Second-wave positive psychology

Second-wave positive psychology (PP 2.0) is a therapeutic approach in psychology that attempts to bring out the best in individuals and society by incorporating the dark side of human existence through the dialectical principles of yin and yang.Ivtzan, I., Lomas, T., Hefferon, K., & Worth, P. (2015). Second wave positive psychology: Embracing the dark side of life. London, UK: Routledge.Wong, P. T. P. (2011). Positive psychology 2.0: Towards a balanced interactive model of the good life. Canadian Psychology, 52(2), 69-81.Wong, P. T. P. (2015). What is second wave positive psychology and why is it necessary? Dr. Paul T. P. Wong. Retrieved from http://www.drpaulwong.com/what-is-second-wave-positive-psychology-and-why-is-it-necessary/Wong, P. T. P. (2016, July). PP2.0 Summit explores the new vistas of second wave positive psychology: How to embrace the dark side to make life better. Positive Living Newsletter. Retrieved from http://www.drpaulwong.com/inpm-presidents-report-july-2016/ZWong, P. T. P., & Roy, S. (in press). Critique of positive psychology and positive psychology interventions. In N. J. L. Brown, T. Lomas, & F. J. Eiroá-Orosa (Eds.), The Routledge international handbook of critical positive psychology. London, UK: Routledge. This represents a distinct shift from focusing on individual happiness and success to the dual visionWong, P. T. P. (2012). From logotherapy to meaning-centered counseling and therapy. In P. T. P. Wong (Ed.), The human quest for meaning: Theories, research, and applications (2nd ed., pp. 619-647). New York, NY: Routledge. of individual well-being and collective humanity.Wong, P. T. P. (2007). Introduction: A quiet positive revolution. In P. T. P. Wong, L. C. J. Wong, M. J. McDonald, & D. W. Klaassen (Eds.), The positive psychology of meaning and spirituality: Selected papers from meaning conferences (pp. 1-8). Abbotsford, BC: INPM Press.Wong, P. T. P. (in press). Meaning-centered approach to research and therapy, second wave positive psychology, and the future of humanistic psychology. The Humanistic Psychologist. PP 2.0 is more about bringing out the "better angels of our nature"Pinker, S. (2011). The better angels of our nature: Why violence has declined. New York, NY: Penguin Books. than achieving optimal happiness or personal success. The approach posits that empathy, compassion, reason, justice, and self-transcendence will improve humans, both individually and collectively. PP 2.0 centers around the universal human capacity for meaning-seeking and meaning-makingWong, P. T. P. (2015, December). The meaning hypothesis of living a good life: Virtue, happiness, and meaning. Paper presented at the research working group meeting for Virtue, Happiness, and the Meaning of Life Project, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina. (Funded by the John Templeton Foundation) in achieving optimal human functioning under both desirable and undesirable conditions.Wong, P. T. P., Ivtzan, I., & Lomas, T. (2016). Good work: A meaning-centred approach. In L. G. Oades, M. F. Steger, A. Delle Fave, & J. Passmore (Eds.), The Wiley Blackwell handbook of the psychology of positivity and strengths-based approaches at work (pp. 0-0). West Sussex, UK: Wiley Blackwell. This emerging movement is a response to perceived problems of what some have called "positive psychology as usual".

Limitations of positive psychology Positive psychology "as usual" has been presented as the branch of psychology that uses scientific understanding and effective intervention to aid in the achievement of a satisfactory life, rather than treating mental illness. The focus of positive psychology is on personal growth rather than on pathology.It has been argued that this binary, dichotomous view has fueled positive psychology's success and decline. The single-minded focus on positivity has resulted in persistent backlash (e.g., Frawley, 2015 for a recent review).Frawley, A. (2015). Happiness research: A review of critiques. Sociology Compass 9(1), 62-77. The following criticisms have been leveled against positive psychology by researchers both outside of and within the positive psychology community. These include the "tyranny" of positivity and the lack of balance between positives and negatives;Held, B. S. (2004). The negative side of positive psychology. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 44(1), 9-46. Kashdan, T., & Biswas-Diener, R. (2014). The upside of your dark side: Why being your whole self—not just your "good" self—drives success and fulfillment. New York, NY: Plume.  failing to cover the entire spectrum of human experiences;Linley, P. A., Joseph, S., Harrington, S. & Wood, A. M. (2006). Positive psychology: Past, present, and (possible) future. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 1(1), 3-16. failing to recognize the importance of contextual variables;McNulty, J. K., & Fincham, F. D. (2012). Beyond positive psychology? Toward a contextual view of psychological processes and well-being. American Psychologist, 67(2), 101. and assuming that the Western individualistic culture represents the universal human experience.Chang, E. C., Downey, C. A., Hirsch, J. K., & Lin, N. J. (2016). Positive psychology in racial and ethnic groups: Theory, research, and practice. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.Wong, P. T. P. (2013). Positive psychology. In K. Keith (Ed.), Encyclopedia of cross-cultural psychology (pp. 1021-1026). Oxford, UK: Wiley Blackwell. As a result, various positive psychologists have proposed the need for a broader perspective.Lomas, T., & Ivtzan, I. (2015). Second wave positive psychology: Exploring the positive–negative dialectics of wellbeing. Journal of Happiness Studies, 17(4), 1753–1768. Wood, A. M., & Joseph, S. (2010). The absence of positive psychological (eudemonic) well-being as a risk factor for depression: A ten year cohort study. Journal of Affective Disorders, 122(3), 213-217.

