Flourish: Post #6 - Experimental and Applied

Positive Psychology: Experimental vs. Applied
a. Work, Love, Play. I loved this reference in the book. “It’s what life’s all about.”
b. In 1946 experimental psychologists “decided” to eschew applied psychology in favor of experimental—to mimic the other “hard “ sciences. That was a mistake, according to Seligman, because it left out such an important aspect of the science—namely its use with patients.
c. Building a program at U. Penn, the author used several approaches
a. Barbara Frederickson’s “Broaden and Build” theory which focuses on positive emotions (joy, optimism, hope) that give us a broader, more open outlook—thus more room to build creativity available in the prefrontal cortex to solve problems.
b. The Losoda Line: the now well-known 3:1 ratio—positive-to-negative interactions for working teams. (Note: the ratio is higher for interpersonal interactions, especially in marriages—5:1).