Positive Psychology Week 1

The 8 components of "Gratification"

- The task is challenging and requires skill - We concentrate - There are clear goals - We get immediate feedback - We have deep, effortless involvement - There is a sense of control - Our sense of self vanishes - Time stopsSeligman's 24 Strengths:

Seligman's suggest that universal Strengths should be:

- Valued in their own right, not just as a means to another end - They are malleable

How does Seligman argue in regards to optimism and hope scales:

- We can increase optimism by learning to recognise and dispute our automatic thoughts; learn to argue with them by looking at the evidence and showing that they are often factually incorrect.

Seligman's Core Virtues:

- Wisdom and knowledge - Courage - Love and humanity - Justice - Temperance - Spirituality and transcendence.

Freudian approach and previous therapies suggests

- a deterministic approach to life

The branches in Positive psychology are:

Flow Mindfulness Learned Optimism Learned helplessness

Best Possible Self research suggests

Over the past years, writing about and imagining a BPS has repeatedly been demonstrated to increase people's mood and well-being Peters et al. (2010) provided evidence that writing about and imagining a BPS can also increase optimism in terms of expecting favourable outcomes. This effect was independent of the effect on mood that was simultaneously increased by the manipulation. The BPS exercise can be used to increase optimism in terms of expecting favourable outcomes.

Books by Fredrickson and Seligmans suggested what:

That positive psychological applications may provide a cure for some conditions as opposed to 'cosmetic' approaches

In Learned Optimism evidence suggests:

That the path to fulfilment requires considerable hard work

What approach does Fredrickson uses in positivity

The cognitive behavioural approach.

· What is the Transgressional Motivation Scale and who developed by

- Records and examines our feelings towards the person who hurt us. It offers five step process titled REACH. - Seligman

Seligman in control of happiness notes:

- That if you believe the past determines your future you will tend to be a 'passive' vessel that doesn't change its course.

What does Fredrickson suggest about positive psychology

- That we need to increase the positive emotions/experiences and decrease the negative. - She says that the ideal ratio is 3 to 1: Three times the positives to the negatives.

How do we measure Core Virtues

- The Values in Action (VIA) survey Developed by Chris Peterson

what is rumination

going over and over negative thoughts - give rise to the person recalling other negative thoughts and emotions which feed on each other.

Taking a Daily Vacation

increasing the number of positive experiences not intensifying them. See happiness as a Verb. Choose a different vacation every day such as going for a walk, chatting with a friend etc. Be present and experience what is happening in the now. Notice sensations and emotions Set aside any worries or fears. Remember to plan the next vacation.

Positive Psychology is:

is the study of what makes life worth living

What is The 'Prescription' for positivity

is to increase your positive experiences/cognition's and decrease the negative

Goal of Positive Psychology

is to make normal life more fulfilling

The Best Possible Self.

is used to increase optimism. It requires people to envision themselves in an imaginary future in which everything has turned out in the most optimal way. While in most cases the exercise is used in a written form, it is also possible to ask clients to make drawings of their best possible self. The most powerful way to use the exercise is by instructing clients to visualise their best possible self on a daily basis.

What does H=S+C+V stand for

it is the happiness formula - H = Happiness - S= Set range - C = Circumstances - V = Factors under your voluntary control.

Seligman provides scales on:

optimism and hope

When discussing Gratitude Seligman notes:

that forgiving and forgetting can make us happier.

Wellbeing is not:

the same thing as HAPPINESS

How to stop negative thoughts from creating anxiety and hopelessness

we must dispute them.

what is the Losada ratio / magic ratio Fredrickson says

- 3:1 - The ideal ratio is three times the positive to the negative

Other scales in Seligman's book

- Authentic Happiness, such as the Fordyce Emotions Questionnaire - PANAS (positive and negative affect scale) - Satisfaction with Life Scale - Gratitude Survey - General Happiness Scale - The 24 strengths scale

Happiness scale:

- Created by Christopher Peterson - Has 16 question and contains 4 routes to happiness: Pleasure, Engagement, Meaning, Victory - All of the questions reflect statements that many people would find desirable but answer only in terms of whether the statement describes how you actually live your life. - Statement scale (5) from mostly like me to not at all like me.

