Make it Positive Mag

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Positive Psychology • neuroscience coaching • health • knowledge portuguese version

Positive Psychology?

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On the agenda since the 90’s, a new way of looking at the human being gains ground in the clinic, at school and at companies

You will see in this issue:

A presentation of this movement, terms and concepts

Neuroscience: Award brings researches on happiness, altruism and resilience How positive leaderships act: Principles and practices that change the organizational environment

And more: positive news around the world, Emotional education, testimonials, reading

Health & Wellness Coach and Positive Psychology – a powerful match

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Aproveite a programação de fim de ano!

Curso Intensivo de Psicologia Positiva

O Curso Intensivo de Psicologia Positiva oferece uma visão ampla desse movimento científico e de seu estado da arte. Além disso, o curso discute todas as áreas de estudo da Psicologia Positiva, bem como suas diferentes possibilidades de aplicação.

Realizado sempre em um único final de semana, este curso é ideal para pessoas que residem em outros estados.

25 horas/aula 6/11/2015 a 8/11/2015 Local: Sede do IPPC Matrículas e mais informações aqui

Certificação em Coaching Positivo

Esse curso tem a proposta de oferecer um treinamento de caráter essencialmente prático acerca das técnicas básicas e avançadas do coaching, à luz da Psicologia Positiva.

50 h/ aula 17/11/2015 a 21/11/2015 Local: Sede do IPPC Matrículas e mais informações aqui

Curso de Psicologia para Coaches e Não Psicólogos

Este curso destina-se a todos aqueles que gostariam de conhecer os conceitos fundamentais da Psicologia, sem ter que recorrer a uma longa formação na área. A programação irá discutir as questões fundamentais sobre o comportamento humano, tomando por base as teorias clássicas da Psicologia, bem como os últimos avanços nas Neurociências.

26 h/ aula 27/11/2015 a 29/11/2015 Local: Sede do IPPC Matrículas e mais informações aqui

Instituto de Psicologia Positiva e Comportamento

2 – CEP: 04552-050 – São Paulo, SP – Tel. 11-95328-4010 R. Helena, 140 – Edifício Delta One – Cjs. 111-112 – Vila Olímpia

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Positive Psychology • neuroscience • coaching • health • knowledge

Ano I – n 1 – Out./ Nov./ Dez. 2015 www.makeitpositivemag.com o

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his issue of Make it Positive Magazine, or affectionately MIP Mag, as we call it here, is an effort of the Positive Psychology and Behavior Institute, in portuguese “Instituto de Psicologia Positiva e Comportamento” (IPPC), to create a vehicle that brings together research, practice and news about Positive Psychology (PP) in Brazil and worldwide.

One of the missions of the Institute is to democratize access to knowledge and, to do so, nothing better than the free online access to the publication.

There is much Information on the PP movement nowadays (from the nineties on its evolution has happened globally, with more and more empirical data being produced in various institutions and settings). But the fact is that there is no channel to compile and disseminate this production in an accessible manner to all types of public (recalling that the PP has applications which, desirably, extrapolate closed intellectual circles and binds to an endless variety of issues of human development – or rather, human flourishing).

MIP Mag is unique, for now, which is the cause of happiness to all participants of the first edition. We cannot lose sight of the fact that the bloom or human awakening to a full and happy life should be available to everyone – at work, at school, at home, in the community, whether it’s through individual or collective initiatives, governmental or not (and why not speak in public policies in this field?).

The speakers of Portuguese Language can count on us, then, to increase their repertoire about PP in all these fields. The English version of the articles reaches other public places and puts Brazilian or Portuguese Language production in evidence in the PP universe.

The first issue of MIP Mag is just an introduction to what will be seen here on a quarterly basis, conducted with great care by those involved in it. Each one got into the flow state in his own way, while undertaking their knowledge and character strengths in this publication. New to the subject and don’t know what flow or character strengths is? Don’t worry, we’ll explain it here. Also in the next issues for you delight (because you will fall in love with Positive Psychology), we will go even further.

Jussara Goyano* * Journalist and positive coach certified by the IPPC, designated by

the management of the Institute to coordinate this publication.

(Character Strength 1: LOVE)

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MIP Mag é uma publicação trimestral do Instituto de Psicologia Positiva e Comportamento (IPPC). É proibida a reprodução sem autorização do IPPC e dos autores.

As informações ou opiniões contidas nesta publicação não refletem necessariamente a posição do IPPC. Diretoria Lilian Graziano Fabio Appolinário Conselho editorial Lilian Graziano Membros do Instituto Arthur Ranieri Claudia Ribeiro Cléa Graziano Fabiola Bernardo Frank Roman Lidia Pagni Mara Laimgruber Apoio

Associação de Psicologia Positiva da América Latina Realização:

ponto a

comunicação • conteúdo • desenvolvimento humano www.ponto-a.com • comunicacao@ponto-a.com @PontoA_falecom • Tel./Fax (11) 3042-5900

Edição e coordenação (coordinator): Jussara Goyano Arte e projeto gráfico (design): Monique Elias Tradução (translator): Bruno Tripode Bartaquini Revisão: Marta Sá (Português) e Marina Werneck (Inglês) Contatos com a redação: Tel./ Phone number: +55 11 3042 5900 E-mail: mipmag@psicologiapositiva.com.br Endereço para correspondência/ Adress: Rua Helena, 140, cj. 111/112, Vila Olímpia, S. Paulo – SP – Brasil CEP: 04552-050 Comercial e Marketing: Cléa Graziano E-mail: clea@psicologiapositiva.com.br Tel.: +55 11 9 5328 4010

sumary

• Click on the subjects to read the contents! •

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positive

State of the Art

Psicologia Positiva • neurociência • coaching • saúde • conhecimento

O QUE É A

But, what is Positive Psychology, after all?

english version

PSICOLOGIA POSITIVA?

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Em pauta desde os anos 90, nova forma de olhar para o ser humano ganha cada vez mais espaço na clínica, na escola e na empresa

Positive Psychology: the state of the art

Nesta edição, você vai ver:

Uma apresentação desse movimento, termos e conceitos

Neurociência: Prêmio traz pesquisas sobre felicidade, altruísmo e resiliência

Corporate The naked organization

Como agem as lideranças positivas: Princípios e práticas que mudam o clima organizacional

E MAIS: BOAS NOTÍCIAS PELO MUNDO, EDUCAÇÃO EMOCIONAL, TESTEMUNHOS, LEITURA

Coaching de Saúde e Bem-Estar e Psicologia Positiva – uma combinação poderosa

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cover image: freepik/montagem: Monique Elias

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30/10/2015 16:09:52

Education Positive Education: A new way of educating for old demands

Interview Cristiane Lo Ré (3M do Brasil)

Testimonial Function VS Life Purpose Performance Positive Leadership

Pleased to meet you, my name is Mara!

Wellness Health and Wellness Coaching

reading Happier – Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillmen (Tal Ben-Shahar)

Neuroscience Positive Neuroscience: A paradigm shift leads to the exploration of areas not yet investigated 4

And More...

Positive News Positive WIKI Your hapiness

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Positive Psychology, after all?

The movement retrieves the ideals of humanist psychology from the middle of the past century – with a different approach strongly focused on the qualitative and quantitative methodological aspects of the research.

• by Fabio Appolinário •

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ver fifteen years have passed since this intellectual movement called “Positive Psychology” started to arise with its own research agenda, retrieving subjects once forgotten by the psychology of the 19th and 20th centuries. Since then, the movement has been growing, amplifying itself and suffering from critical objections from the insiders and outsiders of the field of psychology – as it is expected. But, what exactly is Positive Psychology?

We could say that it is a scientific movement, of multidisciplinary nature, that comes from a few fundamental hypothesis: a) there is a human nature, and it is essentially good; b) the main goal of the human being is happiness; c) happiness is not related to pleasure, but, mainly to the voluntary practice of virtue.

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but, what is

Aristotle teaching Alexander, The Great, by Charles Laplante

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In order to explore this hypothesis adequately, it was necessary to “displace” two fundamental paradigms: the change of a hedonist conception to eudemonistic, and a change of the pathogenic conception to another, named salutogenic.

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final goal meaning that we do not desire happiness to reach something beyond it: happiness itself is the end of all things.

The problem is that, differently from animals, the man is the only one that can, by his own choice, decide to alienate To Aristotle, happiness is a choice. To be happy, a man must from his own nature. follow his own nature.

So, to Aristotle, happiness is a choice.

From hedonism to eudaimonism This principle is essential to Positive We need to go back to the beginnings of Greek Psychology: although the idea of the thought to review this concepts. Hedonism is supreme good is “pre-programmed” associated to a Greek philosopher, contemporary of in our own essence, free will and life Socrates: Aristipo from Cyrene (ca 435-335 b.C). To him, conditions can, contingently, distract the search for happiness is nothing but the pursuit of ourselves from this project. That’s pleasure and reduction of pain. The more pleasures where the the idea of the exercise of and the less suffering people experience, the happier they are (hedonism comes from the Greek hedoné: ”pleasure”). However, eudemonia assumes a slightly different idea: it is not enough for a man to experience pleasure, it is necessary that he searches and lives a significant life a significant life, a life that is worth living. The root of this idea comes from Socrates, to whom the entire universe converges into the summum bonum (The supreme good), the idea of a greater good, that all human beings should seek. His disciple, Plato, reinforced this concept stating that the supreme idea, above all others, is the idea of ‘wellness’ itself.

