HAPPINESS &

WELL BEING
THEORY
CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST SİMGE BULUNMAZ
s i m g e . b u l u n m a z @ u s k u d a r. e d u . t r
UNHAPPINESS?
HAPPINESS?
THE OPPOSITE OF SADNESS IS NOT
HAPPINESS
– The opposite of sadness is actually…the absence of sadness.
– What this means is that if you could get rid of everything that is making
you sad, you still would not be happy. You would simply be not sad.
Psychological research has discovered that our negative emotions such as
sadness, fear, anger, anxiety, and our positive emotions such as joy,
excitement, adoration, and serenity exist as two independent systems.That
is why, if you want to be a truly happy person, it is not enough to
deal with the negative feelings in your life.You also need to know
how to create positive feelings.
 TYPES OF HAPPINESS

Aristippus Epicurus
HEDONISM
HEDONISM
HEDONISM
HEDONISM

– The word ‘hedonism’ comes from the ancient Greek for ‘pleasure.
– Psychological or motivational hedonism claims that only pleasure or
pain motivates us
– In general, pleasure is understood broadly below, as including or as included
in all pleasant feeling or experience: contentment, delight, ecstasy,
elation, enjoyment, euphoria, exhilaration, exultation, gladness,
gratification, gratitude, joy, liking, love, relief, satisfaction
RESEARCH DATA:

• One was a group of people who won large lottery prizes, and the other was a
group of accident victims who were now paralyzed (including quadriplegic and
paraplegic people).
• The research revealed that, in the long term, neither group appeared to be
happier than the other. (Brickman, Coates, & Janoff-Bulman, 1978). Of course,
the lottery winners and paralysis victims experienced initial reactions of
happiness and sadness, respectively
RESEARCH DATA:

• The effects didn’t turn out to be long-lasting, and people in both groups shortly
reverted to their previous levels of happiness. In the original theory of the
hedonic treadmill, Brickman and Campbell proposed that people
immediately react to good and bad events but in a short time return
to neutrality (1971).
HEDONIC ADAPTATİON
EUDAIMONIA

• Eudaimonic happiness/well-being conceptualizes happiness as the result of

the pursuit and attainment of life:
purpose, meaning, challenge, and personal growth; happiness is
based on reaching one’s full potential and operating at full functioning
(AIPC, 2011).
EUDAIMONIA
EUDAIMONIA
BUT BASIC INSTINCTS?
MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
WHAT IMPOSED US?
• Beauty ( social media, filters, photoshop, selfies,plastic surgery, shopping)
• Dedicating your life to be better than your coworker, brother etc.
• I must have this car, phone, etc.
• Materyalist,
• Narsistic individuals- > lack of emphaty

• Loneliness → depression
• Sleep disorders

• Weaker immune system

• Earn more, Money will make you happy!
• Bigger house, shopping?
THE HEDONIC TREADMILL
THE HEDONIC TREADMILL
• My phone does not work. (bought 6
months ago). this new model is amazing!
it takes great pictures, it has a selfie stick
that extends itself, and everyone uses it
now .. I don't have one! I'll be incredibly
happy if I take. (After the day he
received):" I'm incredibly happy, I spend all
my day with it ! I uploaded all my favorite
songs, I took videos in fast mode, I also
got a great case for it. I’m the happiest
person !!! ( spent hours learning-
reviewing the features of the phone, etc.)
THE HEDONIC TREADMILL

6 months later; "I'm very unhappy, my phone

is very old, the new model iphone 65739374
Pro , there are amazing features, They say
they can do coffee latte, mine can not make
even unfiltered coffee .. I will be very happy
to buy a new one .. I am very unhappy right
now…
 WEEK-4

