Positive Psychology (PSY353)

PSY353 Positive Psychology provides students with an introductory overview of the science of well-being and will guide students to think about how individuals can live a good life through the lens of social psychological research on well-being. What are the key components of living a good life? Is happiness a choice? How are various factors like one’s personality, one’s wealth, one’s culture, one’s relationships, and one’s day-to-day experiences linked to one’s well-being? Are there ways for us to improve our well-being? This course will explore these questions and will guide students to gain a deeper appreciation of the scientific approach to well-being. Through this course, students will also reflect on how they can apply positive psychology to better understand and improve their own well-being as well as the well-being of people around them.

• Theories of positive psychology
• Emotions and well-being
• Positive psychology interventions
• Personality and the self
• Money and well-being
• Optimism and pessimism
• Well-being in Singapore and other countries
• Positive relationships
• Optimal experiences
• Mindfulness
• Virtues in positive psychology
• Applying positive psychology

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the key components of well-being based on social psychological research and theories.
• Analyse how various factors may either enhance or undermine well-being.
• Evaluate the strengths and limitations of positive psychology theories and interventions.
• Apply positive psychology theories to your own lives.
• Appraise a person’s well-being levels and identify the factors influencing their well-being
• Design programmes aimed at improving well-being by integrating diverse theories and findings from positive psychology
• Propose recommendations on how limitations or challenges to applying positive psychology can be overcome.