task, a feeling of satisfaction appears. A small victory will set the tone for the day and set you up for success.
Adding serotonin. Depression reduces the level of serotonin, a hormone responsible for feelings of joy and satisfaction. You need to add it yourself by eating foods rich in serotonin: chocolate, bananas, green peas.
Water procedures. Water helps you cheer up and feel better. If you cannot take a bath or shower during the day, you should wash your face and wash your hands. And in the evening, try to organize complete relaxation using your favorite soap, shower gel, and flavored salt. Pleasant smells also have a beneficial effect on the psyche and increase overall tone.

Exercises can be used to improve your emotional state as soon as a feeling of apathy, psychological fatigue, or doubt arises.

Seligman's research

Experiments with positive effects on the psyche began with Seligman, thanks to whom positive psychology became an academic discipline. At an American research center, he worked with volunteers to create a classifier of positive personality traits. Based on survey results, Seligman identified 6 groups of positive traits that combine similar character traits:

wisdom and knowledge;
courage;
humanity;
justice;
abstinence;
transcendence;

The list of traits was replenished and refined as Seligman conducted surveys of representatives of different segments of the population, and the highest values for them were different. Comparing the results, he derived 4 main character traits that contribute to the achievement of happiness:

Love,
hope,
Gratitude;
curiosity.

To identify the dominant personality trait of the subject, Seligman created a questionnaire consisting of 240 questions and standard answer options. Based on the results obtained, you can not only identify character strengths, but also help a person develop them.

Methodology

The development of positive psychology has made it possible to identify 3 principles necessary for the full use of this method:

Hope. Allows you to take responsibility for your actions, and thanks to this, learn to look into the future with confidence and build realistic life scenarios.
Balance. It is necessary to organize key aspects of life: physical existence, psyche, self-awareness, plans for the future. Achieving happiness is possible through the desire for complete harmony.
Self-help. The principle of self-help helps to achieve personal integrity, the unification of individual views and principles into an overall picture of self-determination and vision of the world.

An important principle of positive psychology is accepting negativity rather than denying it. A person cannot overcome a problem if he ignores it. Negative perception plunges a person into stagnation, forcing him to constantly live through a traumatic situation and not being able to get out of it. Positive perception creates conditions for finding the optimal solution. Using the method of positive psychology, a person learns to avoid the traumatic effects of stress and find personal harmony.

How to get into positive thinking

So how can you increase the amount of positive emotions in your life and apply the theory of expansion and development to yourself?

Any spark of joy, satisfaction and love will certainly do its job. But only you know exactly what will work for you. Maybe it will be playing the guitar, walking with a loved one, or carving a wooden gnome for your favorite flower garden.

Nevertheless, it is worth paying attention to some activities that are suitable for many earthlings. Meditation

A recent study by Fredrickson found that people who meditate daily experience more positive emotions than those who do not meditate.

As expected, meditation had a beneficial effect on long-term skills

For example, three months after the end of the experiment, people who meditated daily had increased attention and determination, and their health improved. Meditation

A recent study by Fredrickson found that people who meditate daily experience more positive emotions than those who do not meditate. As expected, meditation had a beneficial effect on long-term skills

Meditation. A recent study by Fredrickson found that people who meditate daily experience more positive emotions than those who do not meditate. As expected, meditation had a beneficial effect on long-term skills

For example, three months after the end of the experiment, people who meditated daily had increased attention and determination, and their health improved

Letter. The study, published in the Journal of Research in Personality, examined two groups of 45 students. The first group wrote about strong positive feelings for three days. The other is on a regular topic.

Three months later, the members of the first team were in a better mood, they were sick less often and sought help from doctors. Just three days of writing about positive things resulted in improved health.

A game. Fit team sports into your life schedule. You plan meetings, negotiations, events and various responsibilities on your calendar, but why don't you find time for amateur sports?

Photo: chaoss / Photogenics

When was the last time you indulged in experimentation and discovered new things for yourself? When was the last time you planned entertainment? Is happiness less important than a Tuesday planning meeting?

Give yourself permission to smile and enjoy the benefits of positive emotions. Plan a futsal game with friends or a little adventure with your significant other. By doing so, you will experience satisfaction and joy, as well as learn and develop new skills.

Introduction to the PERMA Model

The PERMA model is a widely accepted and influential model in positive psychology. Seligman proposed this model to help explain and define well-being more deeply.

According to Seligman, "PERMA" is an acronym for the five dimensions of well-being:

P - Positive emotions. Although seeking only positive emotions is not a very effective way to improve your well-being, positive emotions are still an important factor. Part of well-being is enjoying the present moment, that is, experiencing positive emotions.
E - Engagement. A sense of engagement, where we can lose track of time and become completely immersed in what we enjoy and are good at, is an important element of well-being. It's difficult to have a strong sense of well-being unless you're truly engaged in what you're doing.
R - (Positive) relationships. Humans are social creatures, and we rely on connections with others to truly thrive. Deep, meaningful relationships with others are vital to our well-being.
M - Value. Even someone who is deliriously happy most of the time may not have a developed sense of well-being if they do not find meaning in their life. When we commit ourselves to a cause or recognize something greater than ourselves, we experience a sense of meaning that simply has no substitute.
A - Achievement. We all thrive when we achieve success, achieve our goals, and improve ourselves. Without the drive to achieve, we are missing one piece of the puzzle of true well-being.