WELL BEING
THEORY
SO FAR…

• Hedonia
– it holds that happiness is a matter of raw subjective feeling.
– A happy life maximizes feelings of pleasure and minimizes pain.
– A happy person smiles a lot, is , her pleasures are intense and many, her
pains are few and far between.
– hedonic motives (i.e., pursuing pleasure, enjoyment, and comfort)
SO FAR…
• Eudaimonia ( fulfillment )
– When Aristotle spoke of the "Eudaimonia,", he was not focused on the
positive feelings of pleasure--, a backrub, and a full stomach.
– Rather he was concerned with the "pleasures" of contemplation--which
do not reside in orgasmic thrills or sensations of warmth, but in deep
absorption and immersion, a state.
– eudaimonic motives (i.e., pursuing personal growth, development
of their potential, achieving personal excellence, and contributing
to the lives of others)
• Eudaimonia is good (eu) spirit (daimon). This is the outcome of a life lived
well.
• Talents, passions, skills and time are applied to a meaningful purpose that brings
us a feeling of fulfilment
• Pleasure, animals share in this, but there is more to a human life.
• Eudaimonia; a fullfilling good life to flourish but what is missing?
HAPPINESS & PLEASURE
• Happiness is a state characterized by feelings of contentment and
satisfaction with one’s life or current situation.
• On the other hand, pleasure is a more visceral, in-the-moment
experience. It often refers to the sensory-based feelings we get from
experiences like eating good food, getting a massage, receiving a
compliment.
• Happiness, while not a permanent state, is a more stable state than
pleasure. Happiness generally sticks around for longer than a few
moments at a time, whereas pleasure can come and go in seconds (Paul,
2015).
HAPPINESS;
• It’s good to be happy, and people like being happy;
• Happiness is neither a totally fleeting, momentary experience nor a
stable, long-term trait;
• At least some portion of our happiness is set by our genetics, but the amount
up to 50%;
• The pursuit and attainment of pleasure will rarely lead to happiness;
• There are many sources that contribute to or compose happiness (AIPC,
2011). ???
“ WHAT’S SO GREAT ABOUT HAPPINESS,
ANYWAY? ”
• Happy people are more successful in multiple life domains, including marriage,
friendship, income, work performance, and health.
• Happy people get sick less often and experience fewer symptoms when they
do get sick.
• Happy people have more friends and a better support system.
• Happy people donate more to charity (and giving money to charity makes you
happy, too).
• Happy people are more helpful and more likely to volunteer—which also
makes you happier!
• Happy people have an easier time navigating through life since
optimism eases pain, sadness, and grief.
CONT..

• Happy people have a positive influence on others and encourage them to seek
happiness as well, which can act as reinforcement.
• Happy people engage in deeper and more meaningful conversations.
• Happy people smile more, which is beneficial to your health. (duchenne smile)
• Happy people exercise more often and eat more healthily.
CONT
• Happy people are happy with what they have rather than being jealous
of others.
• Happy people are healthier all around and more likely to be healthy in the
future.
• Happy people live longer than those who are not as happy.
• Happy people are more productive and more creative, and this effect extends
to all those experiencing positive emotions.
WELL BEING THEORY- PERMA
 WELL BEING THEORY
• ‘’ Well- being theory denies that the topic of positive psychology is a real thing:
rather the topic is a construct- well-being - which is in turn has several
measurable elements, each a real thing, each contributing to well being, but
not defining well being. ’’
• As opposed to the goal of achieving happiness, this theory emphasizes the goal
of reaching well-being.
 WELL BEING THEORY
• Here then is well-being theory: well-being is a construct; and well-being, not
happiness, is the topic of positive psychology. Well-being has five measurable
elements (PERMA) that count toward it:
• Positive emotion (Of which happiness and life satisfaction are all aspects)
• Engagement
• Relationships
• Meaning and purpose
• Accomplishment
 WELL BEING THEORY
• No one element defines well-being, but each contributes to it.
• Some aspects of these five elements are measured subjectively by self-report, but
other aspects are measured objectively.