Seligman's 24 Strengths:

- Curiosity/interest in the world - Love of learning - Judgements/critical thinking/open-mindedness - Ingenuity/originality/practical intelligence/ street smarts - Social intelligence/personal intelligence/emotional intelligence - Perspective - Valour and bravery - Perseverance/industry/diligence - Integrity/genuineness/honesty - Kindness and generosity - Loving and allowing oneself to be loved - Citizenship/duty/teamwork/loyalty - Fairness and equity - Leadership - Self-control - Prudence/discretion/caution - Humility and modesty - Appreciation of beauty and excellence - Gratitude - Hope/optimism/future-mindedness - Spirituality/sense of purpose/faith/religiousness - Forgiveness and mercy - Playfulness and humour - Zest/passion/enthusiasm

General Happiiness Scale Happiness had no effect

- Education, race, climate and gender

What does the Good Work Project require:

- Excellent quality - Socially Responsible - Meaningful to its practitioners

Barbara Fredrickson's suggests positivity

- Feels good - Changes how your mind works - widens the span of possibilities - Transforms your future - brings out the best in you - Puts the brakes on negativity - Obeys a 'tipping point' "where a small change makes a big difference" - You can increase your positivity

What formular is used to describe Happiness

- H=S+C+V

What is the sailboat metaphor?

- Imagine a sail boat with a leak. The leak represents the psychological problems which a person has and must be addressed as a priority. However, once the leak is fixed the boat is still not going anywhere. - The tools of positive psychology represent the wind in the sails that move the boat forward

· Seligman's application of the General Happiness Scale in North Americans showed:

- In general, people are happy - Money contributed to happiness, but only to a certain level due to habituation. It is no longer a source of pleasure or motivation.

What is mindfulness?

- Intentionally focused awareness of one's immediate experience.

Fredrikson uses this ratio only generally and suggests

- It is 'non-linear' i.e. a little change in positivity can make a big difference. The math for an exact ratio are disputed

· Positive dimensions include:

- Joy - Gratitude - Serenity - Interest - Hope - Pride - Amusement - Inspiration - Awe"

Strong characteristics of Martin Seligman:

- Love of learning/curiosity - Intellect and contributions to this important area of wellness psychology - Generosity in sharing his time, ideas and encouragement.

Who are the founders of positive psychology Movement

- Mark Seligman - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

· Fredrickson strongly endorses:

- Mindfulness - an open-mindedness, focused on the present moment, while holding a non-judgmental attitude (these are also aspects of DBT and ACT).

If a person is characteristically not naturally disposed toward happiness mean they cannot be happy.

- No it doesn't. They can still be happy. - They may structure their life to find satisfaction in many other ways.

What is Learned Helplessness

- One believes he/she has no control over what occurs - External forces rather than internal resources dictate one's ability to accomplish a task or succeed e.g. Genetics and Social class

Seligman's Degrees and focus

- Philosophy - PhD in psychology and practice 'conventional' psychotherapy. - Focus was on guilt, original sin and the apparent prevailing view that people are 'rotten to the core', that is: need fixing.

What aspects/characteristics are influenced by genetics

- Physical - Psychological - Emotional

General Happiiness Scale Happiness was related positively or negative and to what

- Positively - To marriage, socializing, age, religiousness, and health

Barbara Fredrickson's Simpler approach to positivity

- Positivity complements and contributes to the development of positive psychology. - The basic themes are similar to Seligman's in that she is recommending a choice: to fill our hearts, minds and lives with positive things and reduce (but not eliminate) the negative things.

The Good Work Project - Society - encouraging individuals to what?

- Pursue excellence for its own sake - Gravitate to projects that will achieve a sense of flow - Find positions that will help them achieve higher levels of fulfilment - Build on their strengths - Focus attention on the Pillars of Wellbeing - Channel more energy into what makes life worth living

What is the REACH of the Tansgression Motivation Scale

- Recall the hurt objectively - Empathise by trying to understand the point of view and why the person hurt you - Altruistic forgiving - Commit yourself to forgive - Hold on to the forgiveness.

