Historical Roots of.pptx

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1. Historical Roots of Positive Psychology

2. The History of Positive Psychology The roots of positive psychology stretch back to the ancient Greeks and Aristotle’s concern with intellectual and moral virtues, and the good life. Some of the core elements of positive psychology such as mindfulness, have roots in ancient Eastern spiritual practices.

3. Humanistic psychology advocated the holistic study of persons as bio-psycho-social beings. Abraham Maslow first coined the term “positive psychology” in his 1954 book “Motivation and Personality.” Maslow, 1954 proposed that psychology’s preoccupation with disorder and dysfunction lacked an accurate understanding of human potential .

4. The branch of psychology termed positive psychology was championed by Martin Seligman in 1998 when he served as President of the American Psychological Society. The explicit goal was to further investigate human potential to counter the dominance of psychopathology and establish a science of human flourishing (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi , 2000).

5. Seligman, Csikszentmihalyi , Ed Diener (researching subjective wellbeing), Barbara Fredrickson (exploring positive emotions), Christopher Peterson (studying character strengths and virtues),

6. The Waves of Psychology Introspection- Psychology first emerged as a distinct discipline involved with the science of mind and behavior when Wilhelm Wundt established the first experimental psychology laboratory in Germany in 1879 (Kim, 2016). Intro means “within” and spection means “looking” Hence , it is a method where an individual is looking within one self.

7. Wundt is associated with structuralism as the earliest school of psychological thought, while James is associated with functionalism. Structuralism was concerned with investigating the functions of the mind through introspection on the tiniest elements of perception. Structuralism vs Functionalism

8. 2. Psychoanalysis- In the 1890s, Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud established psychoanalysis while treating female patients presenting with the psychosomatic symptoms of ‘hysteria’ (Breuer & Freud, 1895/2004). A series of experimental interventions led him to develop the techniques of free association and interpreting dreams he described as the royal road to the unconscious (Freud, 1900/1997).

9. Freud explained how the unconscious functioned as a source of repressed sexual and aggressive impulses which he later termed “drives”. 3. Behaviorism- 1900s, John Watson (Watson, 1913) proposed that we could understand the human mind as a conditioned stimulus response mechanism, and that there was no need to study internal mental states.

10. He proposed that behavior was learned and could be unlearned. Behaviorism was established by John Watson (Watson, 1924) and taken up by B. F. Skinner (Skinner, 1953) before evolving into the range of behavioral interventions that remain today. 4. Humanistic Psychology- Humanistic psychology advocated the holistic study of persons as bio-psycho-social beings. a. Holism- In the 1930s, Germany Max Wertheimer’s Gestalt psychology proposed a macroscopic holistic understanding of human psychology (Wertheimer, 1938).

11. b. Person-Centeredness- c. Meaning Making- Meanwhile, the  existential psychology  of Rollo May and Viktor Frankl was emerging throughout the 1950s and 60s with a focus on meaning-making as the psychological foundation of mental health ( Frankl , 1946/1992; May, 1953). Holistic, person-centered, meaning-making merged into what Maslow termed ‘the third force’ of psychology (after psychoanalysis and behaviorism):  humanistic psychology .

12. Carl Rogers  was a well-known pioneer in the field with his  person-centered approach  to counseling and psychotherapy. Rogers formulated some of the key concepts fundamental to positive psychology, including what he termed the three core conditions (Rogers, 1957) for effective counseling and psychotherapy: Congruence (which conveys authenticity) 2.Unconditional positive regard  (which conveys acceptance) 3. Empathy  (which conveys emotional attunement).

13. The rapid development of the human potential movement shifted the focus of psychology away from psychopathology toward a holistic investigation of  optimal human functioning . However , the study of human flourishing was finally championed by positive psychology at the end of the twentieth century (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi , 2000).

14. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology 1. William James- William James was a philosopher, physician, and psychologist, and the first educator to offer a  psychology course  in the United States . He was concerned about why some people seemed able to thrive and overcome adversity, while others developed mental health problems. He argued that understanding subjective experience is key to the investigation of optimal human functioning.

15. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology James to be America’s first positive psychologist ( Froh , 2004) because of his interest in whole person functioning. 2. Abraham Maslow- While the ‘third force’ of humanistic psychology played a vital role in providing the foundational concepts of positive psychology, the greatest influence was  Abraham Maslow .

16. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology Maslow argued that while the former psychological approaches of psychoanalysis and behaviorism revealed much about human shortcomings and mental health problems, they neglected to investigate human virtues and aspirations (Maslow, 1954).

17. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology 3.  Martin Seligman- Seligman was elected President of the American Psychological Association when he chose to focus on the central theme of positive psychology . learned helplessness   learned optimism

18. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology This classification system formed the backbone of their book  Character Strengths and Virtues  (Seligman & Peterson, 2004) and included the following six categories: wisdom/knowledge courage transcendence justice humanity temperance

19. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology 4 . Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi  was born in Hungary in 1934 when, like many others, his family was deeply affected by the Second World War. This led to his interest with what he called the  flow state . He made it his life’s work to scientifically investigate the different ways of achieving flow as an expression of optimal human experience ( Csikszentmihalyi , 1990).

20. 5 Founding Fathers of Positive Psychology Csikszentmihalyi’s studies gained much popular interest and have been applied widely to the study of  creativity , productivity, and happiness at both an individual and organizational level . 5. Christopher Peterson- He was the co-author of  Character Strengths and Virtues  with Martin Seligman (Peterson & Seligman, 2004) and is noted for his work in the study of strengths, virtues, optimism, hope, character, and wellbeing.

21. Introducing Positive Psychology Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi (2000, p. 5) “Psychology has, since World War II, become a science largely about healing. It concentrates on repairing damage within a disease model of human func­tioning.” ”

22. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on weakness “What is wrong with people?” ?

23. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on weakness “Which factors impair human functioning?” ?

24. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on weakness Psychological Abstracts (1967-2000): anger: 5,584 anxiety: 41,416 depression: 54,040 joy: 415 happiness: 1,710 life satisfaction: 2,582 Ratio: 21/1

25. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on weakness -5 +5

26. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on strengths Martin Seligman “Positive Psychology is the scientific study of optimal human functioning that aims to discover and promote the factors that allow individuals and communities to thrive.”

27. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on strengths “What is right about people?” ?

28. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on strengths “Which factors promote human flourishing?” ?

29. Introducing Positive Psychology A focus on strengths -5 +5