Positive Psychological Interventions: An Overview

Happiness pursues via numerous pathways: through sensory experiences, using savoring through social interactions, using active-constructive responding and gratitude; through cognitive experiences, using optimism activities. This chapter examines the theories and research findings that serve as a foundation to the mechanism underlining Positive Psychological Interventions (PPIs). PPIs can be divided into seven main categories, namely savoring, gratitude, kindness, empathy, optimism, strengths, and meaning. The chapter also discusses the different types of activities that fall under the PPI umbrella. In addition to providing a useful adjunct to standard treatments in cases of clinical disorders, PPIs have implications when it comes to physical health related clinical practice as well. Although PPIs have been shown to be effective and easy to administer, there are certain concerns and limitations as well. They range from concerns regarding motivation and personal fit to broader issues such as valuing happiness and cultural differences.