6. Positive Psychology: An Introduction

This chapter provides an introduction to the field of positive psychology. Martin Seligman was elected the president of the American Psychological Association in 1998 and altered the course of the field of psychological by shifting the focus of psychology from being primarily curative in nature to life enhancing through building and nurturing positive qualities in all of us. Positive psychology is defined as “the scientific study of optimal human functioning” (Sheldon, Fredrickson, Rathunde, Csikszentmihalyi, & Haidt in Akumal Manifesto, http://​www.​ppc.​sas.​upenn.​edu/​akumalmanifesto.​htm, 2000, Section 1) and provides a pathway for people to become the best versions of themselves. For leaders desirous of serving others, it is proposed that well-being enables one to best serve the needs of others. Well-being is defined as a combination of hedonic and eudaimonic elements. Hedonic elements are focused on positive outcomes or happiness, and eudaimonic elements are associated with the process of living a high-quality life. Those distinctions are discussed in detail through Part II. This second part will investigate the elements of positive psychology and Seligman’s (Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press, New York, NY, 2011) well-being theory beginning with an understanding of character strengths and virtues.