Etymologically At Harvard, Israeli commands eudemonia means the most demanded class of something like being the University – The Positive “possessed by a divine Psychology Class and benevolent being” (eu: “good”; daimon: “god, In this video recorded outside spirit”). Aristotle, Plato’s of the University, at the WGBH disciple, added that, to be Forume, professor Tal Ben-Shahar happy, a man should only match his own nature talks about recent researches in the (that is essentially good).

Positive Psychology field and the The search is universal, impact that this science can cause and it is the only thing in people’s lives. that we really seek as a

The issue is not to discover “what” makes people sick, but the forces that keep them

healthy

(“salutogenia ”)

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virtues, which are the expression of the summon bonum, comes in. The evidence to support the Socratic-platonic-aristotelic vision of the universality of the idea of wellness and virtue comes from the observation that the good (and not the evil) and the virtue (and not the vice) are almost universally valued in all cultures and human traditions of all times: courage, justice, wisdom, love and humanity, selfcontrol (temperance) and transcendence are virtues considered essential since the ancient Egyptians and Babylonians to the present Brazilians and North Americans, going through the Chinese, Japanese and Indian cultures, as well as religious traditions like Christianity, Hinduism, Islamism, Judaism, Buddhism, Taoism, and countless others.

From pathogenic to salutogenic The psychology of the 19th and 20th centuries turned its efforts almost in its totality to the study of mental disorders and their “healing” methods. This paradigm of the “pathogenesis” (to classify diseases and the agents that cause them) is giving place to another conception: pathogenic agents (or stressors) are universal and are always present in the world; and it is impossible to control them completely or evensignificantly. The matter, then, is not to map and discover “what” makes people sick, but rather what forces make them healthy (“salutogenia”).

Therefore, Positive Psychology relies firmly on studies about the optimal functioning, aiming to discover what are the factors that promote the health and the well being in their multiple levels: biological, individual, relational, institutional, cultural and global.

Thence the study of the so called “personal forces” – the means through which an individual can overcome the challenges of existence, to search for a good life (virtuous, and then, happy), retrieving the ideals of the humanist psychology from the middle of the last century – with a different approach strongly focused on the qualitative and quantitative methodological aspects of the research, instead of turning to the processes of production of empirical and clinical knowledge, which characterizes the humanistic ideals.

This excessive emphasis in individual clinical data and empiricism of pioneers like Maslow, Rogers, May and others ended up giving this intellectual movement a more philosophical character, rather than scientific, restraining the acceptability of its hypothesis by great

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The good (and not the evil) and the virtue (and not the vice) are almost universally valued in all human cultures and traditions of all times: courage, justice, wisdom, love and humanity, self control and transcendence

part of the scientific community inside and out of the psychology field.

In short, Positive Psychology is a transdisciplinary scientific movement that retrieves the eudemonic and salutogenic conceptions, using mixed research methods to study subjects such as happiness, virtues, personal forces, optimal psychological functioning in the clinical, business, educational and civic (public policies and community life) contexts .

Fabio Appolinário is pHD in psychology by Universidade de São Paulo, consultant, coach and psychotherapist. Scientific director of Instituto de Psicologia Positiva e Comportamento.

Learn more Furrow, D. Ética: conceitos-chave em filosofia. Porto Alegre: Artmed, 2007.

Hofman, E.; Compton, W. C. Positive Psychology: the science of hapiness and flourishing. 2. ed. Belmont: WadsworthCengage, 2013.

Nafstad, H. E. Historical, philosophical, and epistemological perspectives. In: S. Joseph (Ed.). Positive Psychology in practice. 2. ed. Hoboken: Wiley, 2015.

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Positive Psychology: of the The

State

Since its foundation almost two decades ago, Brazilian Positive Psychology movement has been gathering a robust and steady number of adepts and researchers • BY lilian graziano •

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art

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eventeen years have passed since its foundation, and even before turning eighteen, it seems that Positive Psychology has reached its coming of age. With research centers all over the four continents, this scientific movement shows some clear signs that it came to stay. Not bad for a movement that, at least in Brazil, was considered an American trend, or even a movement “without legs”, as said by the Psychologist Richard Lazarus, from University of California, in a paper published in the Psychological Inquiry magazine in 2003.

These days, Positive Psychology has become even greater than its illustrious founder, the American Psychologist Martin Seligman, and maybe this is the biggest indication of its maturity. It is a fact that the appreciative look towards the human being was not born with Positive Psychology, and Seligman was very clear

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on this matter in his book, Authentic Happiness, the movement’s seminal publication. The very work of Ed Diener and Mihay Csikszentmihalyi, considered Positive Psychology co-founders, is a proof of that, since it goes back decades before the rise of this movement (in the case of Csikszentmihalyi).

Nevertheless, the fact is that other movements have emerged, such as Positive Organizational Scholarship, lead by professor Kim Cameron, from the University of Michigan, all driven by Seligman’s idea of exposing Science to the functional aspects of the human being and its institutions.

According to the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA), with thousands of members in more than 70 countries nowadays, Positive Psychology already received millions of dollars in research, being the subject of many scientific magazines, master’s and doctor’s degrees worldwide.

Founded in 2001, the Institute on Character, a nonprofit organization, focuses its work exclusively on virtues and personal strengths. Its website offers a summed version (in various languages) of the main inventory of PP for identification of personal strengths, the Values in Action Inventory, or simply VIA. In this website alone, over 2.6 million people in 193 countries have already been evaluated.

With that being said Positive Psychology is not limited to English speaking countries.

In Portugal, the Universidade Técnica de Lisboa offers the course “Applied Positive Psychology”, coordinated by PhD Professor Luís Miguel Neto and PhD Professor Helena Marujo. In Argentina, we have PhD Professor Alejandro Castro Solano, from Universidade de Palermo, that edited the book “Positive Psychology in Latin America”, which shows an interesting overview of Positive Psychology in Latin America.

Positive Psychology

received

thousands of dollars in research and became theme of many scientific

magazines

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facebook

A social group discloses monographs, books in portuguese and other languages, making it easier to exchange ideas in apllied Positive Psychology

These are only a few examples of centers of Positive Psychology spread around the world. Fortunately, we have reached such point that counting them in only one article would be almost impossible.

However, what is there to say about Brazil? Despite still having a long way to go, I watch the goals we have achieved with joy.

When I was conducting my PhD research, in 2003, people became astonished with the fact that my study object was happiness. After all, they believed that subjects like this would never be handled by science.

That’s when I founded the Instituto de Psicologia Positiva e Comportamento, the IPPC (Positive Psychology and Behavior Institute), with the objective of disseminating this wonderful scientific movement called Positive Psychology and spreading my own enthusiasm regarding it to world.

Today I continue doing that, always with the same enthusiasm of before.

However, I am not a single voice anymore, as a chorus of marvelous and various accents from Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Minas Gerais, Ceara and many other places have joined me.

My greatest satisfaction is to realize that the principles of Positive Psychology know no regional boundaries and, maybe even more important than that, ignore the very closed groups of psychology, towhich 20 years

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after I graduated I have grown completely impatient about.

Taking this into consideration, we owe a lot to APPAL (Positive Psychology Association to Latin America), founded in October 2010, as a Latin American branch of IPPA and that, through its former president Daniela Levy, played a role not only promoting this movement, but mainly connecting everyone that were interested by it.

The I Conferencia Brasileira de Psicologia Positiva (First Brazilian Conference of Positive Psychology) in Rio de Janeiro, in 2011, deserves to be highlighted for bringing to Brazil, for the first time, Martin Seligman, founder of the movement, and James Pawelsky, director of the IPPA at the time.

Today, under the chairmanship of the psychologist Marco Callegaro, APPAL certainly will continue to accomplish its important purpose.

In 2013 the ABPP+ (Brazilian Association of Positive Psychology) was founded, chaired by Professor PhD Claudio Simon Hutz from UFRS, and, to celebrate its first year of existence, it was held in Porto Alegre the first Congresso Brasileiro de Psicologia Positiva (Brazilian Congress of Positive Psychology). Following its mission to promote Positive Psychology, ABPP+ will hold, between June 28th and July 1st, 2016 in São Paulo, the II Congresso Brasileiro (II Brazilian Congress).

As for the academic initiatives, we had in 2004, at Fundação Armando Alvares Penteado (FAAP), a project

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coordinated by me and PhD Professor Fabio Appolinário that had the intention of improving the academic performance of under graduate students. Named Projeto Fênix (Phoenix Project), this program included practical exercises of Positive Psychology and obtained excellent results. Years later, already in Trevisan Escola de Negócios (Trevisan Business School), we offered a Positive Psychology class for all undergraduates in the institution. The results of these initiatives were always very satisfying and brought back to me the real meaning of teaching.

When it comes to graduate programs today, we can count two PhD Professor Mônica Portella’s courses, (Postgraduate Studies in Positive Psychology – An Integration with Coaching – since 2011, at Rio de Janeiro and Fóz do Iguaçu – and a Positive Psychology MBA, since september, 2015), which already formed a great number of students in the area. This freepik

My greatest satisfaction is to realize that the principles of Positive Psychology have no regional

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researcher also has an important role disseminating Positive Psychology in Brazil through her courses, publications and meetings, such as the II Simpósio Latino-Americano de Psicologia Positiva (II Latinamerican Symposium of Positive Psychology): an integration with Coaching, to be performed next October.