• Does not mean or equal to a smiling face

WELL BEING THEORY
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• This element is, perhaps, the most obvious connection to happiness. Focusing
on positive emotions is more than smiling: it is the ability to
remain optimistic and view one’s past, present, and future from a constructive
perspective.
• A positive view can help in relationships/school/work and inspire others to be
more creative and take more chances.
• In everyone’s life, there are highs and lows; focusing on “the lows”
does increase your chances of developing depression.
 P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• Regardless, there are many health benefits to optimism and positivity.
• How do we distinguish between pleasure and enjoyment for this?
• Pleasure is connected to satisfying bodily needs for survival, such as
thirst, hunger, and sleep. Whereas enjoyment comes from intellectual
stimulation and creativity.
e..g. When a child completes a complex lego car that requires
their concentration, they might beam with joy and satisfaction from
their work.
• This type of positive emotion is crucial. It can help people enjoy the daily tasks
in their lives and persevere with challenges they will face by remaining
optimistic about eventual outcomes.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• Positive Emotion: This route to well-being is hedonic – increasing positive
emotion. Within limits, we can increase our positive emotion about the past
(e.g., by cultivating gratitude and forgiveness), our positive emotion
about the present (e.g., by savoring physical pleasures and mindfulness) and
our positive emotion about the future (e.g., by building hope and
optimism).
Unlike the other routes to well-being, this route is limited by how much an
individual can experience positive emotions. In other words, positive affectivity
is partly heritable and our emotions tend to fluctuate within a range.
• Many people are, by disposition, low in experiencing positive emotion.
Traditional conceptions of happiness tend to focus on positive emotion, so it
can be liberating to know that there are other routes to well-being, described
soon.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• Let's say that you're walking through the forest and suddenly a tiger steps onto
the path ahead of you. When this happens, your brain registers a negative
emotion -- in this case, fear.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION

• Researchers have long known that negative emotions program your

brain to do a specific action.
• When that tiger crosses your path, for example, you run. The rest of the world
doesn't matter. You are focused entirely on the tiger, the fear it creates, and
how you can get away from it.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• In other words, negative emotions narrow your mind and focus your thoughts.
At that same moment, you might have the option
• to climb a tree,
• pick up a leaf,
• or grab a stick -- but your brain ignores all of those options because they
seem irrelevant when a tiger is standing in front of you.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• This is a useful instinct if you're trying to save life, but in our modern society
we don't have to worry about stumbling across tigers in the wilderness.
• The problem is that your brain is still programmed to respond to
negative emotions in the same way -- by shutting off the outside world
and limiting the options you see around you !!!
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• For example, when you're in a fight with someone, your anger and emotion
might consume you to the point where you can't think about anything else.
• Or, when you are stressed out about everything you have to get done today,
you may find it hard to actual start anything because you're paralyzed by how
long your to-do list has become.
• Or, if you feel bad about not exercising or not eating healthy, all you think
about is how little willpower you have, how you're lazy, and how you don't
have any motivation.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION

