Context

  • When you hear the word "psychology", what do you think of?

When you hear the word "psychology", what do you think of?

Most people associate psychology with mental illness, or human suffering. To some extent, they are right because throughout most of the twentieth century, psychology concentrated in an important way on the study of mental problems, of what does not work well in people.

Nowadays, psychology has broadened its focus and there is a growing interest in researching what works well in our lives, gives us satisfaction, generates positive emotions and makes us feel that our life is worthwhile.

Explanation

1.1 Happiness is Not a Fad

The interest in happiness is not a fad, it is one of the most important topics in the history of human thought. What it means to be happy and how to achieve it, are genuine questions of all human beings and constitute a topic that is often thought about.

The definition of happiness and the conditions that support it have been subject to various criteria. For the hedonist philosophers, happiness consisted of the sum of pleasant moments, for this reason they proposed that happiness consisted of an immediate satisfaction of desires. Stoic thinkers, on the other hand, put the emphasis on the avoidance of pain (Peterson, 2006). In the philosophical tradition influenced by Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, happiness was linked to the possession of virtues, thus happiness consisted in the harmonious development of a series of capabilities with which human beings face the circumstances of their lives.

Throughout history people have wondered

1.2 Wellbeing and Happiness

Happiness is something that we can all easily recognize, but difficult to define. From the perspective of positive psychology, there is no single definition, but almost all conceptualizations of happiness include three elements:


Satisfaction with life has to do with a cognitive process of evaluation: how do I compare my life with that of others and with my own conception of an ideal life? Positive emotions, as the name implies, refer to the affective part, to experiencing more positive emotions than negative ones in general. This is called "affective balance": feeling joy, happiness or serenity, more often than anger, sadness, despair or fear.

Life meaning, refers to feeling that our life is worthwhile. It is frequently related to the Aristotelian concept of eudaimonia or "good life" based on the development of virtues. In the scientific literature, especially in the area of positive psychology, since the 80's began to increase the number of research on happiness, which had an increase in the first decade of this millennium.

The interest in the optimal functioning of people, plenitude and "human flourishing" has continued to increase. In the academic world, more and more authors are choosing to speak of "well-being" instead of "happiness", since the word happiness tends to be associated only with joy, while "wellbeing" or welfare alludes to something more complex. Seligman (2011) proposes that we should talk about wellbeing rather than happiness. Other authors, such as Ed Diener, "father of the study of happiness," uses both terms interchangeably.

1.3 Tecmilenio Wellbeing and Happiness Model

For the TecMilenio community, wellbeing or happiness should be understood as: "feeling good, being satisfied and having a life with purpose".  

The conceptualization of well-being in our model is based on the PERMA model by Dr. Martin Seligman, plus two additional components inspired by Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar's SPIRE model and recent literature on mindfulness.

1.3.1 PERMA Model by Seligman

Dr. Martin Seligman has synthesized his extensive knowledge about welfare research in a model that includes the factors that contribute most to it and to "human flourishing".

The PERMA acronym represents the 5 components of wellbeing:

P= Positivity
E= Engagement
R= Interpersonal Relationships
M= Meaning
A= Achievement

 

  • Positivity refers to joy and positive emotions.
  • Engagement has to do with Flow experiences, with being able to concentrate fully on one activity and face the challenges it poses, using our abilities.
  • Interpersonal relationships are simply that: positive relationships with others, one of the factors that contribute most to well-being.
  • Meaning has to do with transcendence, with feeling that our life has a purpose and meaning, that what we do connects us with other people, or with projects or dimensions larger than ourselves.
  • Achievement refers to being successful in some area, setting goals and achieving them.

It is important to note that character strengths are implicit in this model. Seligman (2002) says that these permeate all the components of well-being. Character strengths are moral qualities that are valued in almost all cultures, are valuable by themselves (not only as means for other purposes) and are malleable, we can develop them.

In addition to the 5 components of PERMA wellbeing and character strengths, it is important for us to include physical well-being (wellness) and mindfulness. Both elements are included in the SPIRE model by Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar.

1.3.2 Physical Wellbeing (wellness)

Within positive psychology, the relationship between psychological and physical well-being has been studied. Two important models on the latter are that of Tom Rath, of the Gallup Organization and the Smarts and Stamina model, by Britoon and Schaar. Both agree that the fundamental elements of physical well-being are the following:

1.3.3 Mindfulness

There is increasing empirical evidence about the benefits of mindfulness. This refers to the ability to pay attention, to focus and be fully present in the moment. There are practices such as various forms of meditation, which cultivate this full attention, but also, mindfulness can occur in everyday life, by doing each of our activities in a deliberate and attentive manner.

In summary, the conceptual framework that guides our efforts to promote well-being at TecMilenio consists of the following elements, all integrated by character strengths.

We will expand the explanation of the Wellbeing and Happiness model in the following topics of the course.


Closure

The study of happiness and well-being is the focus of the scientific research of positive psychology, with a cognitive and emotional approach, it sustains that people have the possibility of finding (in the midst of their problems) a way out, with their own resources; this path leads them to a level of gratification and satisfaction using their strengths and virtues, to find the meaning of their life (Seligman, 2002).

The University’s Wellbeing and Happiness Model will be our guide so that through various activities throughout the degree, students achieve "feeling good, being satisfied and having a life with purpose".

Below, review the Checkpoint:

Make sure you understand:

  • The different approaches to happiness throughout history.
  • The scientific approach to positive psychology.
  • The focus of positive psychology and its main areas of application.
  • The elements that make up the University’s Wellbeing and Happiness Model.

References

  • Peterson, C. (2006). A Primer in Positive Psychology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
  • Seligman, M.E.P. (2002). Authentic Happiness. New York, NY: Atria Paperback.
  • Seligman, M.E.P. (2011). Flourish. New York, NY: Free Press.
  • Tapia-V., A., Tarragona, M. & González, M. (2012). Psicología Positiva. Ciudad de México, México: Editorial Trillas.
  • Vázquez, C. & Hervás, G. (2009). La ciencia del bienestar: Fundamentos de una psicología positiva. Madrid, España: Alianza.