Positive Psychology initiatives in Brazil are as numerous as they are diverse. From human development programs such as Educação Emocional Positiva (Positive Emotional Education), by the psychologist Miriam Rodrigues, or WhatsApp groups, that gather hundreds of people, such as the group led by Renata Livramento, psychologist from Intituto Mineiro de Psicologia, going through Facebook Groups, such as

Positive Psychology

initiatives

in Brazil are as numerous as they are diverse : varying from human

development

programs to several

WhatsApp groups with

hundreds of people

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Biblioteca Positiva (Positive Library), created by coach Andrea Peres Correa, that already counts with more than 3 thousand members. Every day new ideas arise and take this wonderful movement of Positive Psychology to all those who are interested in human development.

However, the biggest challenge, whether we’re Brazilians, Americans, Europeans or positive researchers from any other place in the world, is up to us: to live the concepts of Positive Psychology in practice, making our own lives an example of what we say in our studies. lilian graziano is psychologist who earned a PhD in psychology from the University of São Paulo (USP) and is also the director of the IPPC.

Learn more SOLANO, A. C. (Ed.) (2014). Positive Psychology in Latin America: New York: Springer RODRIGUES, M. (2013). Educação Emocional Positiva: Saber lidar com as emoções é uma importante lição. São Paulo: All Print Editora

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the naked organization

In an increasingly transparent world, meaning and corporate culture have become key factors to the success of organizations • by Arthur Ranieri •

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very year global consulting firms, renowned institutes and experts invest their time, and probably money, in order to find answers and establish trends on what should be the path that the organizations must follow to continue growing in an increasingly dynamic and complex scenario.

This year, Deloitte consulting published a study entitled Global Human Capital Trends 2015: Leading

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in the new world of work1 . This trend report is one of the most recent and rich studies on talent management, leadership and HR challenges. The research involved more than 3,300 ¹ The complete report is available at: http://www2.deloitte. com/content/dam/Deloitte/at/Documents/human-capital/ hc-trends-015.pdf

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business leaders and HR from 106 countries.

The report explored 10 major trends that emerged from the research and for each one of them an indicator by region and by country called “capacity gap” was presented. This indicator shows how close each country or region is to the trend in question.

Considering the data set provided by this report, I would like to deepen the analysis based in one of the trends which Deloitte called ‘Culture and Engagement’.

For Deloitte the organizations are living the Age of Glassdoor2 , since every piece of information and decision made can be immediately exposed and debated publicly. As private issues are now published online, the culture of an organization is increasingly visible for the world to see. Considering the new context of high transparency that we are facing, there is no place for organizations to hide or appear to be what they are not. Thus the culture of an organization can become a major competitive advantage or its own Achilles heel. Culture, and how it engages people, is now a strategic issue for business and not just a topic of debate for the HR department.

The study shows that in most companies the engagement is low and that more than half of the workforce would not recommend their employer to others. In addition to that, a substantial proportion of the people interviewed in this year’s survey (22%) report that their organizations have a poor system to measure and improve engagement.

Another relevant fact is that only 7% of respondents believe that their organizations are excellent in making efforts to improve engagement and retention, and only 12% believe that their organizations are excellent in building the desired culture.

But what does this mean for the organizations and their leaders?

increasingly visible for the

world to see

² Glassdoor is a website (www.glassdoor.com) that keeps a database of more than 8 million company ratings and has as mission of helping people everywhere find jobs and companies they love.

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According to Deloitte this is a new and systemic problem for organizations worldwide.

One of the factors that creates this problem is that the workforce’s motivators nowadays have changed dramatically. Workers today have greater focus on integrating worklife-happiness, that is, the alignment of personal values and ​​ practices with organizational values ​​and practices, and also on how much meaning and purpose is brought to their life by their work, which serves as a mean to experience greater fulfillment and happiness.

More than double of the respondents in the survey are more motivated by the passion they feel for their work than by their career ambition.

In other words, if the purpose, values, culture, leadership, as well as the practices of an organization are not consistent and do not match with what

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Since private issues are now published online, the culture of an organization is

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For many today, meaning is the new money. It’s what people are looking for at work

one seeks as a sense of accomplishment, their capability of attraction, engagement and retention tend to be low. Therefore it’s not enough to wear a “ mask” of mission and values, and appear to be what is not.

With that being said, Professor Tamara Anderson from Harvard Business School, on an article in the online version of the Harvard Business Review3, states: “high levels of engagement occur when our work experiences reflect a clear set of values that we share. For many today, the meaning is the new money. That is what people are looking for at work.

Clear company values, translated into the everyday work experience, are one of the strongest drivers of an engaged workforce and a foundation for successful collaboration.”

As an example of a successful company that follows carefullythe idea of building ​​ a business with meaning, Zappos is certainly a case to take a closer look. Zappos is an American online store that sells clothes and shoes over the Internet and was bought

by Amazon in 2010 for $ 1.2 billion.

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³ The full article can be accessed at: https://hbr.org/2011/03/challenging-ourdeeply-held-as

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To tell the story of Zappos, the founder and CEO Tony Hsieh wrote a book called Delivering Happiness - A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose.

The book, which written in the first person, tells the entrepreneurial story of Tony and Zappos, considered one of the companies that most pay attention to customer service in the United States.

In an excerpt from the book, the author states “Our belief is that our brand, our culture and our source of information are the only competitive advantage we will have in the long run. Anything else can and will eventually be copied. “ Prior to Zappos, Tony had created a company that grew too quickly and one day he woke up and realized that he did not want to go to work. “I was the co-founder and the company still wasn’t the place where I wanted to be.”

So much that he decided to sell the company. “I made a list of the happiest periods of my life and realized that none of them involved money. I had decided to stop running after money and started running after my passion”, says Tony in another excerpt from the book.

With the bursting of the Internet bubble in 2000, Zappos had experienced serious difficulties with layoffs and cutbacks. Their focus, then, became attracting customers who had already bought with them. “Little did we know that it was a blessing in disguise, as it forced us to focus more on providing a better service to customers”. More than just products, the company went

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on to sell the concept of happiness, what originated the purpose of Zappos: delivering happiness. The idea was: if the customers are treated well, they will buy again - and will also suggest the company to others.

Therefore, the company began looking for way to serve in the best way and how to positively surprise its customers - and keep them for life.

“In addition to trying to impress our customers, we also try to impress employees, vendors and partners who work with us (and, in the long run, our investors).

We believe that this creates a virtuous cycle, and, in our view, we are making the world a better place and improving people’s lives, “says Tony.

To many, this may seem far from what we are used to seeing in the corporate world, and the question remains: How does the meaning at work can bring positive results and growth?

In the book Exponential Organizations: Why new organizations are ten times better, faster, and cheaper than yours (and what to do about it), the authors Salim Ismael, Michael S.Malone and Yuri Van Geest, introduce a new and wide view of essential organizational and technological trends for companies. The purpose of the piece is to present a new way of looking at business, taking full advantage of the creative power of the people who are part of it.

The authors researched the patterns of some reference companies which had an exponential growth in a few years such as Waze, Tesla, Netflix, Uber, Google Ventures, among others, and explored the ten attributes that made them revolutionary, five of them were external elements and five were internal organizational strategies.

To support these attributes, exponential organizations think big and have an element in their structure which stands as a cornerstone of their success. The authors call this element MTP (Massive Transformation of Purpose). An example of a massive purpose transformation is “Delivering Happiness”, the purpose of Zappos. Another example is Google’s

well treated

he will buy again - and will also suggest the company to others

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The idea was: if the customer is

purpose: “We want to organize all of the world’s information.”

A strong MTP is, as a main characteristic, something aspirational, and why not say, transcendent and utopian. Having a MTP is a competitive advantage which serves as an attractor and retainer of talents, customers and the various agents present in the business ecosystem in which the organization operates.

So I leave you with these questions: What is your organization’s Massive Transformation Purpose? What is it for? What is the meaning that it brings to the world and to people?

To find this answer your organization will most likely have to strip down.

Arthur Ranieri has been working as a consultant and coach for ten years in organizations of various segments in the Marketplace. He is a business administrator and a Theologian, his MTP is”transforming each person’s talent in the best performance for everyone”.

interview

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ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE

3M do Brasil seeks a new mindset, betting on greater appreciation and well-being of its employees.

Who states it is Cristiane LoRé, Manager of Personnel Development in the company • By MipMag team •

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ristiane Lo Ré is a psychologist and has spent nearly 15 years at 3M do Brasil, Brazilian pole of 3M, multinational chemical industry, which net sales hit the mark of US $ 31 billion in 2014. She explains how the company started a profound transformation of its organizational culture, casting a new look over its employees. Such a look became a flag of the current presidency, filtered through the lens of Positive Psychology (PP), which expand the appreciation of the strengths of individuals and teams and a positive mood and greater engagement among employees. The focus initially is on effective leaders and company potential, so that they disseminate what they have learned in workshops about character strengths and PP. The results caused by the ongoing implementation of a new mindset have not been measured quantitatively, because only 72 people were trained, of which 400 must adhere to the workshops. But the feedback from those who went through the process are very positive, Cristiane evaluates.

The trainings are being offered in partnership with Instituto de Psicologia Positiva e

Comportamento (IPPC), in English “Institute for Positive Psychology and Behavior”. The change plan put in place can be seen below.

Since you joined the company, what have you witnessed in terms of human development and cultural change in 3M?

When it comes to developing people, we had many actions ... I don’t even know exactly how many.

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interview

We’ve always provided training, qualification, especially for leaders (our main focus, but not the only one). I would emphasize our corporate university, which works since 2012 - one of the academies we built was the leadership academy, where the work with Positive Psychology is found.

