What is Positive Psychology for Kids
Positive Psychology is a fairly new sub-field within the study of Psychology. It is the study of happiness and looks at how adults and children can live a more fulfilling and satisfying life.
Another way to look at is, traditional Psychology is concerned with “fixing things,” while Positive Psychology is geared towards “preventing things.”
For example, when your child is at the edge of a cliff, Positive Psychology encourages you to build a fence to stop your child from falling instead of calling an ambulance to pick up the pieces once they’ve already fallen (traditional psychology).
So how do you build a fence?
By focusing of the areas of resilience; reflection; relationships and emotions in children. This is what the science is telling us!
Why is this important?
By practising the principles within Positive Psychology, research shows that kids improve their academic performance and attitude. They also engage in more positive behaviours (and fewer negative ones). We all want that for our children! It also:
- Increases success when it comes to forming friendships; increases ability to manage conflict with peers
- Enables them to manage negative emotions
- Enables them to have better concentration, which means performing better academically
- Prevents health problems
- Creates more stable and satisfying relationships with adults
- Makes them more resilient and optimistic