What is flow?

- being in the zone, is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energised focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. - Absorbed in ones work

What does experience in Mindfulness refer to?

- is moment by moment attention to thoughts, emotions, physical sensations and surroundings

Controlling negative thinking Fredrickson argues

- that as we increase our positives and need to decrease the negatives. But not completely because we need to experience these things in our lives to stabilize us.

Controlling negative behaviour Fredrickson suggests

- that we may be able to reduce the effects of 'gratuitous negativity' by changing the way we view something or even modifying the event.

What is the Good Work Projects aim

- to encourage Individuals and institutions to encourage learned optimism. - Is about how to best increase incidence of good work in society

what is the set range for naturally happy influenced by genetics

50% This influence extends to many aspects of our personality, in varying degree.

How do researchers and therapist suggest what posItive psychology is:

An adjunct, supplement, and guide to better living. Not a replacement therapy (Biswas-Diener, 2010)

Seligman was also influenced by who and why

Barbara Fredrickson's work on 'positivity' and the CBT dictum that our feelings result from our cognitions (thoughts).

What things can people do to have more fullfilling lives

Howard Gardner - "Good Work Project"

Absorbed in one's work characterised by:

Intense concentration Loss of self awareness Feeling of being perfectly challenged (neither bored nor overwhelmed) Sense that time is flying Intrinsically rewarding experience Help one achieve a goal or improve skills Highly related to creative insight

Self Compassion Letter to yourself

Is about accepting yourself Writing a letter to yourself about yourself that you dislike and criticise such as thoughts and feelings. Think of someone you who is accepting and supportive, who sees your strengths and opportunities for growth including negative aspects. Now write a letter from the perspective of this kind friend, what does he/she say to you? How does this friend encourage and support you in taking steps to change? Read 15 minutes later and let the words sink in. Feel the love, compassion, support and acceptance Review this letter when ever you are feeling down about this aspect of yourself ACCEPTING YOURSELF IS THE FIRST STEP TO CHANGE!

The 5 Pillers wellbeing is by: what is the acronym?

Mark Seligman PERMA

Who developed Flow

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

What are the 5 Pillars of Wellbeing?

Positive Emotion Engagement Relationships Meaning Accomplishment

The Good Work Project was developed by

Professor Howard Gardner

What are the Benefits of Mindfulness?

Reduces stress, anxiety, depression and chronic pain

Research on Daily Vacation

Shows it is the frequency of positive emotions and feelings (not the intensity), is a strong predictor of our overall level of happiness

What is Positive Psychology defined by Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi

The positive features that make life worth living such as Hope, wisdom, creativity, future mindedness, courage, spirituality, responsibility, and perseverance

Fredrickson sailboat Metaphor

The positives are like the height of the mast and the negatives like the keel - we still need the keel to steer and manage the boat but the height of the mast (positivity) provides the momentum to move life forward.

Are there shortcuts to sustained happiness and wellbeing

There are a few if any shortcuts If people say there is, they are selling something.

Positive psychology Aims:

To COMPLIMENT, not replace, traditional psychology STRENGTH is as important as weakness Build on the best things in life in order to repair the worst. To Increase WELLBEING

How to build compassion

To be a kinder, more balanced, and helpful perspective on whatever is troubling you in life. 1. Compassionate Thought Diaries 2. Compassionate Letter Writing. Appreciating the positives more generally in day to day life can be a great way to nurture a more compassionate way of seeing the world. Pleasure Task Focusing and an Appreciation Logbook done on a daily basis can help you with this.

How to practise Mindfulness

To be grounded in the present moment

In Learned Helplessness evidence suggests what:

Wellbeing is not simply the result of fortunate spin of the genetic roulette wheel. There are things that people can actively do to lead more fulfilling lives.

What is Learned Optimism?

a talent for joy can be cultivated