So we have reached Positive Psychology... is it applied to the company? Is it a flag of the current administration?

and, finally, help spreading the concept within the company. Parallel {to that, we started some communication channels, such as the Blog of the President, where we talk a bit about what this concept of Positive Psychology is. There are about 400 people who access the blog and this is not just leadership. We also brought to the blog some testimonials from workshop participants in a quick video, a testimonial, talking about what the event has provoked in people. We intend to continue speaking of Positive Psychology, speaking of the strengths ...

That’s right. We started working with IPCC last year, with training in Transformational Leadership, within the leadership academy, which already carried the concept of Positive Psychology. With the coming of our president (Jorge Is there any measured Lopez), this concept became In an return from this work stronger. We started (quantitative or qualitative)? thinking about how to best Any significant sample apply this to the company in , we must that it may have influenced Brazil. We began looking for who we could qualify, and with productivity? Are these always leaders somehow already then this year we started a the carrying forward what they plan in this direction. When have learned? we talk about organizational Speaking very generally we do change, we must always start with the leaders. not have effective data just yet – I Change happens to everyone, but those who can help will speak on qualitative aspects. us are the leaders, because HR alone does not cause Broadly speaking, the feedback of the the change. So it was with them that we started the workshops that have been made was movement of Positive Psychology. In March, we had a extremely positive. To the point of workshop with a good portion of our directors and our people saying “Wow! It’s great to be potential leaders of the organization. We have made able to bring that look to the company.” the first class and the feedback was very positive. We Why? Because when we talk about continued with IPPC, even in the two days sessions Positive Psychology and character (Positive Psychology workshops and character strengths, we “leave” aside that concept strengths). The movement then begins with Jorge, in which we were raised, the culture of who brings this new look, raising the flag of Positive GAPs – our new mindset. Some leaders Psychology - if there is someone at this level passing have also caused it [the use of Positive this, the process becomes a little easier, I’d say. Today Psychology] among their teams. There we have 72 leaders trained in the concept of Positive was a dynamic with my team, in which Psychology and character strengths, and another everyone participated, about the Tree of [training] session still this year. We have 300 leaders character strengths*; with the character who have yet to go through the workshop. strengths of each one. We discussed have you figured out how you will pass how it (the strengths) helps us in the this on to other levels, other areas of company and we also talked about the company? getting to know each other through the What is our intention? It is to introduce this to leaders strengths – that’s really cool, because so they can pass it on to the teams it to the teams something I think is a weakness of the

organizational change start leaders

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personal file

interview

person may be contributing to the team ... That’s an example.

It can be an example and, more than that, people may be applying it outside of the business, right?

Is there any testimony in this direction?

When we talk about looking at the

strengths

and how they can generate results, everything becomes

There are some in that direction. We have a channel on our intranet called Connection, where we publish articles - workshop material, too - and we put an article on the practice of Positive Psychology through Mindfulness technique [meditation based on body awareness and mindfulness during movement to their children. And the staff commented on how nice it was to bring that look to their children, to watch their strengths ... The good part is that we notice that people have been commenting, there is a certain movement (...). When we attended the workshop, which talks about positive things, about the concept of happiness, I left the workshop happy.

This is very motivating, it brings a nice energy to talk about it and think about actions related to positive things, our strengths. It also promotes a deep self-knowledge.

much easier

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In relation to the experiences in other companies, do you believe that this work is a trend among companies?

It is still an extremely new concept. (...) When we talk about looking at the strengths and how they can generate results, everything becomes much easier.

What is your first character strength? Do you know it by heart?

Mine? It’s authenticity ... [laughs]

* The character strengths Tree is a tool developed by the IPPC to recognize “the roots and trunk” that “support” individuals and teams (their character strengths and values) and its “ramifications” (areas of life or work / organization) where these resources are applied.

performance

Positive

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Building positive institutions goes through raising positive leaders • by Lídia Pagní •

P

ositive Psychology began in 1998 when psychologist Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania, became president of the American Psychological Association (APA), the largest association of psychologists in the United States. According to him, “Psychological Science had been neglecting the study of the positive aspects of human nature.” It is a proposal for a scientific, vibrant and multifaceted study of positive experiences,

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how they affect the individual and, if properly developed, it can nurture more productive, fulfilled and healthier people.

Thus, Positive Psychology is born with three important pillars: the first is the study of positive emotion; the second pillar of the science is the study of positive character; the third is the study of positive institutions.

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Leadership

performance

Psychological

Based primarily on the study of the third pillar, Kim Cameron introduced in 2008 the concept of Positive Leadership. Positive Institutions focus on the strengths, talents, courage, hope, optimism, resilience, cooperation, creativity and positive emotions of the people who participate in them.

Focus also, and mainly, on the meaning, the positive direction of the work. Therefore, to carry out Positive Leadership in an institution, it is necessary for the leader to understand and accept that the completion of the work depends on the people and the best results will come from a positive environment, with engagement, and not from a negative environment. A conscious effort to focus on positive events is necessary.

A research conducted by Baumeister in 2001 showed that people tend to value more the occurrence of negative factors and that they are more powerful than positive factors. “Evil is stronger than good.� People are more affected by a traumatic

Science had been

neglecting

How to generate this change?

Kim Cameron introduced the concept of the four pillars that must be followed: 123rf

the study of the positive aspects of human nature

or negative event than by a positive or happy one. They are more emotionally affected when receiving negative feedback than positive feedback. So it is no surprise that the negative phenomena receives more attention than the positive phenomena and that such conscious effort is needed.

Exercising positive leadership will only make sense if the leader lead himself first, applying that effort on himself before leading others/team. He should internalize the practice of positive leadership, recognize his personal strengths and use them to his advantage, accepting his vulnerabilities, so, when reporting them, he will receive help from other people. Thus he will be ready to contaminate his team, the surroundings and the organization, creating a feeling of happiness and meaning in people.

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performance

Positive Leadership – Principles & Practices

principles

practices

maintain a positive

Compassion: notice pain; share information; express care and concern; organize systematic action to enable appropriate compassionate responses

work climate

Forgiveness: acknowledge the hurt, identify an optimistic purpose, maintain high expectations and standards, provide support for the harmed, let go of grudges, legitimize language that elevates thought and communicates virtuousness Frequent and public expressions of gratitude: encourage gratitude journals, letters and notes; conduct gratitude visits maintain positive

relationships among

team members

Model positive energy; provide opportunities for serving others.

Develop and manage positive energy networks in stages: identify positive energizers and enable them to infect the organization through positive-energy networks, teams, and mentoring relations.

Capitalize on employees’ strengths: Spend time with strongest performers; provide opportunities for employees to do what they do best; frequently celebrate positive outcomes; focus on what they do well to help them achieve excellence in performance and in relationships. Address weaknesses to build competence.

Manage negative energizers in stages.

maintain positive

Often use supportive communication and encourage employees to engage in supportive communication; provide 5 positives for every negative piece of feedback, use descriptive statements in providing negative feedback, remain problem- not person-focused in providing negative feedback Collect reflected best-self feedback. Obtain information from associates on unique personal contributions, help others develop a best-self portrait, use strength recognition cards

Associate work with

Help workers see the effects of their work on others, give them opportunities to directly interact with clients and to receive feedback Highlight connections between what is meaningful to individuals and benefits produced by the organization Clarify the long-term effects of what is being accomplished; help people see that they are creating a legacy Reinforce and sponsor contribution goals rather than selfinterest and achievement goals

communication

imagens: 123rf

positive meaning

Reference: Kim Cameron, Positive Leadership, Berrett-Koehler (2008).

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performance

Focus on excellence and self-awareness The Gallup Institute conducted a poll on “the opportunity to do what I do best.”

It asked 198,000 employees working in 7,939 business units from 36 companies the following question: In your job, do you have the opportunity to do what you do best every day?

Those responsible for the survey worked with the answers as follows “we compared [the answers] with the performance of the units and found the following: when employees responded affirmatively they were 50% more likely to work in a sector with lower staff turnover, 38% more likely to act in more productive units and 44% more likely to work in a segment with better customer satisfaction ratings. And over time, the business units where there has been an increase in positive responses had a proportional growth in productivity, customer loyalty and employee retention. Whichever way you arrange the data, the company whose employees feel they have their strengths used every day is more powerful and stronger. “(BUCKINGHAM & CLIFTON, 2008, p.13) We can assume, therefore, the importance of the individual to recognize his strengths and develop them. Those employing them are more likely to have greater success in personal and professional life, thus generating greater significance on their performance.

Established culture in most organizations today is the cultivation of what is missing. Leaders focus on overcoming these gaps in their teams. Recently a coaching client reported the change in his staff and the retention of some talents after changing his view towards the recognition of individuals and the team strengths. There was a significant increase in results, because he could capitalize on the potential

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of the group and develop a high performance team.

Positive Leadership promotes greater engagement, strengthens extraordinary results and can be achieved with the cooperation of leaders who know how to recognize the strengths and value the individual potentials of the team. They create a positive learning environment, enabling the development of creativity and acceptance of potential faults.

To exercise positive leadership leaders need to be authentic and know when they are doing the best they can with the information and experience they have at the moment. It is the selfconsciousness of our total personality – strengths and limitations – learning self-love and self-acceptance. Daniel Goleman describes self-consciousness as focus on the experience or awareness of yourself. It is also important to remember a sentence from Lao Tzu: “There is no nobility in being superior to man: true nobility is being superior to yourself.”

Lídia Pagní is a psychologist, Coach and Organizational Consultant at IPPC.

