Psychology has made great strides in understanding mental illness, but how much has it learned about mental health? When people want to reflect upon the good life and how to live it, they turn to philosophers and novelists, not psychologists. The emerging field of positive psychology aims to redress this imbalance.
In Flourishing, distinguished scholars apply scientific analyses to study the good life, expanding the scope of social and psychological research to include happiness, well-being, courage, citizenship, play, and the satisfactions of healthy work and healthy relationships. Their findings reveal that a sense of meaning and a feeling of richness emerge in life as people immerse themselves in activities, relationships, and the pursuit of intrinsically satisfying goals like overcoming adversity or serving one's community through volunteering. This provocative book will further define this evolving field.
Contributors
Acknowledgments
Foreword: The Past and Future of Positive Psychology
—Martin E. P. Seligman
Introduction: Human Flourishing—The Study of That Which Makes Life Worthwhile
—Corey L. M. Keyes and Jonathan Haidt
I. Rise to Life’s Challenges
- Flourishing Under Fire: Resilience as a Prototype of Challenged Thriving
—Carol d. Ryff and Burton Singer - Turning Points as Opportunities for Psychological Growth
—Elaine Wethington - Optimism and Flourishing
—Chris Peterson and Edward C. Chang
II. Engage and Relate
- The Construction of Meaning Through Vital Engagement
—Jeanne Nakamura and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Personal Goals, Life Meaning, and Virtue: Wellsprings of a Positive Life
—Robert A. Emmons - Toward a Positive Psychology of Relationships
—Harry T. Reis and Shelly L. Gable
III. Find Fulfillment in Creativity and Productivity
- Creativity and Genius
—Vincent J. Cassandro and Dean Keith Simonton - Working, Playing, and Eating: Making the Most of Most Moments
—Amy Wrzesniewski, Paul Rozin, and Gwen Bennett - Well-Being in the Workplace and Its Relationship to Business Outcomes: A Review of the Gallup Studies
—James K. Harter, Frank L. Schmidt, and Corey L. M. Keyes
IV. Look Beyond Oneself
- Doing Well by Doing Good: Benefits for the Benefactor
—Jane Allyn Piliavin - The Intermarriage of Wisdom and Selective Optimization With Compensation: Two Meta-Heuristics Guiding the Conduct of Life
—Paul B. Baltes and Alexandra M. Freund - Elevation and the Positive Psychology of Morality
—Jonathan Haidt
V. Looking Ahead: A Call to Action
- Complete Mental Health: An Agenda for the 21st Century
—Corey L. M. Keyes
Author Index
Subject Index
About the Editors
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