Researching psychology and culture through a positive psychology lens

What is positive psychology

the scientific and applied approach to uncovering people’s strengths and promoting their positive functioning

• what makes life worth living

• emphasises positive experiences

All traditions emphasis that happiness is rooted in …

the internal state of mind rather than external circumstances

What does ‘atman’ mean in Yogic sciences

pure happiness is achieved when an instant desire is fulfilled and the mind relaxes

What does ‘ananda’ mean in Yogic sciences

a moment of pleasure

What does ‘equanimity’ mean in Buddhism

a piece of mind and happiness

• detaching oneself from the cycle of craving to achieve transcendent bliss

Both Yogic sciences and Buddhism highlight…

the need to transcend immediate or cyclical desires for deeper, more enduring happiness

Both Islamic teachings and Yogic sciences connect happiness to …

a higher spiritual purpose

What do Islamic teachings say about material processions

discourage longing for material possessions

• focusing on divine provisions

What do Hebrew teachings say about happiness

see happiness as a conscious state of thought:

• Simchah for being in a state of happiness

• your state of mind (machshavah) shapes your state of happiness (simchah)

viewed happiness as a way of thinking

• from this perspective, happiness doesn’t derive from our objective state of affairs but from our subjective state of mind

What are the two main perspectives to understanding when researching culture

• culturally free

• culturally embedded approach

What does the culturally free approach emphasis

emphasises the cross-cultural/global applicability of human strengths, values, and happiness across cultures

What does the culturally embedded approach focus on

focuses more on the necessity of a multicultural perspective: takes into account the variability resulting from cultural context

Does culture shape well-being, Steel et al., (2018) study

explored whether cultural values impact individual and national financial and subjective well-being

Does culture shape well-being, Steel et al., (2018) study findings - individual level

individual level: “what cultural values might increase a person’s life satisfaction”

• relationships

• social capital

• connection

• supportive networks

Does culture shape well-being, Steel et al., (2018) study findings - national level

national level: “what characteristics make countries happier”

• personal freedom

• openness

• tolerance

• education

• social mobility

• wealth distribution

The World Happiness Report ranks countries based on …

various factors such as:

• income

• social support

• life expectancy

• freedom to make life choices

• generosity

• perceptions of corruption

The least happiest countries has what factors:

• conflict and instability

• economic challenges

• social and health issues

• corruption

• environmental factors

• social unrest

• inequality

What matters for a happy environment

• education system

• healthcare

• natural beauty and environment

• safety and low crime rates

• cultural and recreations opportunities

• work-life balance

What are the 6 major distinctions between eastern and western ideas of flourishing, Joshanloo (2014) - Eastern

1. self-transcendence

2. eudemonism

3. harmony contentment

4. valuing suffering

5. relevance of spirituality and religion

What are the 6 major distinctions between eastern and western ideas of flourishing, Joshanloo (2014) - Western

1. self-enhancement

2. hedonism

3. mastery

4. satisfaction

5. avoiding suffering

6. relative irrelevance of spirituality and religion

Peterson and Seligman (2004) developed Character Strengths and Virtues handbook to identify and classify 6 core virtues that are…

• wisdom or knowledge

• courage

• humanity

• justice

• temperance

• transcendence

What is the western concept of self

primarily based on the ideals of individualism

• enhancing autonomy, independence, self-esteem, strong ego

What is the eastern concept of self

regard the self as a small part of the collective and the cosmos

• in Asian traditions, the individual self is de-emphasised in one way or another

What did Maslow consider self-actualisation to be

the pinnacle of human development and the highest human need

• realisation of one’s full potential

What are 4 criticisms of Maslow’s findings

• little support for ranked needs or definite hierarchy

• cultural bias: Maslow effects individualistic (US) perspective

• self-actualisation may not apply in collectivist cultures

  • collectivist cultures: acceptance and community needs outweigh individuality

• sex in the hierarchy placed with physiological needs overlooks emotional, familiar, and social aspects

Western psychology approach to well-being…

• focus on subjective well-being

• based on hedonic view - maximising pleasure and positive emotions

• happiness measured by pleasure and life satisfaction

• scientific analysis aims to quantify individual mental well-bring and quality of life

Eastern psychology approach to well-being…

• focus on eudaemonic (pursuing happiness by finding meaning and purpose) well-being

• emphasise virtue and right action for lasting well-being

• happiness is not just temporary pleasure, includes moral and social dimensions

• happiness linked to fulfilling personal and social responsibilities

Satisfaction vs. contentment (western and eastern)

Valuing vs. avoiding suffering (western and eastern)

What did Bacon (2005) do

distinguished two ‘cultures’ within positive psychology:

• focus culture

• balance culture

these approaches aren’t tied to any particular cultural group

• they reflect different ways individuals conceptualise and use their strengths to shape life experiences

What does focus culture emphasise

developing and expressing individual strengths, such as creativity

What does balance culture emphasise

harmonising strengths within oneself and with others, such as wisdom

Wisdom vs. creativity (focus culture and creativity culture)

4 types of bias in cross-cultural research

• conceptual bias

• method bias

• measurement bias

• interpretational bias

What is conceptual bias

whether there is equivalent meaning and relevance of theory and hypotheses across cultures being compared

What is method bias

• sampling – whether samples are equivalent and representative of their culture

• linguistic – whether tools used have the same meaning across languages in the study

• procedural – whether the data collection efforts mean the same in all cultures of the study

What is measurement bias

• whether measures and instruments demonstrate reliability and validity across cultures in the study

• response bias - whether people of cultures in the study respond differently or have a biased response when tested

What is interpretational bias

• whether interpretations and results of a study have practical meaning and/or are biased in some way

• for a measure to be useful in cross-cultural research, it must be reliable (consistent) and valid (accurate) in all the cultural groups being studied

What is back-translation

common approach to address linguistic equivalence

• involves translation of the research protocol into a different language(s) and the having a different person translate it back to the original language and repeated with the goal of semantic equivalence among the protocols

• often used as a quality assurance method