Learn More (References) Baumeister, Roy F.; Bratslavsky, Ellen; Finkenauer, Catrin; Vohs, Kathleen D. Review of General Psychology, Vol. 5(4), Dec 2001, 323370. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/10892680.5.4.323 GOLEMAN, D. Inteligência Emocional: a teoria revolucionária que redefine o que é ser inteligente. Rio de Janeiro: Objetiva,1995.

BUCKINGHAM, Marcus; CLIFTON, Donald O. Descubra seus pontos fortes: um programa revolucionário que mostra como desenvolver seus talentos especiais e os das pessoas que você lidera. Rio de Janeiro: Sextante, 2008.

bem-estar

Health & Wellness Coaching

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A possibility in the Positive Psychology • by daniela levy •

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H

ealth & Wellness Coaching is a scientifically proven method (Moore and Tschannen-Moran, 2010) that allows you to accelarate the process of behavioral change through specific tools and the setting of desired personal goals for the increasing of wellbeing, improved lifestyle and health.

The focus of this coaching is the engagement and behavior change that generates sustainable and healthy life-styles, prevents or treats illnesses and promotes wellness and selfknowledge. With it, it’s possible to face the major challenges of our times: the epidemics of obesity, diabetes, physical inactivity, poor diet, chronic stress, lack of focus, smoking and the ever increasing health care costs.

Health & Wellness coaching sessions are based on: • the tools and theoretical approaches of the Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change (takes into account the various stages of behavioral change with different interventions at each stage);

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bem-estar

Positive Psychology will strengthen self-esteem and self-efficacy and improve creativity and resilience to deal with adversity

• the use of Appreciative Inquiry (based on the assumption that questions and dialogue about strengths, values, hopes and dreams are transformative); • the application of Positive Psychology (studying the positive subjective experience, potentialities, human virtues and institutions that promote quality of life, contributing to the understanding and development of the factors that enable the prosperity of individuals and communities); • Motivational Interviewing (focus on awakening the increasing of intrinsic motivation toward change); Nonviolent Communication (involves empathy, being present with respect; communication without labels, moral judgments of right and wrong, without criticism, diagnosis, comparison and analysis); • Self-efficacy (when the individual has the ability to initiate and sustain a desired behavior) and selfesteem (the belief that the individual has value and self-worth as a person).

Applicable elements

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Coaching evolved a lot after the rapid advancement of scientific research in Positive Psychology. We can use the techniques and tools of Positive Psychology during the Health & Wellness Coaching sessions.

One of the most important pillars in the practice of Positive Psychology is the study of the virtues and universal forces that the coach can use to assist the coachee to apply his/her skills (according to the main strengths) in his/her daily life, aiming to help the

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behavior change and achievement of goals. Also, it’ll strengthen self-esteem and self-efficacy and improve creativity and resilience to deal with adversity.

We also have studies in Positive Psychology on the exercise of the three blessings (three good things) that prove their excellent results (Seligman, 2011).

This practice minimizes depression and brings happiness, through frequent record of positive events in life - in this exercise, you need to remember three positive things that happened in your day and list them, and then consider what caused those good things. The goal is to reinforce the small steps to achieve the goals, increase well-being and self-efficacy.

Gratitude, on which there are numerous studies of Positive Psychology, also produces extraordinary results in the coaching process. Valuing the successful experiences and people and being grateful to them are attitudes that improve health, happiness and relationships.

The savoring to which the Positive Psychology refers as necessary on a daily basis is important in the Coaching as it gives anchoring, so that consciousness is “present” in the moment which creates pleasure and

positive emotions, rather than letting the person be distracted by negative aspects relative to the past or having concerns about the future. The savoring increases positive emotions and aids in changing behavior.

According to Diener and Kahneman, there are two “types of happiness”: hedonism or pleasant emotions; and eudaimonia or the meaning of life.

The pleasure of savoring moments, like a meal, also increases the well-being just like finding meaning in life or a purpose and a sense of progress on the goals. Hedonism and eudaimonia complement each other so that there is increased happiness. And the coaching seeks to develop both dimensions.

Tasting the future also works for individuals helping them become more hopeful and have more positive emotions towards it and to engage in reaching their goals. Working with Coaching, the individual imagines him/herself in his/her “best self”. Research shows that optimism about the future increases welfare and motivates individuals to move toward the desired future. The pessimistic view of the future may not be the result of depression, but the cause of it.

According to Scott Kaufman, one of the scientists who are revolutionizing the way we see and measure intelligence, the level of passion, persistence and the ability to set and achieve personal goals are considered the new intelligence, and are equally important as the logic and reason. Imagining the future creates new neural circuits and anticipates the benefits, increasing the ability to follow goals. Martin Seligman redefined intelligence and states that determination, or persistence that never gives up, is the new intelligence.

Coaching uses imagination to evoke positivity which facilitates the achievement of goals.

According to the scientist Barbara Fredrickson extensive research, when we create an upward spiral of positive emotions and positive experiences, the benefits are felt in many areas such as

Optimism about the future increases welfare and motivates

individuals to move toward the

desired future

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bem-estar

health, well-being, productivity and relationships. During Coaching, focusing on positive experiences and emotions expands the consciousness of individuals, making them more creative, and increases the chances for behavior change in dealing with difficult situations. These individuals cope better with obstacles and barriers in everyday life.

Fredrickson, in her researches, realized that after injecting positivity in the participants through pleasant pictures, they performed better on math, verbal and other tests, and were more creative and quick in the answers when compared with the same participants in a neutral mood.

Fredrickson formulated the theory of the expanding and building, in which she states that positive emotions build and store future resources that will work as shock absorbers in difficult times. Positive emotions expand the frontiers of the mind and the person sees the world in new ways.

The coach creates an environment in which positive emotions of interest, discovery, serenity, gratitude and curiosity strengthen the coachee so that he/she sees the many possibilities for growth and reach his/her goals.

bem-estar Daniela Levy is a psychologist, Director of Coaching Health & Wellness at Carevolution, Master Coach, and founder of Associação de Psicologia Positiva da América Latina, Positive Psychology Association in Latin America, (APPAL) . She has a background in Health & Wellness Coaching by Carevolution and Wellcoaches, with certification endorsed by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

Postgraduate in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Hospital Psychology at HC-FMUSP. (daniela.levy@carevolution.com.br)

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Learn more (references)

Rescue and revive positive

I had clients who were starting a Health & Wellness coaching and would like to modify behaviors such as exercising more or eating more healthfully. They set goals, but usually had a very low self-efficiency (the belief that they will be able to change their behavior). That happens mainly because people have experienced failure in the past trying to change behaviors.

The technique of valuing successful experiences in the past, even if they are small experiments, and finding the strategies that have been used to tackle barriers in the past is very positive. Rescue and revive positive experiences with some behavior that the individual wishes to change, people and environments that helped, promotes increased self-efficacy and stimulates the individual in achieving the goals. It is also important to remember that the questions should be asked in a positive way and that the professional always need to strengthen and value (talking about the customer’s strengths) the small steps of the client toward behavior change.

experiences promotes increased

self-efficacy and stimulates the individual in

achieving the goals

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Diener, E., & Biswas-Diener, R. (2008).

The science of optimal happiness. Boston: Blackwell Publishing.

Fredrickson, B. Positivity.

Groundbreaking research to release your inner optimism and thrive. (2009). New York: Oneworld Publications.

Govindji, R., & Linley, P. A. (2007).

Strengths use, self-concordance and wellbeing: Implications for strengths coaching and coaching psychologists. International Coaching Psychology Review, 2(2), 143-153.

Kahneman, D., Diener, E., & Schwarz, N. (Eds.).(1999). Well-being: The foundations of hedonic psychology.

New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

Kaufman, S. B. Ungifted, intelligence redefined. The truth about talent, practice, creativity and the many paths to greatness.

(2013). New York: Perseus Books Group.

Moore, M., Tschannen-Moran, B. (2010). Coaching Psychology Manual.

Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Seligman, M. Felicidade autêntica.

Usando a psicologia positiva para a realização permanente. (Trad. Neuza Capelo) 2009 .Objetiva. Rio de Janeiro.

Seligman, M. E. Florescer. (Trad. Cristina Paixão Lopes) (2011).Objetiva. Rio de Janeiro.

Sheldon, K. M., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2006). How to increase and sustain positive emotion: The effects of expressing gratitude and visualizing best possible selves. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(2), 73-82.

positive neuroscience

Positive Neuroscience A paradigm shift leads to the exploration of areas not yet investigated by traditional neuroscience

P

• by marco callegaro •

ositive Psychology has been growing a lot and its interface with neuroscience has created a new field of study, the so called Positive Neuroscience, which is beginning to be recognized as an emerging field. Positive Neuroscience studies what the brain does well, focusing on valued cognitive qualities that serve to enrich society and personal life. Many Positive Neuroscience study topics overlap those from Positive Psychology itself. They, however, extend to the behavioral level, make use of brain neuroimaging techniques and explain the neurobiology that underlies the positive cognitive phenomena such as creativity, optimism and healthy aging.

The Positive Neuroscience Project of the University of Pennsylvania and John Templeton Foundation was established with generous funding in 2008

by Martin Seligman, regarded as the founder of

Positive Psychology. In 2009, the project announced the Templeton Positive Neuroscience Award to bring Neurosciences tools in a joint walk with Positive Psychology. The project received US$ 3,000,000.00 for 15 research projects in the intersection between neuroscience and Positive Psychology.

