Article #2 - Thoughts and Questions, et cetera...

Howdy folks! It is time for round two of "What is Positive Psychology?"

Last time, I gave a bare bones summary about both articles that were supposed to be read for week one, then wrote a bit about the first article until my eyes bled (obviously not in a literal way, but that's how it felt). Now it is time for article two, "Positive psychology: An introduction" (already sourced in the previous post).

This, by the way, is still a part of the "catch-up post," and does not entirely reflect my vision for this blog. Time is a precious commodity, and I do have deadlines to meet! :)

My take on the article and my notes and questions:

This article seems to have been an introduction not just to positive psychology, but to that particular issue of American Psychologist. It has a lot of name-dropping and summaries on individual studies/articles of the past, and all-in-all seems to focus more on what psychology as a whole lacks and how positive psychology will fill that void.
Interestingly enough, for an introduction to positive psychology it is a bit on the negative side. For example:

In the first sentence of the article, it talks about preventing pathologies "that arise when life is barren and meaningless" (Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi, 2000).

"Don't you mean, perceived as barren and meaningless?"
To say it any other way implies that people with meaningful lives simply cannot develop mental illness, and while I believe (and evidence suggests) that meaning in one's life can help to prevent or lessen mental illness, it still happens. Or am I just wrong about this?

Beyond this article's negative tone (though I will mention it again in a bit), there is also an odd attitude toward positive emotions and qualities that I honestly had no idea still prevailed in the field. Positive features of life (courage, hope, wisdom, etc.) are explained as "transformations of more authentic negative impulses."

"So...wait. Isn't this just Freud's 'sublimation?' Besides in a historical context, who cares about Freud anymore?"
Not to hate on the man or on psychoanalytical theory in general, but the idea that we paint and stuff because we can't go out and rape each other is kinda ridiculous.

"thriving communities" and "individuals are the authors of their own evolution"
Nothing of note here--these phrases just make me happy!

Another point mentioned was that people do things to feel alive. However, my thought is that they should. I have a feeling that this is not always the case, otherwise spreading the word about prevention and positive psych as a whole would not be necessary...right? And it's funny, because when I think of "prevention" I think about hand-washing. I can see why they have reminders to do so in bathrooms everywhere: it is an inconvenience. It's not particularly pleasurable (though if I don't I just feel gross), so we are not necessarily predisposed to washing our hands all the time, unless it is simply a habit. Doing things to feel alive, however...not doing them is a symptom of mental illness in of itself. I don't know, seems strange to me. (And is probably something I'm going to write about at a later date.)

A problem I have with a section of this article: it doesn't right out say that realism is pessimism, but definitely implies it. The quote:
"What is the relationship between positive traits like optimism...on the one hand, and being realistic on the other?" then, "Many doubt the possibility of being both."
...what? Does this mean there are a lot of educated people out there who really believe you cannot be both optimistic and realistic? Have they never heard the term, "optimistically realistic?" Or am I just reading this incorrectly?

Finally, the authors go on to say, "Is the world simply too full of tragedy to allow a wise person to be happy?"

My response: It is if you put it like that. I'm pretty sure that's just confirmation bias. If you are going to label the world as tragic, then you are throwing objectivity out the window. The same applied if you start with the idea that the world is beautiful, too; so don't go celebrating yet, you hippies. I'm just kidding, but seriously: that's why psychology is a science. Objectivity in observation, measurement, comparison, and deductions. If you don't like that, I have some snake oil to sell you!

Anyway, aside from my objections, I really do like the concept of positive psychology. Do you have any thoughts? Corrections? Objections to what I've said?

~[insert ridiculous-sounding goodbye here]!

Next up: Doc and Chaps, or Normalizing psychology and implementing prevention strategies.