• In each case, your brain closes off from the outside world and focuses on the
negative emotions of fear, anger, and stress -- just like it did with the tiger.
Negative emotions prevent your brain from seeing the other options and
choices that surround you. It's your survival instinct.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• Fredrickson tested the impact of positive emotions on the brain by setting up
a little experiment. During this experiment, she divided her research subjects
into five groups and showed each group different film clips.
• The first two groups were shown clips that created positive emotions. Group
1 saw images that created feelings of joy. Group 2 saw images that created
feelings of contentment.
• Group 3 was the control group. They saw images that were neutral and
produced no significant emotion.
• The last two groups were shown clips that created negative emotions. Group 4
saw images that created feelings of fear. Group 5 saw images that created
feelings of anger.
P – POSITIVE EMOTION
• Afterward, each participant was asked to imagine themselves in a situation
where similar feelings would arise and to write down what they would do.
Each participant was handed a piece of paper with 20 blank lines that started
with the phrase, "I would like to..."
• Participants who saw images of fear and anger wrote down the fewest
responses. Meanwhile, the participants who saw images of joy and
contentment, wrote down a significantly higher number of actions that they
would take, even when compared to the neutral group.
• In other words, when you are experiencing positive emotions like joy,
contentment, and love, you will see more possibilities in your life.
"BROADEN AND BUILD" THEORY
• Let's consider a real-world example.
• A child who runs around outside, swinging on branches and playing with
friends, develops the ability to move athletically (physical skills), the ability to
play with others and communicate with a team (social skills), and the ability to
explore and examine the world around them (creative skills).
• In this way, the positive emotions of play and joy prompt the child to build
skills that are useful and valuable in everyday life.
"BROADEN AND BUILD" THEORY
• These skills last much longer than the emotions that initiated them.Years later,
that foundation of athletic movement might develop into a scholarship as a
college athlete or the communication skills may blossom into a job offer as a
business manager.
• The happiness that promoted the exploration and creation of new skills has
long since ended, but the skills themselves live on.
• Fredrickson refers to this as the "broaden and build" theory because positive
emotions broaden your sense of possibilities and open your mind, which in
turn allows you to build new skills and resources that can provide value in
other areas of your life.
 POSITIVE EMOTIONS
• 1) Joy;
2) Gratitude;
3) Serenity;
4) Interest;
5) Hope;
6) Pride;
7) Amusement;
8) Inspiration;
9) Awe;
10) Love???
AFTER NEG. LIFE EVENTS;

• PTSD post- traumatic growth

• Depression
• Panic disorder resilience
• Drug abuse
• Divorce
• Etc.

3 months later 1 year later, stronger

psychologically & physically
Back where they were than they were
psychologically & physically
M – MEANING
 M – MEANING
• THE MOST IMPORTANT TIME IN OUR LIVES
• The moment you were born
• When you find your meaning of your life
M – MEANING
• Fullfillment vs emptiness
• Motivation vs lack of motivation ( cognitions + emotions)
M – MEANING
• The fourth element in PERMA is meaning.
• To have a sense of meaning, we need to feel that what we do is valuable and
worthwhile.
• This involves belonging to and/or serving something that we believe is greater than
ourselves (Seligman, 2012).
• The search for meaning is an intrinsic human quality. Discovering our true self has been the
subject of philosophers, academics, artists and poets for millennia.
 M – MEANING
• Having a broader purpose in life helps us to focus on what is really important when
we are faced with a significant challenge or adversity in our life.

Lance Armstrong was struck by the most dangerous

disease of the 21st century – he was diagnosed with
4th fight.. testicle cancer in 1996, and was told he had little chance of
surviving. Luckily, he managed to fight it and not only had
he returned to cycling, Armstrong was also called one of
the best and richest athletes ever
M – MEANING
We all know that this talented
athlete went on and off with sports
several times. Although there were
many reasons behind each of those
retirements, the hardest one was
from 1993, when his father was
murdered.
Jordan has somehow managed to get
through with it and return to NBA.
 M – MEANING
• Oprah’s dealt with a lot throughout her public life—criticism about
her weight, racism, intrusive questions about her sexuality, just
to name a few—but she never let it get in the way of her ambition and
drive.
• Growing up, Oprah was reportedly a victim of sexual abuse and was
repeatedly molested by her cousin, an uncle, and a family friend. Later,
she became pregnant and gave birth to a child at age 14, who passed
away just two weeks later.
• But Oprah persevered, going on to finish high school as an honors
student, earning a full scholarship to college, and working her way up
through the ranks of television, from a local network anchor in
Nashville to an international superstar and creator of her OWN
network (we couldn’t help ourselves).
M – MEANING
• Having meaning in your life, or working towards a greater purpose, is different for
everybody.
• This may be pursued through your profession, a cause you are passionate about (such as
an environmental group), a creative pursuit, a political cause, or a religious or spiritual belief.
• .
• That may also volunteering for a community group, raising money for a charity, lobbying for
cause, umpiring their child’s sporting team or spending time with their family. For most people,
their sense of meaning is strongly related to their personal values.
M – MEANING