This model gives us a comprehensive framework for understanding well-being, as well as a framework for improving well-being.

If you want to enhance your own sense of true happiness and well-being, all you need to do is focus on:

Experience more positive emotions. Do more of what makes you happy and brings pleasure into your daily life.
We are working to increase engagement. Pursue a hobby that interests you. Develop your skills and, if necessary, look for a job that better suits your passions.
Improve the quality (and/or quantity) of your relationships with other people. Work on building more positive and supportive relationships with friends, family and significant others.
Search for meaning. If you don't find this in your job, look for volunteering opportunities. Personal hobbies, entertainment or as a mentor to others.
Focus on achieving your goals, but don't focus too much. Try to balance your ambitions with all the other important things in life.

These five aspects of the PERMA model are measurable. They are also vital to your overall sense of well-being. This model advances the older model of genuine happiness by looking at more than just happiness or positive emotions. Of course, positive emotions are important—after all, they are part of the PERMA model itself. But focusing only on positive emotions won't help you develop a comprehensive sense of well-being, including engagement, meaning, success and positive relationships with others.

Happiness itself will most likely not lead you to prosperity, but prosperity will.

Image by batoadrovic from Pixabay

Criticism of positive psychology

The apparent ease of the teaching of conscious optimism has its dark side. Not everyone can change their minds without the help of specialists. According to positive psychology critic Professor Barbara Held, this teaching is nothing less than the “tyranny of the positive.” Most find themselves in a trap: on the outside they have to show love and curiosity, but a million unresolved problems inside do not find a way out, destroying the personality psychologically and physically. The result is a huge number of smiles and the same number of suicides.

We have the right to think bad things, Held argues. The worst advice to a person experiencing suffering is to “think positively!” Not everything always depends only on the relationship between the individual and the environment.

Criticism

Blaming the victim

As critics of forced positivity, including the aforementioned Barbara Held, argue, an excessive focus on positivity can lead to a phenomenon called “victim blaming.” This means that all kinds of human suffering or troubles are explained by the fact that a person is not optimistic and positive enough about life, or that he does not have enough “positive illusions”, which are advocated by some psychologists, including Seligman. Positive illusions are a person’s internal ideas about himself, slightly distorted for the better. That is, a person considers himself a little smarter, more capable and more effective than he actually is. The research, although not entirely clear, suggests that people who suffer from depression actually view themselves more realistically than those who do not suffer from depression. However, there are concerns that because of the positive approach, society demands people to be positive and happy and this paradoxically creates suffering as many feel guilty if they are not always happy and successful. […]

“Life is difficult, but that in itself is not a problem. The problem is that we are made to think that life is not difficult."

Another criticism, which is nevertheless related to the previous one, is the downplaying of the role of context, which is characteristic of some aspects of the positive approach. If it is argued that a person’s happiness does not depend on external factors (socio-economic status, etc.), which supposedly play a very insignificant role, but on internal ones, then it is your own fault if you are unhappy. As Seligman writes in his bestseller “The Pursuit of Happiness,” only 8–15% of happiness is determined by external circumstances—for example, whether a person lives in a democracy or a dictatorship, whether he is rich or poor, healthy or sick, educated or not. The most important source of happiness, Seligman argues, lies in “internal factors” that are amenable to “conscious control.” For example, you can create positive feelings, gratitude, forgive offenders, be optimistic and, of course, rely on your key strengths that every person has. It turns out that in order to become happy, you need to find your strengths, realize them and develop positive feelings in yourself. The emphasis on “innerness,” which is supposedly subject to conscious control, leads to the problematic ideology that one must simply keep up and evolve—specifically, develop the capacity for positive thinking—in order to survive in a culture of acceleration.

How does positive psychology differ from Pezeshkian psychotherapy?

Positive psychotherapy was founded by N. Pezeshkian in 1968. This is a very interesting and certainly noteworthy method, which is very difficult to describe briefly. Due to his background, Pezeshkian skillfully combined Eastern wisdom and the needs of modern Western society, for example, he used parables to heal his patients and sought to understand the psyche as a unity. Despite the similarity of the approach, positive psychology and positive psychotherapy differ significantly from each other. Firstly, from the very name of the method we can conclude that its main purpose is to help people with mental disorders (psychotherapy). Positive psychology mainly helps mentally healthy people

Secondly, Pezeshkian’s knowledge is, for the most part, his observations and insights, which are only partially confirmed scientifically (in 1997, an important study was conducted that confirmed the presence of a psychotherapeutic effect on a group of patients with mental disorders, but there was no randomization in it, which is one of the most important criteria for the scientific character of modern research). Today, positive psychotherapy does not receive further empirical development to the extent that it occurs in modern positive psychology, especially in the field of mentally healthy people (about 40 publications according to the English-language website of the Positive Psychotherapy Association against thousands of publications on modern positive psychology, data from the scientific database EBSCO publications).