Business
Positive Psychology and Business
Positive Psychology is the scientific study of optimal human functioning. First introduced in 1988 by Dr. Martin Seligman who was then president of the American Psychology Association, it has entered the mainstream of social science research as a complement to traditional approaches. In the past, much of our care focused on deficits, what is wrong and how to make it right. While this model still works, positive psychology studies the positive aspects of our life– the effects of joy, resiliency, strengths and other positive emotions that generally fall under the umbrella of “happiness”. It has broadened the scope of psychological research and practice to include the benefits of positive emotion, character strengths, engagement, meaning and purpose, relationships and other tenets of positivity.
Positive Psychology is increasingly being used in workplace environments to enhance human potential and to improve organizational effectiveness in areas such as:
- Maximizing person–job–organization fit and optimal functioning
- Building optimal team performance
- Developing organizational leaders
- Providing effective mentoring and coaching
- Supporting career development and planning
- Fostering and capitalize on diversity and cross-cultural relationships
- Optimizing work and family balance
- Creating healthful work environments through comprehensive wellness programs
- Promoting organizational learning and continuous improvement
- Inspiring and facilitating positive organization development and strategic change
Take our free introductory course on positive psychology as a starting point, then take any one or more of the courses we offer to deepen your understanding of the field.
Research conducted over the past 40 years suggests that employees will experience high levels of engagement with their job when their responsibilities provide opportunities for recognition, meaningful work, input, close relationships, psychological growth, and professional development. In other words, employees will become more engaged when their jobs include the motivator factors.
For example:
- Berlyne (1963) argued that interesting activities contain novel, surprising, incongruous, complex, uncertain elements. In short, the activities are interesting if they provide mental challenge.
- Deci and Ryan (1985) propose that people become interested in activities that provide a sense of competence and self-determination.
- Csikszentmihalyi (1975, 1997) maintains that clear goals, immediate feedback, and moderate level of challenge make a task enjoyable.
- Bandura (1997) offers that people are motivated to perform an activity to the extent that they feel a sense of efficacy when performing the activity.
Whether you’re a human resource manager focused on building a positive work environment, or a business consultant who is looking to increase sales leads and nurture positive customer relationships, the practice of positive psychology can empower your efforts and help you meet your goals.
