I see trees of green, red roses too I see them bloom for me and you And I think to myself what a wonderful world. I see skies of blue and clouds of white The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night And I think to myself what a wonderful world. The

1
What a Wonderful World (Louie Armstrong)

• I see trees of green, red roses tooI see them
  bloom for me and youAnd I think to myself what a
  wonderful world.I see skies of blue and clouds
  of whiteThe bright blessed day, the dark sacred
  nightAnd I think to myself what a wonderful
  world.The colors of the rainbow so pretty in
  the skyAre also on the faces of people going
  byI see friends shaking hands saying how do you
  doThey're really saying I love you.I hear
  babies crying, I watch them growThey'll learn
  much more than I'll never knowAnd I think to
  myself what a wonderful worldYes I think to
  myself what a wonderful world.

2
Dr Mark Williams, Ph.D. Professor of Applied
Positive Psychology Shenzhen University
    Mobile [phone]) 13480129331email
markw.szu_at_gmail.comweb www.aappi.net

• Positive Psychology
• Science of Happiness and Strengths
• ??????????????
• Life Skills

3
What is Positive Psychology?

• Positive psychology is the scientific study of
  human strengths and happiness (subjective
  well-being)
• Positive psychology tells us what to do in our
  life so we can be more happy, stronger, and more
  successful (positive psychology life skills
  interventions to change your life).
• Human happiness and personality strengths are
  scientifically investigated with experiments,
  case studies and surveys.

4
Why is Positive Psychology Different? (Shahar,
2007)

• Traditional psychology concentrates on studying
  human dysfunction and illness such as depression,
  anxiety, and fear.
• Positive psychology studies resilient,
  successful, talented, strong and happy
  individuals, families, teams, communities and
  business and government organizations.
• Thus we can learn these life skills to enhance
  strength, life satisfaction, and success.

5
Enhancing mindfulness by STOP

• S Stop what you are doing
• Smile Strongly
• T Take a breath sit straight, soft belly
• Take some time (count to 5)
• O Observe your body relax it
• Open mind-body (look, listen, smell, hear,
  touch, )
• P Pause to notice Place and People
• Pause to tell somebody something you noticed
• Proceed with life
• Source Fisher, T. (2005) Beginners mind
  cultivating mediator mindfulness ACResolution

6
2 Chinese Stories
Mr. Pin Pian
Mr. Lin Lian
Ms. Li Ling
Ms. Pi Ping
Poor Families near Guangdong
Rich Families in Shenzhen
7
2 Chinese Stories
Mr. Pin Pianyi
Mr. Lin lian
Ms. Li Ling
Ms. Pi Ping
From small cities near Guangdong worked very
hard in school Had to work hard graduated from
SZU in 2005 because they forced himself to get
interested in their major of English Strong and
satisfied?
From Shenzhen had tutors because their family is
rich talented and handsome graduated from SZU
in law and in management without working very
hard at their studies Strong and satisfied?
8
4 Aspects of Happiness (OConnor (2008) Happiness)

1. Much joy Experiencing positive feelings like
   enthusiasm, contentment, peace, love (lieben),
   etc., frequently and deeply laugh out loud a lot
2. Not much misery e.g. not many feelings like
   sadness, depression, bitterness, negativity,
   jealousy, hatred, regret, discontent, loneliness
3. Satisfaction with life have most things you
   need, happy with relationships, optimistic smile
   a lot not wanting things they dont have or
   feeling youve missed out on important things or
   youve failed in important life areas satisfying
   work (arbeiten)
4. Meaningful purpose more about this later!

9
How do you feel right now? ????????

1. Excited enthusiastic interested
   uninterested bored?? - ?? ??? - ???? - ??
2. Joyous happy - so-so sad - depressed?? - ??
   - ???? - ?? - ??
3. Peaceful relaxed unrelaxed agitated
   jealous - angry ? ?- ?? ?? ?? - ?? - ??
4. Powerful confident ok timid - scared?? -
   ?? - ? - ?? - ???
5. Lively energetic listless lazy - tired -
   exhausted ?? - ???? ???? - ?? ?-????
6. Uplifted elevated clear unclear - confused
   ?? ?? - ?? - ??? ??

10
Consider this scientific survey

• At Florida State University, Tim Judge and his
  team began a study in 1965 with 12,686
  participants who were around 15 years old which
  gave information on levels of their positive
  strength and well-being.
• His team then surveyed the participants in 2005
  to obtain data to calculate subjective well-being
  and annual income at age 50.

Judge, T. A., Hurst, C. (2007).
11
Positive people tend to get a high income
Judge, T. A., Hurst, C. (2007).
12
More positive more money?

• This experiment suggests that if you are highly
  positive- high self-esteem ?????- high
  emotional stability ??????- high locus of
  control ????- high self-efficacy ?????)
• you will tend to get a lot more money no matter
  how well you do at school.
• How do you become highly positive?
• Thats what we are doing together in this course.