Renowned neuroscientists such as Joseph LeDoux, Michael Gazzzaniga, Antonio Damasio, Adrian Raine, among many others, are part of the projects’ Scientific Council. The topics covered in the Templeton Positive Neuroscience Awards are: Virtue, strength, and positive emotion: What are the neural bases of the cognitive and affective capacities

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positive neuroscience

A new field of

that enable virtues such as discipline, persistence, honesty, compassion, love, curiosity, social and practical intelligence, courage, creativity, and optimism?

Exceptional abilities: What is special about the brains of exceptional individuals and what can we learn from them?

Meaning and positive purpose: How does the brain enable individuals and groups to find meaning and achieve larger goals?

Decisions, values, and free will: How does the brain enable decisions based on values and how can decisionmaking be improved? What can neuroscience reveal about the nature of human freedom?

Religious belief, prayer, and meditation: How do religious and spiritual practices affect neural function and behavior?

As an example of research project developed within the positive neuroscience program we can cite a study on neural functioning of highly altruistic people, such as those who donate a kidney to a complete stranger. It has been found that the response to facial expressions of fear can predict the degree of a person’s altruism. The response to facial expressions of fear depends on the amygdala and its connections with the prefrontal cortex. The research is focused on the sensitivity of the amygdala and its connections with the prefrontal cortex which may be strengthened.

Another example of research project involves clarifying why some parents are better than others. Children raised by parents who play with them are more likely to be popular, to be generous and have higher IQs than children raised by absent fathers.

The research takes into account

the genotype, hormones and neural differences in well-cared and ill cared children raised by their parents, as well as the effects of being raised by someone who is not their parent.

The contribution of the neurohormones oxytocin and vasopressin in the brain and in behavior will be investigated.

The project shall bring a paradigm shift in neuroscience, as Martin Seligman noted: “Research has shown that positive emotions and interventions can bolster health, achievement, and resilience, and can buffer against depression and anxiety. While considerable research in neuroscience has focused on disease, dysfunction, and the harmful effects of stress and trauma, very little is known about the neural mechanisms of human flourishing. Creating this network of future leaders in positive neuroscience will change that.”

research within

the neurosciences focuses on

positive processes and states of

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brain functioning

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marco callegaro is a psychologist, master in Neuroscience and Behavior, director of Instituto Catarinense de Terapia Cognitiva (ICTC ) and Instituto Paranaense de Terapia Cognitiva (IPTC ).The author of the award-winning book Novo Inconsciente: Como a Terapia Cognitiva e as Neurociências Revolucionaram o Modelo do Processamento Mental (Artmed, 2011). He is the current president of the Associação de Psicologia Positiva para a América Latina (APPAL). www.appal.org.br (Become an associate!)

Learn more

To learn more about award winning and researches on positive neuroscience head over to the website www.posneuroscience.com

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education

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positive education A new way of educating for old demands • by Miriam Rodrigues •

W

hich one of us, as children, had parents who wanted us to be a web designer, an office waste manager or to work with robotic medicine, positive computing, or to have the status of a youtuber blogger or vlogger?

None of us. Partly because these professions did not exist at the time when many of us were kids.

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But if we asked our parents if they wanted us to be happy, the answer would certainly be “yes.”

And if we are asked, what we want most for our children, of course, the answer would be: a happy life.

I am the mother of Valentina, age 6, and Adrian, 4. I do not know what they will be professionally in the future and, by the way, I don’t know what will be the existing

education

professions in 2047, the year my oldest daughter will be my age. What I know is that they need to learn skills for well-being. Because these are the skills that will help them to build a happy life, regardless of the profession they’ll follow.

After all, no matter what age they are, I’ll always want to see them well.

Every day, like all children, they go to school to learn a lot of content in mathematics, English, Portuguese etc. But at what time do they learn in school about their character strengths? Or how to live and build positive emotions? Or to have a life of engagement and meaning? Or to challenge distorted thoughts? Or to have assertive postures? Or to see see and value the good things that happen in their daily life? Or to take stock of what is going well? Or to cultivate hope, compassion and gratitude? Or to change their pessimistic explanatory styles? Or to be optimistic? Or to be the best version of themselves?

Or to use theur personal strengths in a consistent and systematic way?

The nature of happiness and wellness should be taken seriously early on and therefore this issue should permeate and supplement the academic content. Think of the five elements of well-being: positive emotion, engagement, respect, positive relationships and accomplishment.

The “formula” of positive education, according to Seligman, would be:

Is an institution where we spend many years not worth of our efforts to implement programs that help young people thrive?

Being happy

has always been a demand, while content and professions change according to time and culture

Wellness = positive emotions + engagement + meaning + relations

Happiness can be “dissolved” in:

Each aspect can be measurable and taught.

This way we have positive education and reach the formula proposed by Seligman.

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Positive emotions - good life, fostering positive emotions in the past, present and future.

Positive character - Life with engagement.

Positive institutions - institutions with meaning.

Positive relationships - social life.

education

When exactly do children learn about their

character strengths in school?

According to Martin Seligman, there are fundamental reasons for wellness take part of the school curriculum. First there is the avalanche of depression among young people, then, not less important, there’s the fact that a greater well-being enhances learning, since the state of positive mood produces more attention and more creative and comprehensive thinking.

For Seligman, both positive or negative ways of thinking are useful when used in the right situations, however, in the day-to-day of the schools, there is little room to distinguish the right situations. There is also little room for creative thinking or even to new experiences, when traditional classes are observed.

Wellness taught in schools would be the antidote to the alarming rates of depression and violence plaguing both students and educators.

When I’m in schools ministering courses to teachers, I hear many warlike metaphors, like “We have to hold the lines!” “We are always being bombed !”, “We are at the frontline!

We are tired of fighting! “And” It’s almost an uphill battle everyday.”

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Or how to live and build positive emotions? Or to have a life of engagement and meaning?

Depression among young people

In Brazil, in Porto Alegre, state of Rio Grande do Sul, experts observed, in the general population, 526 adolescents aged 15-19. Among them there was a prevalence of 36% of suicidal ideation.

About 36% of young people with this kind of thinking also had depression.

Another 26.8% had moderate or severe hopelessness. The study was conducted by the researchers Vivian Purple Borges and Blanca Susana Guevara Werlang of the Universidade Regional Integrada do Alto Uruguai e das Missões (and Instituição Educacional São Judas Tadeu) and Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, respectively (access the study by the link http : //

dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1413-294X2006000300012 - information added to this article by the editors).

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education

Without addressing specifically to Positive Psychology, global entities that aim to think and develop guidelines for a 21st century education agree that we need to go beyond the content and also prepare students emotionally for life. The term “skills for the 21st century” however, covers a set of skills that have no consensus definitions in the academic community and among educators and education managers.

The same expression can be replaced, for example, by synonyms as “noncognitive skills, interdisciplinary skills, cross or socio-emotional”, as

the PorVir.org recognizes. Among the known definitions there are the 4Cs ,still according to the PorVir. org: “communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking. The OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development), alternatively, adopts a concept of socio-emotional skills involving the ability to achieve goals (perseverance, self-control, enthusiasm to achieve objectives), to work with others (cordiality, respect, care) and manage emotions (calm, optimism and confidence).”

Positive education is a change in the paradigm, seeing education as a means by which students and teachers can constantly discover and experience projects for a meaningful life, becoming aware of the importance of it for

nurturing wellness

To the success of positive education training and consultancy of school leaders are primordial.

They also need to know their strengths, must learn to correct their distorted thoughts, have more assertive postures and especially to experience positive emotions.

Positive education is a change in the paradigm, seeing education as a means by which students and teachers can constantly discover and experience projects for a meaningful life, becoming aware of the importance

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Emotions on the agenda

of it for nurturing wellness. This way we prepare students for the challenges of the 21st century and improve the emotional health of our teachers.

I’m hoping that my children can experience positive education, because thus I’ll know for sure they will be happy adults.

Miriam Rodrigues is a psychologist, author of Educação Emocional Positiva – Saber lidar com as emoções é uma importante lição. She holds courses and lectures implementing the theme in schools for. E-mail: contato@educacaoemocionalpositiva.com

testimonial

function versus life purpose

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A motivational testimony focusing on the best we have to offer to the world • by Cláudia Ribeiro •

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t the beginning of some of my lectures I ask the attendants what they came to do. Many gaze at me with strangeness and others with a playful look. Some, whose personal strengths are probably enthusiasm and good humor, answer quickly: “Listen to you!”, or “They’ve sent me here and I came ...”.

That’s when some questions that many have never stopped to think about come into play: “After all, what are you doing here on planet Earth?” “How will people remember you?” “What is your legacy” “What is your greatest contribution to the world?” “These reflections are as important as existence itself because they give us meaning.

According to Tal Ben-Shahar, PHD Professor of Positive Psychology chair at Harvard, it’s not enough to set goals; they must be truly meaningful. A life without purpose is a life that carries us. We subject ourselves to external conditions and abdicate being the protagonists. We live automated lives to fulfill the function written on the badge. We get up every day for more of the same and forget to wake up to do what we should do, not because it is mandatory, but rather to fulfill what will bring our essence to light.

This leads us to think that the point is not what you do but how you do it. If today you are in a function you don’t enjoy, if you go to work dragging chains, maybe it’s time to choose to fulfill your role in the world.

Easy to talk? Easy to do, since in everyday functions it’s possible to exercise a new look at your activities and decide to fill them with the best you have. Then, work becomes a mean, a way for your purpose to be accomplished and not a burden which brings some money to exchange for bills at the end of each month.

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After all,

what are you doing here

on planet Earth?

How will people remember you?

