An epidemic of depression?
Seligman is primarily responsible for what might be called the revolution in the psychology of happiness.
Since the Second World War, psychologists have focused on fixing what is broken, psychosis and neurosis of repair. Research has attended the time to look at patients who are neurotic or dysfunctional, while happy people or happy that we have received very little scientific research.
When Seligman was the search to find scholarly articles as "positive psychology", found only 800 from 70000.
"Psychologists tend to worry about taking a negative to 8 people, and help you reach two negative," said Seligman, the University of Pennsylvania psychology professor. "My goal is to have one person and two more push to 6 or more."
In the past 50 years, statistics show that we are less happy as a people.
"While our quality of life has increased dramatically during this period, and made us rich, we are in an epidemic of depression," said Seligman.
"Depression is 10 times more prevalent today, and rates of life satisfaction also down."
Seligman argues that the new science that says it is shifting the paradigm of psychology from its narrow-minded focus on pathology, victimology, and mental illness to positive emotion, virtue and strength, and positive institutions that will increase the quotient of happiness of people.
If you want to be happy, forget about winning the lottery, getting a nose job, or getting a raise.
In his new book, Authentic Happiness Psychologist Martin Seligman says that the total period of happiness is not a result of good genes, money or happiness. Instead, he says that we can increase our own happiness by taking advantage of the strengths and characteristics that we already have, including kindness, originality, humor, optimism and generosity. He called the discipline "positive psychology," says that we would be better off relying on our own strength, instead of lamenting, trying to fix our weaknesses.
Frequency of their strengths, people can create natural barriers against misfortune and negative emotions, he said.
Science has shown that three different routes to be a happy person, so happy that I could not say what you think. Property - even simple as ice cream cones, and massages - are only the stimuli, things that give people a fleeting.
The study found that the winners are no happier a year after their stroke of luck that they had before and that seemed to be paraplegic as happy years of their plight than before.
"We used to think that a happy person is someone who laughed a lot," said Seligman. "But if you set only by how much you laugh, you limit yourself to just one category."
The three categories of people happy Seligman highlighted in the book:
The Good Life: Some happy people are low on fun, but raised on the "absorption and reflection", which means they take great pleasure in things they do. "Think of these people as fans who are so absorbed by their work, that time ceases to exist," said Seligman. "A person who enjoys gardening discovered that the day has passed without notice, for example."
The Pleasant Life: This is someone who laughs a lot, and bloom in the pleasures, like good food. These are the people that seem to surround the satisfaction and joy, hope.
The Meaningful Life: those who use their strengths and the highest virtues for the benefit and joy in the work of charity and volunteerism, religion or politics.
Exercise and happiness, you must first determine which of the categories mentioned happiness you fall into, then look at your individual strengths and virtues. Then apply these qualities in such a way to improve your happiness-generating category.
