What is Positive Psychotherapy? — Elana Hubert

Positive psychologists are ‘merely’ saying that the psychology of the past sixty years is incomplete. But as simple as this proposal sounds, it demands a sea change in perspective. Psychologists interested in promoting human potential need to start with different assumptions and to pose different questions from their peers who assume a disease model. – Peterson, 2002, p. 1

How does a therapist use Positive Psychology with their clients? Positive Psychotherapy (PPT) described by Dr. Tayyab Rashid (2015) is one of the many approaches informed by the principles of Positive Psychology. 

Positive Psychology “takes a both/and approach to flourishing” and human well-being (Zetzer, 2022; Hardy & Bobes, 2017). Similarly, PPT takes a balanced view of a client’s complex experience–integrating “symptoms with strengths, resources with risks, weaknesses with values, and hopes with regrets,” Rashid, 2015, p. 25.

Elana Hubert (she/her) is a 2nd year doctoral student in Counseling Psychology at UCSB, working with Dr. Melissa Morgan. She has expereince working as an advocate for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence and on community mural-making and public health programming in New York. Her current research interests explore the idea of "meaning making," particularly as it relates to understanding and making sense of immigration, collective memory, and cultural narrative. She is a Graduate Research Assistant with the Carol Ackerman Positive Psychology Clinic.

References

Tayyab Rashid (2015) Positive psychotherapy: A strength-based approach, The Journal of Positive Psychology, 10:1, 25-40, DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2014.920411

Peterson, C. Special Seminar in Psychology: Positive Psychology. Fall 2006. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Positive Psychology Center, Course Syllabi for Teachers.

Norcross, J. C. (Ed.) (2002). Psychotherapy relationships that work: Therapist contributions and responsiveness to patient needs. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.