13
High positivity is important in all areas of life
??????????????????
14
Happiness Measure?????
10 extremely unhappy ?????20 very unhappy
?????30 quite unhappy ????40 a little
unhappy ?????50 Neutral ??,????????60 a
little happy ???? 70 quite happy ??? 80 very
happy ???? 90 extremely happy ???? 100
perfectly blissful

• Today, Ive generally been feeling
  ???????,?????? ______
• Over the last few days, Ive generally been
  feeling ?????? ,?????? ______
• Write the average of these two scores on the
  attendance sheet when it is passed around.

15
Who is he? What did he do?
16
Prof. Dr. Martin Seligman, 1998 President
American Psychological Association, father and
world leader of Positive Psychology, Director of
the Positive Psychology Center, University of
Pennsylvania
17
What did he do?

• Psychologists split into two camps
• Academic psychology more interested in education
  and scientific experiments.
• Clinical psychologists interested in client
  therapy for depression and mental disorder.
• Dr. Seligman hoped to bring psychological science
  and practice together.

18
Young Martie Seligman

• After his Ph.D., he conducted major psychology
  experiments on animals and then humans during the
  1970s - 1980s to investigate clinical depression
  and helplessness (very low positive people).
• Today, with bestselling books, Learned Optimism
  and Authentic Happiness, Seligman is recognized
  as the world's preeminent psychological authority
  on optimism (high positive people).

19
Seligmans Early Learned Helplessness Experiment,
1967

• The first (experimental) set of dogs were placed
  in a box that continued to give the dog electric
  shocks until they learned to jump over a bar to a
  safe place they could help themselves.

20
Learned Helplessness ?????

• The second (experimental) set of dogs were
  placed in a box that continued to give them
  electric shocks for a random period of time
  they could not help themselves.
• The third set of dogs (control group) sat in a
  box with no electric shocks.
• In the final stage of the experiment, all three
  sets of dogs were placed in boxes which gave
  electric shocks but the dogs all could jump over
  to the other side of a partition.

21
Final Stage Escape ?? or Helplessness ??

• Across a large number of repetitions, in the
  final stage when all the sets of dogs could
  jump, the first (experimental) set of dogs
  quickly jumped over the partition and escaped the
  shock.
• The second set of dogs (learned helplessness),
  did not even try to jump even though they now
  could, but just lay on the bottom of the box
  being shocked.

22
Final Stage Escape ?? or Helplessness ??

• The third set of dogs (the control ???) learned
  to jump over the partition to escape but not so
  quickly as the first group of dogs.
• Only the second group, who had learned to be
  helpless, did not try to jump to freedom.

23
Experiments on People

• Similar experiments with people and annoying bad
  sounds show similar results.
• Both animals humans can learn helplessness. 
• When faced with situations where they were
  powerless to change an annoying element, 2 out of
  3 would cease trying to change the situation
  after failure.
• Further, when placed in a new situation with a
  different annoying element, they would make no
  attempt to fight even from the beginning. 

24
But 1 in 3 Humans refused to be hopeless
??????????

• 1 in 10 seemed to be born with hopelessness,
  making no attempt even at the beginning to change
  an annoying element such as shocks.
• But 1 in 3 had optimism, being positively strong
  to act to improve their life regardless of
  hardship or failure.
• This later result became the focus of Seligmans
  research into optimism.

25
Seligmans inspiration ???????

• Seligman weeding garden, 5-year old daughter
  throwing weeds.
• Seligman irritated, yelled at Nikki, who replied
  
• Daddy. From when I was 3 until I was 5, I was
  unhappy all the time. I cried every day. On my
  5th birthday, I decided I wasnt going to cry
  anymore. That was the hardest thing Ive ever
  done. If I can stop crying, you can stop being
  such an angry father.

26
A Change of Heart ???????

• Seligman resolved to change - not to be always
  angry to make his daughter be better.
• Instead, he began to encourage her positive
  strength which she showed by talking to him so
  wisely (social intelligence ????).
• Can psychology build up human well-being and
  personality positive strengths?
• That became his mission as 1998 president till
  this day.

27
Positive Psychology uses empirical scientific
research ???????????
28
Seligmans PERMA model

• P Positive emotions
• E Engagement in life and work
• R Relationships and love
• M Meaningful purpose and goals
• A Achievement (esp. for goals)
• Source Seligman, M. www.authentichappiness.org

29
Course Assessments

• There is no final formal exam in the exam week
  after classes have finished
• There are 5 assessments
• Assessment 1 Each week send an email to
  markw.positive_at_gmail.com describing 11
  PERMAGASMIC good things that happened during the
  week (and why they were good because of P, E, R,
  M, A, G, A, S, M, I, C)

30
My PERMAGASMIC model for emails-
Positive Psychology Interventions to

• P enhance Positive emotions
• E enhance Engagement in life work
• R enhance Relationships loving kindness
• M enhance Meaningful purposes
• A enhance Achievement toward goals
• G feel Grateful to someone
• A Awareness of belly breathing mindfulness
• S enhance Strengths (individual group)
• M Morph (Change, reframe, remake) negative
  emotions (fear, sad, lonely, grief, sickness) to
  life opportunities
• I Inhale down to belly, exhale down doing
  STOP-SLOW
• C Communication through active constructive
  talk