• Meaning;
• Helps us for Resilience, Contributite our wellbeing

• Finding a reason to move on, coping with stress, with advertsity

M – MEANING
• Roy Baumeister and Kathleen Vohs (2005, p. 610) associate the quest for meaning in life
with four main needs:

– Purpose: Present events draw meaning from their connection to future

outcomes — objective goals and subjective fulfillment. ( 2 purpose)
– Values, which can justify certain courses of action
– Efficacy, the belief that one can make a difference
– Self-worth, reasons for believing that one is a good and worthy person
M – MEANING
• 1- Purpose ‘2 purpose’
• Finding one’s purpose is a personal process that can only be discovered
through tapping into your underlying motivations and drives.

• Examine the things, events, and people in your life that provide you with a
sense of meaning and fulfillment. Perhaps the work that you do gives you a
great sense of satisfaction, or maybe your relationship or family provide you
with a strong sense of identity and meaning.
 M – MEANING
• 2- Values
• Values provide us with a sort of “moral compass” that directs our thoughts and
behaviors. When something feels “not quite right” to us, it is often because some part of what is
occurring violates a deeply held value.
• We often develop our values based in our cultural beliefs/identities, religions,
philosophies, and families.
• Consider the origin of your most treasured values and actively work towards making sure your
thoughts and deeds are aligned with those values. Recognize that we all make mistakes from
time to time… thinking, saying, or doing things that violate our values. This does not make you
“bad” when this happens. The important thing is that you recognize
this dissonance and correct any missteps.
M – MEANING
• (3) Efficacy
• When you feel a strong self of self-efficacy (i.e., believing in your own competence),
you feel an increased sense of control over your life and a stronger sense of meaning.
• Research by Baumeister and Vohs (2002) indicates that the meaning of life is significantly
reduced with a weak sense of self-efficacy.
• Reflect upon the situations from the past and present when you have felt
competent and able to carry out a task in a way that made you feel proud.
 M – MEANING
An old man was doing his daily walk along the beach one morning, when he spotted a young boy crouched by
the water, scooping something up from the sand and throwing it into the sea.
The beach was normally empty at this time of day, and so the old man stopped to watch for a while.
He noticed that the boy kept on shuffling a little further down the beach, then repeating this same action again
and again – stopping, scooping, throwing, moving.
“What are you doing there, boy?” the old man asked, walking closer.
“I’m saving these starfish that are stranded” replied the boy, “if they stay on the beach they will dry out and
die, so I’m putting them back into the ocean so they can live.”
The old man was silent for a few seconds.
“Young man” he said, “on this stretch of beach alone, there must be more than one hundred stranded starfish.
Around the next corner, there must be at least one thousand more. This goes on for miles and miles and miles
– I’ve done this walk every day for 10 years, and it’s always the same. There must be millions of stranded
starfish! I hate to say it, but you’ll never make a difference.”

