A life worth living : contributions to positive psychology

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Title:

Author:

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly.

ISBN:

9780195176797

Publication Information:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2006.

Physical Description:

ix, 253 p. : ill. ; 25 cm.

Series:

Series in positive psychology

Series Title:

Series in positive psychology

Contents:

Positive psychology traditions in classical European psychology / Csaba Pléh -- The Values in Action (VIA) classification of strengths / Christopher Peterson -- Positive personality development : approaching personal autonomy / Dmitry Leontiev -- Spirituality : recent progress / Robert A. Emmons -- The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions / Barbara L. Fredrickson -- Benefits of emotional intelligence / Daisy D. Grewal and Peter Salovey -- Strategies for achieving well-being / Jane Henry -- Adaptive resources in later life : tenacious goal pursuit and flexible goal adjustment / Jochen Brandtstädter -- The impact of subjective experience on the quality of life : a central issue for health professionals / Antonella Delle Fave -- What works makes you happy : the role of personal goals in life-span development / Jari-Erik Nurmi and Katariina Salmela-Aro -- Materialism and its alternatives / Tim Kasser -- Getting older, getting better? recent psychological evidence / Kennon Sheldon -- Afterword: breaking the 65 percent barrier / Martin E. P. Seligman.

Subject Term:

Positive psychology.

Added Author:

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly.

Csikszentmihalyi, Isabella Selega.

Electronic Access:

Table of contents http://www.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip0519/2005027911.html

Copies:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Copy	Status
Searching... 1:IIEMSA	1:GEN-BOOK	33168023669753	150.198 C958L 2006	1	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A Life Worth Living brings together the latest thought on Positive Psychology from an international cast of scholars. It includes historical, philosophical, and empirical reviews of what psychologists have found to matter for personal happiness and well-being. The contributions to this volume agree on priciples of optimal development that start from purely material and selfish concerns, but then lead to ever broader circles of responsibility embracing the goals of others and the well-being of the environment; on the importance of spirituality; on the development of strengths specific to the individual. Rather than material success, popularity, or power, the investigations reported in this volume suggest that personally constructed goals, intrinsic motivation, and a sense of autonomy are much more important. The chapters indicate that hardship and suffering do not necessarily make us unhappy, and they suggest therapeutical implications for improving the quality of life. Specific topics covered include the formation of optimal childhood values and habits as well as a new perspective on aging. This volume provides a powerful counterpoint to a mistakenly reductionist psychology. They show that subjective experience can be studied scientifically and measured accurately. They highlight the potentiality for autonomy and freedom that is among the most precious elements of the human condition. MOreover, they make a convincing case for the importance of subjective phenomena, which often affect happiness more than external, material conditions. After long decades during which psychologists seemed to have forgotten that misery is not the only option, the blossoming of Positive Psychology promises a better understanding of what a vigorous, meaningful life may consist of.