What positive psychology is NOT , and a bit about savoring
Think Tank : Emotions
Marc Helgesen
What positive psychology is NOT , and a bit about savoring
Any discussion of emotion and brain science is likely to bring up the topic of “ positive psychology .” I ’ d like to share a couple “ positive psychology for the ELT classroom ” tasks . But before we get there , I want to clarify a couple common misconceptions about positive psychology .
Positive psychology is NOT “ the power of positive thinking .” As Seligman ( 2003 ) points out , that is an “ armchair activity .” Positive psychology is a science , complete with replicable studies , peer-reviewed research and all the things you would expect from any branch of science .
As Ben-Shahar famously said , “ There are two kinds of people who don ’ t experience painful emotions : psychopaths and the dead .”
Also , positive psychology is not about denying negative emotions and experiences . As Ben-Shahar ( 2009 ) famously said , “ There are two kinds of people who don ’ t experience painful emotions : psychopaths and the dead .” Seligman ( 2003 ) points out that we need negative thinking , too . If you are getting on an airplane in winter and the pilot is “ deciding whether to de-ice her wings , we should all be pessimists .”
Positive psychology focuses on mental health rather than mental illness . It asks what is going on , cognitively and behaviorally , with happy , well-adjusted people . Positive psychology pioneer Christopher Peterson ( 2011 ) defines it as “ the scientific study of what makes life worth living .”
I ’ ve been working on creating a connection between positive psychology and ELT for over a dozen years . There are scores of classroom activities that couple positive psychology principles with clear grammar , language function or vocabulary sets ( Helgesen , 2018 ). The longer I work with these ideas , the more I feel drawn to “ savoring .” Savoring means “ to attend to , appreciate , and enhance positive experiences ” ( Bryant & Veroff , 2007 ). I