The boy replied “well I just made a difference for that one”, and continued with his work
M – MEANING
• (4) Self-worth
• Within all of us is a deep desire to feel like good and worthwhile individuals. Without this
sense of self-worth, meaning in life is significantly diminished. You can strengthen your own
sense of self-worth through examining what thoughts and behaviors you choose and how they
serve to make you feel more or less worthwhile.
• When most of us engage in a behavior that we feel ashamed of, the result is a weakened sense
of self-worth. For many people, attaching themselves to a worthy cause that they believe in
and that is aligned with their most cherished values is an excellent way to increase self-
worth. No matter what, recognize that there is an intrinsic worth to the value of all human
beings, including those who feel the least “worthy” of all.
M – MEANING
• Having an answer as to “why are we on this earth?” is a key ingredient that
can drive us towards fulfillment.
• Religion and spirituality provide many people with meaning, as can working
for a good company, raising children, volunteering for a greater cause, saving
the planet, protecting animals and expressing ourselves creatively.
• Unfortunately, the media worships glamour and the pursuit of material wealth,
impacting many people to feel like money is the gateway to happiness.
• While we do need money to pay for basic needs, once those basic needs are
met and financial stress is not an issue, money is not what provides people
with happiness.
M – MEANING
• A sense of meaning and purpose can be derived from belonging to and serving
something bigger than the self. There are various societal institutions that
enable a sense of meaning, such as religion, family, science, politics, work
organizations, justice, the community, social causes (e.g., being green), among
others.
M – MEANING
How to build meaning
• • Become involved in a cause or organisation that matters to you
• • Spend time with people you really care about
• • Review your strengths. What are you really good at or really passionate about? Think about
how you could apply these to your life
• • Be authentic – embrace the real ‘you’
M – MEANING
Research findings on meaning
• • People who have purpose in their lives have greater longevity and life satisfaction and fewer
health problems (Kashdan & McKnight, 2009).
• • People who are more optimistic are more likely to experience personal growth following
adversity (Joseph & Linley, 2005) and a strong sense of meaning can also help to facilitate post-
traumatic growth’ (Boniwell, 2008).
• • People who can identify a positive ending and a sense of closure from a difficult
event have better subjective wellbeing outcomes (Pals, 2006) and those who find
meaning after a negative life event are better able to return to positive levels of
functioning (King, Hicks, Krull & Del Gaiso, 2006).
• • Bereaved adults who had a sense of meaning were better psychologically adjusted than adults
who reported no meaning (Tavernier & Willoughby, 2012).
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Self discipline & Grit vs IQ

Twice as important as IQ
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• The fifth element of the PERMA, is accomplishment,
• mastery, or competence.
• Having a sense of accomplishment means that we have worked towards and reached our goals,
achieved mastery over an endeavour, and had the self-motivation to complete what we set out
to do.
• Accomplishment contributes to our wellbeing when we are able to look back on
our lives with a sense of achievement and say ‘I did it, and I did it well’ (Seligman,
2012).
• The researcher Angela Duckworth introduced the concept of ‘grit’. Grit is defined
as ‘perseverance and passion for long-term goals’ (Duckworth, et al.,2007).
•
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• People who exhibit ‘grit’ don’t just finish what they started, they persevere at their
goals over time.
• Having perseverance and not giving up in the face of adversity or setbacks
illustrates the success stories of many famous people including:

Albert Einstein, whose parents and teachers

thought he had an intellectual disability
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• J.K Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter

books, was a divorced, single mother living in
public housing before becoming one of the
greatest publishing success stories.
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Michael Jordan, the NBA basketball star, who was
kicked off his high school team for lacking talent.
He has been quoted as saying “I have failed
over and over and over again in my life. And
that is why I succeed.”
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Research findings on accomplishment
• • • People who have a more pessimistic explanatory style (“It’s my fault I failed”,
“Nothing I do goes right”) are more likely to give up (Seligman & Schulman,
1986).
• • Those who pursue goals that match their personal values and interests are more likely to
attain those goals (Sheldon & Houser-Marko, 2001).
• • Achieving intrinsic goals (relating to growth and connection, rather than money
and status), produces larger gains in well-being (Sheldon 2004).
• Achieving goals has been found to enhance wellbeing over time (Brunstein, 1993)
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• How to build accomplishment ?
• • Set yourself achievable goals –
• SMART goals (Systematic, Measureable, Achievable, Realistic and Timebound)
➢ Specific – Setting “exact” goals
➢ Measurable – Using goals that can be measured
➢ Attainable – Can you actually get there?
➢ Realistic – Are you being honest with yourself?
➢ Timely – Seeking to set time frames for the various stages of your goal
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Goals don’t have to be big. Learning how to do a Sudoku puzzle could be enough!
• What strengths have you used to succeed in the past? Can they help you again?
• Look for ways to celebrate your achievements - with yourself as well as with others
• If at first you don’t succeed, try again!
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Having goals and ambition in life can help us to achieve things that can give us a
sense of accomplishment. You should make realistic goals that can be met and
just putting in the effort to achieving those goals can already give you a sense
of satisfaction when you finally achieve those goals a sense of pride and
fulfillment will be reached.
• Having accomplishments in life is important to push ourselves to thrive and
flourish.
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• People pursue achievement, competence, success, and mastery for its own sake,
in a variety of domains, including;
the workplace, sports, games, hobbies, etc.
People pursue accomplishment even when it does not necessarily lead to positive
emotion, meaning, or relationships.
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• I play a lot of serious duplicate bridge. I have played with and against many of
the greatest players. Some expert bridge players play to improve, to solve
problems, to be in flow, or to experience outright joy. Other experts
play only to win. For them, losing is devastating no matter how well they
played. Some will even cheat to win. It does not seem that winning for
them reduces to positive emotion (many of the stonier experts deny feeling
anything at all when they win and quickly rush on to the next game), nor does
the pursuit reduce to engagement, since defeat nullifies the experience so
easily. Nor is it about meaning; bridge is not about anything remotely larger
than the self.
A – ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Winning only for winning's sake can also be seen in the pursuit of
wealth. In contrast to philanthropic millionaires, there are "accumulators" who
believe that the person who dies with the most toys wins. Their lives are built
around winning, and they do not give away their toys except in the service of
winning more toys.
• So well-being theory requires a third element: the "achieving life," dedicated to
accomplishment for the sake of accomplishment.
PERMA & FLORISH

• “Flourishing is the product of the pursuit and engagement of

an authentic life that brings inner joy and happiness through meeting
goals, being connected with life passions, and relishing in
accomplishments through the peaks and valleys of life.” (Dr. Soots)
AFTER NEG. LIFE EVENTS;

• PTSD post- traumatic growth

• Depression
• Panic disorder resilience
• Drug abuse
• Divorce
• Etc.

3 months later 1 year later, stronger

psychologically & physically
Back where they were than they were
psychologically & physically
RESILIENCE
• What is Resilience? Resilience is, simply put, a person’s ability to effectively cope
with, adjust, or recover from stress or adversity (Burton, Pakenham, Brown, 2010).
• Everybody has different levels of psychological resilience and some people cope better than
others when faced with setbacks – what affects one person may have little impact on another.
• Similarly, people can demonstrate resilience in their personal lives, but be less
resilient in an organisational setting, or vice versa.
• A manager may be able to calmly deal with his or her three-year old’s tantrums but, explodes
with anger when faced with conflict in the workplace. Being resilient doesn’t mean you won’t
experience adversity, but having resilience can buffer the adverse effects of stressful life events.
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• Individuals who use a broader range of coping strategies experience less distress from stressful
life events. While genetics do have some influence in the development of wellbeing and
psychological resilience (Huppert, 2009) the good news is that resilience can be built.
Resilience is not one specific skill, but a set of resources and skills that promote:
• • effective problem-solving;
• • adaptability; • positive coping;
• • self-regulation; and • social support.
• Research has shown that learning new skills—and practicing those skills—can increase
resilience. In particular, focusing on positive coping skills, self-regulation, and social connections
can build our resilience.
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• Research findings on resilience
• • When faced with adversity, people with low resilience are at risk of depression, stress, anxiety
and interpersonal difficulties, and may adopt health compromising behaviours and experience
somatic complaints and poor physical health (Burton, Pakenham & Brown, 2010)
• • Strong infant-mother bonding is an important protective factor for building resilience in
children (Huppert, 2009).
• • Higher resilience has been associated with greater job satisfaction, work happiness and
organisational commitment (Youssef & Luthans, 2007).