Positive Psychology

THe two sides of the psychology coin

Positive psychology is complementary to psychopathology; these two disciplines are two sides of the same coin—the positive and the negative of psychology.  The scientific theory of complementarity, borrowed from physics, espouses that two often competing theories when viewed together form a whole or more complete theory; such is the case with psychopathology and positive psychology.  

Positive psychology is indebted to the advances in psychopathology which endeavors to help those with mental health problems; however, for far too long psychology focused on human weakness, illness, and what is wrong with people. Positive psychology is the human science of what is right with people and focuses on human strengths and wellness. Lopez, Snyder, and Rasmussen (2003) explained and advocated for the necessity of striking a balance when assessing human weaknesses and strengths.

Positive psychology is a science of well-being. Applied positive psychology is the study of positive cognitions and emotions, positive character strengths and virtues, and positive institutions and relationships (Linely & Joseph, 2004; Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000; Seligman, Steen, Park, & Peterson, 2005). Cowen and Kilmer (2002) noted that historically psychology was more concerned with psychopathology and how to fix the human psyche. Positive psychology is focused on preventing mental illness and to help those ill get well. The health benefits attained in practicing positive psychology are profound and range from helping individuals find hope amidst depression, to stress reduction, and lowering cortisol levels (Fredrickson & Losada, 2005).

Positive psychology’s foundation is built on character strengths and virtues (CSV; Peterson & Seligman, 2004). There are six universal virtues in the CSV construct (Dahlsgaard, Christopher, & Seligman, 2005; Peterson & Seligman, 2004). The virtues are: wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence. Positive psychology is impassioned with the goal of helping individuals discover the good life and human authenticity in order to flourish amidst adversity. 

Resiliency and coping positively with stress are important aspects of positive psychology (Peterson & Seligman, 2004). Positive psychology is concerned about risk factors that undermine well-being; however, positive psychology focuses more on protective factors such as hardiness, hope, and social support used in the RWRP in order to strengthen resiliency. Positive psychology is not a risk averse or a stress free theory of life; instead, positive psychology boldly takes on challenges and threats to human well-being so that humans can do more than survive—they can thrive.

Positive psychology has challenges (Sandage & Hill, 2001), and critics ( Cowen & Kilmer, 2002) who objectively pointed out the potential problems with overemphasizing positivity and neglecting negativity.  Paradoxically, some negative emotions and states of being can be positive; for example, anger can be used constructively, denial can be a temporary adaptive coping strategy, and some pessimism or skepticism is needed to see the reality of the lifeworld.  Life is not always rainbows and butterflies; life storms can create chaos and bees can sting us; however, positive psychology focuses on overcoming the trials, tests, and tribulations of life for good. 

Negative emotions can be positive

Some are thinking "this doesn't make sense—how can a negative emotion like anger be positive?"  One of the negative criticisms of positive psychology is the lack of emphasis on negative emotions. Positive psychology is not the negation of negative emotionality; it is the healthy expression of all emotions in a positive way.  Emotionality is understudied in military research. However, there is a growing body of theoretical and practical research on the importance of positive emotions and positive affect, especially within the domain of positive psychology and human flourishing (Fredrickson & Losada, 2005). If you are a skeptic I recommend checking out the ground breaking research at the University of North Carolina's "Positive Emotions and Psychophysiology Laboratory" led by Dr. Barbara Fredrickson.

Finally, what is the essence of the resilient warrior’s emotionality that makes his or her lived experience different from that of others? With regard to emotionality, the traumatic challenges in life peel off the veneer of emotions and expose the raw, primordial emotions of being human. In war and combat, whether with external enemy or enemy within oneself— emotions are more intense and can lead to a range of expression from numbness to rage to elation and joy. Often, the numbing effect is essential in combat or when faced with the shock of terrible experiences of death; temporary numbing can help the warrior cope, but if numbing and denial continue unchecked, it can contribute to negative outcomes.  Good news: most of us can take control of our reactions to trauma and the bad things that happen in life.  The fact of the matter is bad things happen to good people everyday; it is how you respond that makes the difference.  I refer you back to the hope page and review hope as an emotion section.  Hope copes positively with trauma and adversity.

Below are four classic works that have shaped my understanding of how the most horrible of times in our lives can influence us and that something good can emerge to make us stronger; make us better humans:

1.  Harold S. Kushner's: "When Bad Things Happen to Good People."

2.  Martin Luther King, Jr.: "Why We Can't Wait."

3.  Viktor E. Frankl:  "Man's Search for Meaning."

4.  Corrie Ten Boom: "A Prisoner and Yet..."

References

Cowen, E., & Kilmer, R. (2002). Positive psychology: Some plusses and some open issues. Journal of Community Psychology, 30, 449-460.

Dahlsgaard, K., Christopher, P., & Seligman, M. (2005). Shared virtue: The           convergence of valued human strengths across culture and history. Review of          General Psychology, 9, 203-213.

Fredrickson, B., & Losada, M. (2005). Positive affect and the complex dynamic of human flourishing. American Psychologist, 60, 678-686.

Linely, P. A, & Joseph, S. (2004). Applied positive psychology: A new perspective for professional practice. In P. Linely & S. Joseph (Eds.), Positive psychology in practice (pp. 3-12). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley.

Lopez, S. J., Snyder, C. R., & Rasmussen, H. N. (2003). Striking a vital balance:   Developing a complementary focus on human weakness and strength through      positive psychological assessment. In S. J. Lopez and C. R. Snyder (Eds.).          Positive psychological assessment: A handbook of models and measures (pp. 3-  20). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Previous classifications of character   strengths. In C. Peterson & M. Seligman (Eds.), Character strengths and virtues:          A handbook and classification (pp. 53-89). New York, NY: Oxford University.

Sandage, S. J., & Hill, P. C. (2001). The virtues of positive psychology: the rapprochement and challenges of an affirmative postmodern perspective. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 31(3), 241-260. 

Seligman, M. E. P, & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction.  American Psychologist, 55, 5-15.

Seligman, M. E. P, Steen, T., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress. American Psychologist, 60, 410-421.