What is your

legacy

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and pass hurriedly through one of the hallways with a single focus: the training room. Suddenly, I am faced with a big smile within this 1.55 m tall body. He interrupts me gently “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

And as I have trained my seeing eyes, I’ve realized his majesty. So big he seemed to me. I was with that old familiar lateness sensation, but I couldn’t say no. And in the middle of the hallway I was tasting a coffee to recall memories much more bounded to an emotion than to an image.

So I ask: Is Mr. Silvio fulfilling his life purpose in serving coffee? I realized that his purpose transcends his function.

In those timeless minutes he left his mark on my life. He told me without a word that I should slow the pace, breathe, enjoy small things and reminded me how important it is for me to unravel the magical universe that exists in each person I meet.

And that there is always some time for a cup of coffee.

Claudia Ribeiro is a journalist, coach and facilitator.

personal file

We can leave aside the usual empty encouragements like “believe in yourself!”, “You will make it!” or “Think positive and leave your assistant position to become a CEO.” What I’m talking about is believing with planning.

Let us be more pragmatic. I am at point A and I know I will be better off and happier fulfilling my purpose if I get to the point B. What do I need to do to get there? And do it! After all, what we most commonly come across today is conformism, refusal and procrastination. It’s easy to spend our time complaining about our job, our marriage, the government, the traffic, the boss – so the list goes endlessly – or even devoting much of our energy and thinking to the ephemeral interactions, and sometimes little reflexive, from Whatsapp or Facebook.

We’ve got real courage when we decide to build our stories and experiences, when we choose to make a difference in the world and the world’s difference in us. And only putting into practice our strengths and virtues we can make our mark. Finding them is no Herculean task, as well. Even though when asked we always know what we need to improve and almost never realize the best we have in us. We built this way of seeing ourselves and others. We always seek what is broken, dirty and out of place. Addicted eyes. To find our personal treasure we must look where it’s easy to do, where there’s pleasure in doing it. No sin lies in a life filled with pleasures. Incidentally it’s after well-being that humans run tirelessly and pleasure is an emotion that is also part of that state.

I also say we don’t live solely of pleasure; the human being is much more complex than that, countless emotions inhabit us all and must be seen with a look which realizes the motivation of each of them. This is how we know each other and experience the things where we put our best.

In a company which I attend there is a gentleman named Silvio - his function is to serve coffee to customers. Being an enthusiastic, sometimes I pile it on

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Pleased to meet you, my name is Mara!

A testimonial of resilience and positivity • by Mara Laimgruber •

I

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believe that during introductions there’s nothing better than talking in the first person to facilitate a contact which we want to be close and fruitful.

I feel at ease to report intimate facts here because I count them as clear examples of the importance of the locus of control and positive emotions, principles revealed to me more clearly after the understanding of Positive Psychology.

At 23 I felt suddenly the left side of my body lose strength. A long pilgrimage to doctor’s offices started then, permeated with new symptoms and remissions. Six years later, at last, the correct diagnosis: I was officially introduced to Multiple Sclerosis, an autoimmune disease that affects the brain and spinal cord. I was told then that the disease had unknown etiology and could manifest itself through almost any neurological symptom and often evolve with the loss of physical and cognitive abilities. There was nothing to do, “Sorry”; I shall never forget! It’s important to remark that a lot has been improved since then, making the life of many afflicted by the condition normal.

What to do? My twins, that were five years old at the time, needed me!

They shouldn’t grow up surrounded

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“I was officially introduced to Multiple Sclerosis.

What to do?

My twins, that were five years old at the time,

by weeping and complaining; that would not be fair! It was this feeling that at first moved me, and, unwittingly, I began my “training”. Multiple Sclerosis was installed, and there was no remedy or control. The attitude towards it was my choice. I needed to make the best I could with the time I had, short or long term. And I did it!

Even after many ups and downs, today, most of my few sequels are imperceptible and intercurrent, which is not very usual in long term patients.

What guided me was the result of learned resilience. I started to pay more attention and value the experiences I lived. I had no idea how much that would help me … being positive is different from being idealistic. Positive people, as a rule, are realistic. They just believe that everything can end well!

Everything became clearer when I discovered Positive Psychology! I fell in love to the point of using it as a base of my coaching work. Through it, I met

They shouldn’t grow up surrounded by weeping and complaining;

that would not be fair!”

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my strengths, my skills, my talents and values ​​and learned to cope better with them. And it’s so obvious ... If you do not know who you are, how can you know the best direction to move?

Science has strengthened attitudes in me, and finally I realized its preventive nature! Positive emotions promote lasting changes and cause biochemical transformations that can generate neuroplasticity and neurogenesis, thus increasing and improving synapses, which in my case was very important for the good prognosis.

In short: know your flaws, but do not focus on them! It’s not easy though ... It is a constant exercise, just like any training. You have to kill a lion a day, but then again, who doesn’t? After all, happiness should be a process, not a result!

Mara Laimgruber is a coach from IPPC.

personal file

needed me!

In search of the perfect burger

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reading

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what is your favorite burger? Or, in better words, your way of facing life? • by Fabíola Bernardo •

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y facing the chance of sharing visions about a subject that arouses so much enthusiasm in me such as Positive Psychology, I soon realized that this task demanded a step that is very difficult to me: choosing a topic – between so many interesting ones – to approach. The very nature of this area of knowledge has helped me solve this question.

In my point of view, one of the most worthwhile aspects of Positive Psychology is the achievement of the construction of a bridge between academic knowledge, with its scientific rigor, and the public in general by the use of a comprehensible language (to the ”mere mortals”). That’s great deed, indeed! To translate scientific knowledge, proven by researches and studies that are submitted to the discipline of academy to a palatable language is something admirable.

With that in mind, I recalled a passage from the book Happier by Tal Ben-Shahar, long time professor of the Positive Psychology discipline at Harvard University,

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which illustrates very well this characteristic of the discipline. He uses a metaphor about hamburgers – that I love, by the way (both metaphors and hamburgers) – to illustrate four ways of getting on with life, and that led me to a reflection about the best way to tackle our day-to-day life, and which I share with you now.

I will not go into details about how the hamburger enters the scene, that way you become curious and have one more reason to read the book; I will only say that the author did a theoretical formulation that divides people in four archetypes, according to their behavior regarding how – and when – they expect benefits from their actions or, using the hamburger metaphor, according to the hamburger each one searches.

reading

“I will not go into details about how the hamburger

However, is it possible to grab the perfect burger? Yes, it is possible, but not all the time. The truth is that we float between the types – although, in my opinion, we tend to pick the same type, most of the , that time. The important thing is way you become to keep in mind that this is the we must search in and have hamburger our life.

The question that we have one more to make is: how can I be happy to read the book” The first type searches now and in the future? How can I for a vegetarian burger, balance what I do today with my super healthy, but with a not very tasty flavor. future objectives? And, considering that I This is the archetype of the rat racer, for it ou the need to have objectives, to have a purpose, person is always chasing a future benefit, almost to also know what my life mission is, what always in detriment of enjoying the present. The rat hamburger do I want to make? I need to racer, is never satisfied, since every time he reaches know what my talents are, my strengths, something, he starts chasing a new objective; studies my strong points – the best ingredients to get a good job, achieves a good job and then has to that I have to make my hamburger – and be promoted, and so on. think of how to use them in my day to day The second type searches for a classic junk food life. Positive Psychology shows us that by type of burger, very tasty and no healthy at all, the doing this it’s possible to have subjective one that will delight him, but that will have negative wellness experiences, in other words, consequences in the future. This is the hedonist kind, experiences of happiness. In the words he searches pleasure here and now, without worrying of Tal Ben-Shahar, to achieve long lasting much with the consequences of his acts. The hedonist happiness we have to enjoy the journey lives almost as if there is no tomorrow, what’s on the way to an objective considered important is the satisfaction now and as result there relevant. Therefore, more than look for it, is a lack of purpose in his life. we shall make our perfect hamburger!

The third type is the nihilist, which the author Fabíola Bernardo is a psychologist and coach from IPPC. contextualizes as the one gave up on life. The nihilist’s burger is neither healthy nor tasty. It does not gives the satisfaction of eating something delicious, nor the Specifications sensation of security that eating something healthy Happier – Learn will avoid future problems. Therefore the nihilist is the the Secrets to Daily one that is fixated on the past, especially in failures, and Joy and Lasting believes that trying is not worth it, because nothing Fulfillment they do will bring positive results and they don’t even Author: Tal Bentry to change that situation.

Shahar What about the forth type? Well, what if there was Publisher: McGrawa hamburger that was both tasty and healthy? That Hill Education provided a marvelous experience of flavor, although Year: 2007 (Printed with positive consequences? This is the archetype of version, audio and Kindle available happiness, which brings benefits for the present as at amazon.com) well as for the future. This is the perfect burger! freepik

enters the scene

curious

reason

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positive news

A newspaper with positive news

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It was released last September a newspaper with positive news, the World’s Best News. It is an initiative within the framework of the European Year for Development, the European Union, in cooperation with the United Nations and DANIDA (the acronym for Danish International Development Agency - Danish International Development Agency), and the involvement of more than 100 Danish NGOs and 100 private companies.

The content relates positive events in developing countries and its consequences and repercussions. The distribution of the printed version is taking place in 19 countries, in 24 different languages (not yet available in Brazil). In Portugal, the cities of Aveiro, Porto and Lisbon until the closing of MIP Mag, planned the distribution of 20,000 positive newspapers, in partnership with the Camões Institute, according to the Portuguese news website RTP. The scanned global version of the newspaper (in English and Danish) is available for download at worldsbestnews.dk, which also publishes the highlights of each issue randomly on their homepage.

