Like many of us, I have, all my life, struggled with time in one way or another.  I seem to alternate between embracing flat-out activity and finding deeper pools of energetic sustenance.  As a child, sensing the hyper-pressure around me, I began to actively resist.   A self-taught procrastinator, at 19 I wrote an editorial entitled […]

Below is an abbreviated manuscript describing a mini study I did for MAPP. Looking forward to your thoughts!
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Abstract
Mounting evidence suggests that mindfulness may promote positive subjective experience, which is the first “pillar” of Positive Psychology. Relationships between mindfulness and other pillars of the bourgeoning Positive Psychology movement, however, have not been thoroughly studied. This work […]

I would like to experiment with a different form of cross reference to articles and authors - one that shows the month at a glance. This can be helpful when you remember that an article was approximately early March, or that it was by so-and-so but you can’t remember which month. What do […]

A Ph.D. in Positive Psychology program has been announced! 
It will be at Claremont Graduate University, and both master’s and Ph.D. degrees will be offered.  “The Claremont Graduate University researchers involved—Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and Jeanne Nakamura—will begin the program in the university’s School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences this fall semester.” 
The press release is here, and the AP […]

Contentment is one of those buzz words that we usually hear linked with any discussion around ‘the good life.’ It is referred to either directly or indirectly in most of the scales listed on Authentic Happiness. But is contentment an attitude that we choose bring to our lives or is it an effect of our […]

Last month I had the privilege of spending four Saturday afternoons with 18 girls aged between 10 and 12 in the Girls’ Brigade at my church. My assignment was to work with them on developing talents and preparing for a Talent Show. How divisive! I thought. What about the girls without special abilities that could be […]

Roughly 30 million Americans do it every week. And I hate to admit being one of them.
But watching American Idol has become a habit for many people as the show has grown into an icon of modern culture. Why do so many people watch? Perhaps they tune in to hear the judges share uplifting aphorisms […]

Given my longtime interest in spirituality, my favorite chapter in Authentic Happiness was the last, on “Meaning and Purpose.”  Martin Seligman discusses his encounter with Bob Wright, author of NonZero, at a conclave of ten scientists, philosophers, and theologians gathered to discuss whether evolution has a purpose and a direction.  Seligman expressed to Wright his […]

 The pervasive belief in American society is that money is the answer to all of our prayers.  Most Americans believe that if they only had money, they would be able to resolve all of their stress and worries. Most believe the result of obtaining wealth is a life of pure and unending happiness and satisfaction. […]

Few procedures are more complex, more demanding than organ transplantation. Few are more satisfying; seeing a patient leave hospital with a new lease on life is incredibly gratifying to those that cared for the patient. This is the world from which I have come and practiced in for over a decade. It is typical of […]