The document discusses positive psychology, which emphasizes nurturing talent and improving normal life rather than solely focusing on mental illness. It defines positive psychology as the scientific study of what enables individuals and communities to thrive, detailing its historical roots, key figures, and significant events. Additionally, it outlines various techniques and approaches to enhance well-being, emphasizing the pursuit of happiness and fulfillment through positive experiences and strengths.

1. On
Positive Psychology: Science
of Valuing three fourth
Quadrants

2. Three Quadrants attended

3. “Half the century clinical psychology has been
consumed by a single topic only - mental illness"
Seligman
Echoing Maslow’s comments (Motivation and Personality, 1954).
Seligman urged psychologists to continue the earlier
missions of psychology of nurturing talent and
improving normal life.

4. TWO APPROACHES TO IMPROVE
HUMAN CONDITION
a)To relieve from what is
NEGATIVE
The mainstream Psychology
b) To strengthen what is
POSITIVE
The Positive Psychology

5. Positive Psychology Defined
Positive psychology is the
scientific study of what
enables individuals and
communities to thrive" –
International Positive Psychology
Association.

6. Exponents
Martin Seligman
American Psycho. Prof.
Director
Positive Psychology Center
Uni. of Pennsylvania
Mihaly Csikeszentmihalyi
Hungarian Psycho. Prof.
Claremont Graduate Uni.
U S A

7. Premise
People want to lead
meaningful and
fulfilling lives, to
cultivate what is best
within themselves, and
to enhance their
experiences of love,
work, and play.

8. Eventually Positive Psychology
 The first positive psychology summit, 1999.
 The First International Conference on Positive
Psychology, 2002.
 In 2006, a course on Positive Psychology introduced at
Harvard University.
 In June 2009, First World Congress on Positive
Psychology.

9. Roots
Humanistic psychologists—such as Abraham Maslow,
Carl Rogers, and Erich Fromm—developed theories
and practices that involved human happiness.
Empirical support from studies by positive
psychologists directed to
 Find and nurture genius and talent
 Make normal life more fulfilling
 Ensure well-being of man kind.
 Complement, not to replace traditional psychology.

10. More Support
“We see what we look for
and we miss much of what
we are not looking for even
though it is there... Our
experience of the world is
heavily influenced by where
we place our attention.”
Stavros and Torres

11. CONCERNS
Strength as with weakness
 Building the best things in
life as in
Repairing the worst
 Making the lives of normal
people fulfilling as with
healing pathology
Seligman, 2007

12. Operational Dimensions
Identifying
 positive emotions,
 positive individual
traits, and
 positive institutions

13. Identification of Positive Emotions
Contentment with
the past,
Happiness in the
present, and
Hope for the future

14. Identification of Positive Traits
strengths and virtues,
such as the capacity for
love and work, courage,
compassion, resilience,
creativity, curiosity,
integrity, self-knowledge,
moderation, self-control,
and wisdom

15. 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

16. Talents to Strengths to Virtues
 Talent more innate, non-moral and can be wasted, but
when refined with knowledge and skills form basis of
strengths.
 A strength is a natural capacity for behaving, thinking,
or feeling in a way that allows optimal functioning and
performance in the pursuit of valued outcomes
(Linley & Harrington, 2006)
Strengths when guided for GOOD turn in to VIRTUES

17. Virtues and Happiness
“What is the highest of all goals achievable by
actions?...both the general run of man and
people of superior refinement say it is
happiness…but with regard to what
happiness is, they differ.”
Aristotle, Nicomachean, Ethics
Book 1, Chapter 4

18. Happiness
The 3 ‘happy’ lives
 The pleasant life - positive emotion & the skills
to amplify it. Pleasure, enjoying life, hobbies,
relationships, etc..
 The good life - engagement, absorption, ‘flow’
confidence and satisfaction accomplishing tasks
 The meaningful life – using your strengths in the
service of something greater than yourself
contributing to something bigger.
(Martin Seligman, 2003)

19. Positive Psychology Techniques
• Using signature strengths in a new way
• Three good things in life
• Three things that went well each day along with their
causes
• Gratitude Visit
• Write a letter of gratitude and then deliver it.
• You at your best
• Write about a time at your best, review once a day for a
week
Seligman, Stein, Park, & Peterson 2005

20. More Techniques
 Exercises to increase positive feelings,
engagement, & meaning:
 performing acts of kindness
 Plan pleasurable activities with savoring
 Counting one’s blessings- blessings
journal
 Using talents and/or signature
strengths in novel ways
 3 doors that closed and 3 doors that
then opened

21. Still More Techniques
• find a challenging hobby
• performing secret good
deeds
• writing one’s own legacy
• working for a valued
institution

22. Education and Positive Psychology
 Being Virtuous is the real Education which
is endorsed by Positive Psychology.
 Diversity is beauty of Educational canvass
Positive Psychology provides
the space.
 Education essentially should promote
Happiness, Positive Psychology keeps
it as Focus of operations.
 Education believes no learner is hopeless,
Positive Psychology provides hope for low
performers.

23. Let's use mind in pursuit of
happiness and good life
Embrace the
POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
Don't judge a day by the
weather. Regardless of climate,
create a good day.
-David L. Hanson

24. Grover Vijay K
D A V College of Education
grovervijayk@gmail.com