Lecture by Dr. Martin Seligman: Positive Psychology and Human Flourishing

Introduction

• Speaker: Dr. Martin Seligman
  • Founder of Positive Psychology
  • Director of the Center for Positive Psychology, University of Pennsylvania
  • Author: "Authentic Happiness" and "Flourishing"
• Topic: Hope for the Future - Well-being and Human Flourishing

Key Concepts

• Human Flourishing Above Zero:
  • Challenge the idea that the best we can do is to alleviate misery (Freud and Schopenhauer)
  • Propose that life above zero, or flourishing and well-being, is attainable
• Perma Model of Well-being:
  • Positive Emotion
  • Engagement
  • Relationships
  • Meaning
  • Accomplishment

Objectives

• Empirical Data and Goals:
  • Well-being as a plausible individual and national goal
  • Defines and measures beyond the absence of misery
• Building Well-being:
  • Investigate how to construct elements of well-being
  • Distinguish from dieting and traditional psychotherapy

Measurement and Implementation

• National and Global Measurement:
  • European study on Perma across 23 EU nations
  • Denmark leads in flourishing, France and former Soviet Union at the bottom
• Teachability and Lasting Change:
  • Methods for increasing Perma are teachable
  • Not a temporary fix like dieting

The Science of Perma

• Positive Emotion:
  • Limited increase potential due to heritability
  • Losada ratio: Positive vs negative words in flourishing companies and relationships
• Engagement (Flow):
  • Highest strengths matched to challenges
  • Signature strengths test available online
• Relationships:
  • Active constructive responses to partners’ achievements
  • Importance of celebrating together
• Meaning:
  • Serving something greater than oneself
  • Philanthropy vs personal fun activities
• Accomplishment:
  • Self-discipline over IQ in predicting success

Application in Large Organizations

• U.S. Army Case Study:
  • Resilience and positive psychology training for 1.1 million soldiers
  • Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program implementation
  • Positive impact on psychological strength and reduction in suicide rates

Conclusion

• Political Implications:
  • Shift focus from wealth to well-being
  • Learning from historical examples such as Florence
  • A transformative vision for societies beyond alleviating misery
• Nietzsche’s Three Phases of Human History:
  • Camel (endurance), Lion (rebellion), and Child (rebirth)
  • Emphasis on saying yes to life — an affirmative politics of flourishing

Final Thoughts

• Encourage pursuit of positive emotion, engagement, noble purpose, better relationships, and accomplishments
• Vision of a flourishing future and its political ethos

These notes encapsulate Dr. Seligman's lecture on the potential for human flourishing through understanding and enhancing well-being, focusing on the Perma model, and envisioning its application at both individual and societal levels.