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Positive psychology is a recent branch psychology primarily concerned with using the psychological theory, research and intervention techniques to understand the positive, adaptive, creative and emotionally fulfilling aspects of human behaviour. Mental health in India has become a priority for the people, community, and the state in the last two decades. In place of focusing and concentrating on the negative aspect of a person, a trend is developing to promote positive aspect of one's personality. This paper explores the possibility of application of positive psychology in the area of mental health, specifically in the Indian context.
Keywords: positive psychology, mental health, Indian context
The term "positive psychology" is a broad one, encompassing a variety of techniques that encourage people to identify and further develop their own positive emotions, experiences, and character traits. In many ways, positive psychology builds on key tenets of humanistic psychology. Humanistic psychology as we know focuses on each individual's potential and stresses the importance of growth and self-actualization. The fundamental belief of humanistic psychology is that people are innately good and that mental and social problems result from deviations from this natural tendency. In 1962, Abraham Maslow published 'Toward a Psychology of Being', wherein he had described humanistic psychology as the "third force" in psychology. The first and second forces were behaviorism and psychoanalysis respectively. However, it is not necessary to think of these three schools of thought as competing elements. Humanistic psychology added yet another dimension that takes a more holistic view of the individual.
Seligman (Seligman &Csikszentmihalyi, 2000) defined positive psychology at three core levels the subjective level, the individual level, and the societal level. According to Seligman, the field of positive psychology at the subjective level is about valued experiences: well-being, contentment, and satisfaction (in the past), hope and optimism (for the future) and flow and happiness ( in the present). At the individual level, it is about positive individual traits: the capacity for love and vocation, courage, interpersonal skill, aesthetic sensibility, perseverance, forgiveness, originality, future mindedness, spirituality, high talent and wisdom. At the societal or group level it is about the civic virtues and institutions that move individuals toward better citizenship: responsibility, nurturancc, altruism, civility, moderation, tolerance and work ethic.
SHELDON et al. (2000) define positive...