In the very first edition of World’s Best News there is a scientific report showing that the world can be free of Malaria in 25 years. A report also shows that more than half of Danes believe that the world has changed for the worse in the last 20 years, whilst, however, there was a sensible reduction of child mortality, hunger and disease around the world. This in parallel with the increase in life expectancy and income per capita globally.

Editor’s Note: Here in MIP Mag you will also see positive news from Brazil and the world over the issues and on our website, MakeItPositiveMag.com This section spreads the work of the Good News Agency, wich publishes good news in English, Italian and Portuguese languages.

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positive news

World deforestation decreases

images: freepik

The mark of optimism on our brains A study published in the journal Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience has shown the relationship between anxiety and the orbitofrontal cortex in the brain. The more developed the region, which is located behind the eyes and is responsible for the integration between emotion and thought and behavior modulation, the less anxious is the individual. And what does Positive Psychology have to do with it? Well, the findings of the scientists in this same research point to optimism as a factor related to higher orbitofrontal cortex.

Researchers Sanda and Florin Dolcos, and the undergraduate student Yifan Hu of the University of Illinois, are responsible for the research. Sanda suggests that, for now, to decrease anxiety levels, we should focus on optimistic behavior. Florin explains that future studies should demonstrate how this relationship between optimism / anxiety / brain happens (if you need to first develop a positive attitude, to increase the orbitofrontal cortex and neutralize anxiety, or if acting directly on the orbitofrontal optimistic behavior is developed and anxiety neutralized). The information is from ScienceDaily.com site.

The world’s forests will continue to decline as populations keep increasing and the land of forests are converted to agriculture and other uses, but the past 25 years the rate of global deforestation fell by more than 50%, according to an FAO* study published recently.

About 129 million hectares of forest, an area the size of South Africa, has been lost since 1990, according to the most comprehensive forest review to date conducted by FAO, Global Forest Resources Assessment 2015. It was noted, however, that a larger number of forests is under protection, as countries are improving their forest management.

The FAO study covers 234 countries and territories and was presented at the World Forestry Congress this week in Durban, South Africa.

FAO Director-General, José Graziano da Silva, noted a “tendency towards encouraging the reduction of deforestation rates and carbon emissions from forests,” as well as how an improved information can generate good policy. The annual net rate of forest loss decreased from 0.18% in the early 90s to 0.08% during the period 2010-2015. *Food and Agriculture Organization

To know more: Sanda Dolcos et al. Optimism and the Brain: Trait Optimism Mediates the Protective Role of the Orbitofrontal Cortex Gray Matter Volume against Anxiety. Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, September 2015. DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsv106 A Sekiguchi, M Sugiura, Y Taki, Y Kotozaki, R Nouchi, H Takeuchi, T Araki, S Hanawa, S Nakagawa, C M Miyauchi, A Sakuma, R Kawashima. Brain structural changes as vulnerability factors and acquired signs of postearthquake stress. Molecular Psychiatry, 2012; 18 (5): 618. DOI: 10.1038/mp.2012.51

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(Source: Best News Agency * / http:// www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/326911/ icode/)

positive news

Land for rural households in Zambia

images: freepik

Dan ChurchAid (DCA), in partnership with the Zambia Land Alliance (ZLA), are testing new ways to ensure the land ownership rights for the majority of the poor rural households in Zambia, through a project that encourages traditional chiefs to issue ownership certificates. The project called “Enhancing Sustainable Livelihoods for the Poor and Marginalised Households through Land Tenure Security (SULTS),” is aimed at empowering the poor and marginalised communities to hold local leaders accountable in administration of customary land. It is co-financed by the European Union and the DCA, and implemented by ZLA in collaboration with associate partners, such as: Gwembe District Land Alliance (GDLA) and Monze District Land Alliance (MDLA).

The project is targets more than 4000 families in the districts of Gwembe, Monze and Solwezi.

(Source: Best News Agency * / https://www.danchurchaid. org/news/news/new-models-of-securing-customary-landpiloted-in-zambia)

Rich, but grateful, in order to be happy “Money does not buy happiness” is the catchphrase repeated by generations and proven by science. What’s new now in this universe is a scientific finding that reveals gratitude as factor related to higher wellness level and satisfaction with life among those who love money.

Scientist James Roberts, of Baylor University, and colleagues observed 249 college students and their materialistic behavior. The main finding confirmed the mentioned staff and previous research findings: those who associate money with happiness experienced less satisfaction with life.

This behavior associated

with the experience of positive emotions (mainly gratitude, which contrasts with materialism) resulted, however, in the different indexes.

Researchers associate a more social and less individualistic and selfcentered life, typical in individuals who practice gratitude (even if they are rich and enjoy that condition) to a greater well-being and level of satisfaction with life.

To know more: James A. Roberts, Jo-Ann Tsang, Chris Manolis. Looking for happiness in all the wrong places: The moderating role of gratitude and affect in the materialism–life satisfaction relationship. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 2015; 1 DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2015.1004553

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positive news

Africa reaches important Polio Milestone The 11 th of August marks a significant milestone for Africa in its effort to eradicate polio from the continent. A full year has passed since Africa’s last reported case caused by the wild poliovirus.

Somalia was the last country to identify a new case, which occurred on 11 th of August of 2014. While Africa has achieved an important public health milestone, the job is not yet finished. To end polio forever, all countries – both endemic and non-endemic – must strengthen routine immunization, address gaps in disease surveillance and do more to reach children who are still being missed by vaccinators.

Rotary members have played a key role in the eradication effort. They have led the way in raising funds, advocating for government support, building awareness, and mobilizing volunteers on the ground.

Through 2018, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is matching 2-to-1 every dollar that Rotary commits for polio, up to $35 million a year.

Resilience, from father to son An article published in Psychology magazine, written by Lea Walters, from Melbourne Graduate School of Education, Australia, describes the benefits of an education that comes from parents who value their own strengths. When acting similarly in relation to their children qualities, they can promote increased resilience and good stewardship of stress on their kids.

The “good stress” (such as stress caused by new situations in life or learning challenges, among other examples) favors the development of positive coping strategies problems, says Professor Walters. While the “toxic stress” (intense and long term) must be the target of the aforementioned parental behavior.

Going beyond the emotional support offered by parents to their children, valuying positive states and the qualities of the kids generates filters that modulate their emotional responses to situations, preventing the use of dodge or aggression resources against a challenge, for example, the paper says.

To reach this conclusion the author observed 103 Australian children in preschool, relating their coping strategies in simulated situations and the profile of the parents of each child. images: freepik

(Source: Best News Agency*/ https://www.rotary. org/myrotary/en/news-media/africa-reachesimportant-polio-milestone)

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Fonte: ScienceDaily.com. The complete study can be downloaded on the site www.scirp.org.

positive wiki

In this section you will see psychology concepts and definitions covered throughout the magazine. (Preparation: Team IPPC)

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Locus of control

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images: freepik

It ’s a construction that tries to explain where the source of the control of a person’s life is perceived. There are two types of locus of control: The External locus of control (when the person realizes its life to be controlled by external factors) or the internal locus of control (when the person feels as it ’s them that are in control of their life). Although people alternate between these two perceptions, they have a predominant locus of control style and in Lilian Graziano’s research on Happiness and locus of control, the researcher found a significant and positive correlation between internal locus of control and happiness. (Learn more in: ht tp://www.teses.usp.br/teses/ disponiveis/47/47131/tde-23052006164724/pt-br.php)

Flow:

The concept of flow was developed by the psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi who, by the study of the creative process, became interested in the phenomenon of intrinsic motivation. The state of flow, also called “optimal experience”, causes the individual to fully engage in the activity he/she is carrying out, employing the best of what he/she has to offer. Therefore, in times of flow, activity and subject become one.

By acting in his area of excellence, ​​ the subject experiencing flow state needs no super vision, control, or any type of external monitoring to the extent that the activity carried is intrinsically rewarding to him.

The flow can be achieved in any experiment. But there are people who achieve it in professional practice, making their work an impor tant source of gratification and, by extension, of happiness.

Today there are companies around the world interested in promoting the flow in the organizational environment, in a typical initiative in which everyone wins.

Happiness:

Starting from Aristotle’s idea of happiness (eudaimonia), as early as in the fourth century BC, Positive Psychology believes in happiness as a result of a virtuous life. It doesn’t start from the idea that we should only have positive occurrences in life to consider ourselves happy, but rather to put all the moments we live in the balance and have a positive perception of life, which includes experiencing positive emotions, low levels of negative moods and high satisfaction in relation to life.

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positive wiki

Character Strenghts

Starting from the concept of happiness as a result of a virtuous life, the researchers studied various codes of conduct of Eastern and Western culture, such as the Bible, the Koran, bushido, etc, looking for common virtues in all of them. Thus they reached six virtues: wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance and transcendence. The next step arose from the question: What traits a human being should have to conquer such virtues? The researchers reached, therefore, the 24 features, which they have called character strenghts. In this sense, the character strengths are:

images: freepik

Creativity Curiosity Judgment Love of learning Perspective Bravery Perseverance Honesty Zest Love Kindness Social Intelligence

Teamwork Fairness Leadership Forgiveness Modesty & Humility Prudence Self-regulation Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence Gratitude Hope Humor Spirituality

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“T

he curiosity that sparks a question, the request for a cuddle on the lap, a funny sentence , a simple smile. Each of these actions in my children represents a small dose of wellness. These and other small doses on daily life build my happiness !”

Otavio Marques, Biologist

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