(based on Seligman, M. 2011. Flourishing)
31
PERMAGASMA Weekly Email (30)
Dear Mark, I am grateful for a PERMAGASMIC
(orgasmic, fantastic, cosmic) week P. Positive
emotions Enhanced by savouring the fun of
playing with my young nephew. E. Engaged in work
and life setting timetable and schedules to
finish all my homework on time. R. Relationships
Enhancing my romantic relationship by
going for a walk with my girlfriend. M.
Meaningful purpose Enhanced by reading articles
about my future profession. A. Achievement
towards goals making progress towards my goal
of walking fast 30 minutes every day. G. Giving
I gave some coins most days to my friends and
paid for my friend at a meal A. Acting and
living, right now in this moment, exactly like
the strongest and happiest person I ever dreamed
I could be indeed I am acting and living as
that person right now! S. Strengths Went online
to www.cnenn.cn and found my character strengths
and am using them now M. Morphing My eye was
hurt  I used the ABC-reward method tried to
overcome the fear in my heart and just listened
to the doctor using the belly-breathing method to
relax I. Inhale-exhale STOP-SLOW Belly
breathing, Stop and Smile, Take a while Take a
breath, yes breathe in now, Open my eyes, Open my
ears, wait for a wonderful thing C.
Communication Had active-constructive communicati
on with my brother and he smiled with me.
Regards, Arthur
32
Assessment 2 (10) Group PPT

• Group PPT on applying Positive Psychology to some
  area of life or work
• In groups of 2-4 students, create a PowerPoint
  file (each student creates 5 slides with your
  name on them) applying positive psychology to
  some area of life teaching, management,
  hospitals, uni life, romantic love, friendship,
  family, money, fame, holidays, sport, coaching,
  work, career, sales, government, housework,
  having children, getting married, recovering from
  failure or illness, small business, or the
  construction, restaurant, hotel, real estate,
  advertising, entertainment, banking, airline,
  driving, supermarket, film and television
  industries.

33
Assessment 3 Strengths Email (10)

• By week 10, each student will send me a 60-120
  word email describing your main personality
  strengths based on your understanding of your
  Enneagram
• This email must have the words ltYOUR STUDENT IDgt
  ltYOUR ENGLISH NAMEgt PERSONALITY STRENGTHS in the
  subject line of the email and at the start of
  your email text itself
• To know you strengths you will need to do the
  free Chinese Enneagram test at www.cnenn.cn
• You can also do the free character strengths test
  at www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu (go to
  the middle of the home page scroll down
  click)?

34
Assessment 4 Class Speech (10)

• From week 12 onwards, each student will give a 2
  minute English speech in groups about how you are
  using your personality strengths, your dreams for
  your life, your 5 years goals, and your life
  goals. The best speeches will be given to the
  whole class.
• You will include your goals in 3 of the major
  areas of life including Financial planning
  Family Career and work life Education and life
  long learning Public service Self development
  Health-education-diet Pleasure Friends social
  life Music-art-fashion Home life
  Culture-religion-spirituality

35
Assessment 5 (40)

• Attendance, participation, contribution to
  course (translations, comments)
• You will need to write at least one gratitude
  letter to your mother or father
• There will also be a short 1 page informal exam
  in the last week of this course

36
Also, I would like some of you to read your
gratitude letters to inspire the whole class, for
example

• I took a long time to write letter. After I give
  to mother, I think she could never be happier.
  Most amazing thing is Im happier too. I
  understand when you make someone else happy you
  become happy. (Dylan)

37
Questions to discuss

• It is important to study happiness scientifically
  because
• Happiness comes from .  
• Any of us can raise our baseline levels of
  happiness by
• My personality strengths are .

38
References

• Ben-Shahar, Tal. (2007). Happier Learn the
  Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting
• Fulfilment. McGraw-Hill New York
• Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow The psychology
  of optimal experience. New
• York Harper Row.
• Fredrickson, B. L. (1998). What good are positive
  emotions? Review of General
• Psychology, 2(3), 300 - 319.
• Fredrickson, B. L., Levenson, R. W. (1998).
  Positive emotions speed recovery
• from cardiovascular sequelae of negative
  emotions. Cognitions and Emotion,
• 12, 191220.
• Fredrickson, B., Mancuso, R., Branigan, C.,
  Tugade, M. M. (2000). The
• undoing effect of positive
  emotions. Motivation and Emotion, 24(4), 237
  
• 258.
• Jackson, S., Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1999). Flow
  in sports The keys to optimal experiences and
  performances. Champaign, IL Human Kinetics.
• Happiness. (2010, June 21). In Wikipedia, The
  Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 0154, June 22,
  2010, from http//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?tit
  leHappinessoldid369291403
• Revonsuo, A. (2007). Psychology and Coaching.
  Available online
• www.his.se/upload/71497/1_PC_Intro.ppt
• Seligman, M. E. (2002). Authentic Happiness. New
  York Free Press.
• Seligman, M. Learned Optimism How to Change Your
  Mind and Your Life. New
• York Pocket Books