Existential positive psychology Paul Wong has argued for integrating positive psychology with existential psychology, resulting in "existential positive psychology" (EPP).Wong, P. T. P. (2009). Existential positive psychology. In S. Lopez (Ed.), Encyclopedia of positive psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 361-368). Oxford, UK: Wiley Blackwell.Wong, P. T. P. (2010). What is existential positive psychology? International Journal of Existential Psychology and Psychotherapy, 3(1), 1-10. This approach differs significantly from positive psychology "as usual" regarding epistemology and content.

EPP takes a pluralistic and holistic approach to research. It is open to insights and wisdom from both the East and the West and research findings from all sources regardless of the paradigm of truth claims. In terms of content, it explores both people's existential anxietiesYalom, I. D. (2008). Staring at the sun: Overcoming the terror of death. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. and their ultimate concerns.Emmons, R. A. (1999). The psychology of ultimate concerns: Motivation and spirituality in personality. New York, NY: Guilford Press. Thus, EPP contributes to a broader understanding of human experiences.

Both existential philosophers and psychologists see life as a series of paradoxes, predicaments, and problems. From this existential perspective,Wong, P. T. P. (in press). Existential theoretical framework. In A. Wenzel (Ed.), The SAGE encyclopedia of abnormal and clinical psychology. New York, NY: Sage. life is also full of striving and sense-making, tragedies, and triumphs. The dynamic interplay between good and evil, negatives and positives, is one of the hallmarks of EPP. Positives cannot exist apart from negatives, and authentic happiness grows from pain and suffering. This paradoxical view reflects Albert Camus' insight that "there is no joy of life without despair" (p. 56)Camus, A. (1968). Lyrical and critical essays (E. C. Kennedy, Trans.). New York: Knopf. and Rollo May's observation that "the ultimate paradox is that negation becomes affirmation" (p. 164).May, R. (1981). Freedom and destiny. New York, NY: Norton.

It may be argued that positive psychology is intrinsically existential because it is concerned with such fundamental questions about human existence as: What is the good life? What makes life worth living? How can one find happiness? Positive psychology research on these existential issues without taking into account the existential literature inevitably leads to superficiality or mischaracterization.Brown, N. J. L., & Wong, P. T. P. (2015). Questionable measures are pretty meaningless: Comment on Heintzelman and King (2014). American Psychologist, 70(6), 571-573.

A comprehensive positive psychology cannot be developed without taking into account the reality of death, the only certainty for all living organisms. However, human beings alone are burdened with the cognitive capacity to be aware of their own mortality and to fear what may follow after one's own demise.Yalom, I. D. (1980). Existential therapy. New York, NY: Basic Books. However, death awareness may be essential to meaningful living; "though the physicality of death destroys us, the idea of death saves us" (p. 7). Thus, awareness of our finality is indeed an important motivational factor for us to do something meaningful and significant in our lives.

Therefore, EPP advocates that the proper context of studying well-being and the meaningful life is the reality of suffering and death. Researchers who share this view include Bretherton and Ørner,Bretherton, R. and Ørner, R. J. (2004) Positive psychology and psychotherapy: An existential approach. P. A. Linley & S. Joseph (Eds.), Positive psychology in practice (pp. 420-430). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Schneider,Schneider, K. J. (2010, November 29). Toward a humanistic positive psychology: Why can't we just get along? Psychology Today. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/awakening-awe/201011/toward-humanistic-positive-psychology-why-cant-we-just-get-along and Taheny.Taheny, M. (2015, May 4). Living existential positive psychology. New Existentialists: Saybrook University. Retrieved from http://www.saybrook.edu/newexistentialists/posts/05-04-15/

Recently, positive psychologists have recognized that positive psychology is rooted in Humanistic psychology, but in practice, it continues to distance itself from its heritage because of the alleged lack of scientific research in humanistic psychology.Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5-14. Waterman, A. S. (2013). The humanistic-positive psychology divide: Contrasts in philosophical foundations. American Psychologist, 68, 124-133. A mature positive psychology needs to return to its existential-humanistic roots because it can both broaden and deepen positive psychology.

Components of PP 2.0 Paul Wong extends EPP to second-wave positive psychology (PP 2.0) by formally incorporating the dialectical principles of Chinese psychology,Wong, P. T. P. (2009). Chinese positive psychology. In S. J. Lopez (Ed.), Encyclopedia of positive psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 148-156). Oxford, UK: Wiley Blackwell. the bio-behavioral dual-system model of adaptation,Wong, P. T. P. (2012). Toward a dual-systems model of what makes life worth living. In P. T. P. Wong (Ed.), The human quest for meaning: Theories, research, and applications (2nd ed., pp. 3-22). New York, NY: Routledge. and cross-cultural positive psychology. Thus, PP 2.0 provides a big tent that allows for multiple indigenous positive psychologies and a much broader list of variables that contribute to well-being and flourishing.