Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Human Strengths [Paperback]

Alan Carr (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1583919910 | ISBN-13: 978-1583919910 | Publication Date: May 20, 2004

What is positive psychology?

Positive psychology is concerned with the enhancement of happiness and well being, involving the scientific study of the role of personal strengths and positive social systems in the promotion of optimal well-being. The central themes of positive psychology, including Happiness, Hope, Creativity and Wisdom, are all investigated in this book in the context of their possible applications in clinical practise.

Positive Psychology is unique in offering an accessible introduction to this emerging field of clinical psychology. It covers:
* available resources including websites and test forms
* methods of measurement
* a critique of available research
* recommendations for further reading.

Positive Psychology will prove a valuable resource for psychology students and lecturers who will benefit from the learning objectives and research stimuli included in each chapter. It will also be of great interest to those involved in training in related areas such as social work, counselling and psychotherapy.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Carr's Positive Psychology is a magisterial text, an enormously informative and inclusive synthesis of this new branch of science. It is a model of a contemporary textbook, with references to websites, useful copies of test forms, and provocative questions at the end of chapters. The positive psychology movement is fortunate to rate such an excellent textbook so soon after its inception. - Mihaly Csikszentmihaly, Claremont Graduate University

This book does more than provide a thorough review of the extant research in positive psychology - it outlines available resources, methods of measurement, offers a critique of available research and makes recommendations for further reading and research. Alan Carr's background in systemic psychotherapy and critical psychology enables him to add theoretical richness to the field of positive psychology by integrating contextual and relational perspectives with this inherently individualistic approach. - Arlene Vetere, University of East London

About the Author

Alan Carr is the director of the doctoral training programme in clinical psychology at University College Dublin and Consultant Marital and Family Therapist at the Clanwilliam Institute for Marital and Family Therapy in Dublin. His previous publications include The Handbook of Child and Adolescent Psychology: A Contextual Approach (Routledge 1999), What works with Children and Adolescents? A Critical Review of Psychological Interventions with Children, Adolescents and their Families (Routledge 2000) and Prevention: What Works With Children and Adolescents? A Critical Review of Psychological Prevention Programmes for Children, Adolescents and their Families (Routledge 2002).

Product Details

• Paperback: 408 pages
• Publisher: Routledge (May 20, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1583919910
• ISBN-13: 978-1583919910
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,178,188 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Positive Psychology, April 19, 2008

By 

Robert W. Reasoner - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Human Strengths (Paperback)

This book is long overdue. It provides a great summary of the research related to happiness, motivation, hope and optimism, and self-esteem. It is perhaps best used as a reference for a college course, but it provides an accurate reflection of research and theory in this new field of psychology.

2.0 out of 5 stars Not a textbook I would use again, December 31, 2011

By 

V. Fruiht (CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Human Strengths (Paperback)

My professors chose this as one of the texts for a graduate level course in Positive Psychology one semester and have since stopped using it. The book was easy to read, but not very applicable to the true intent of positive psychology research, despite it's name. Moreover, nearly every example was clinical, and focused on disorder. This may be a useful book to "ease" clinically minded students into the idea of positive psychology and does offer a table of contents that covers most of the important bases if you are looking to learn a little more about positive psych, but I certainly wouldn't recommend it to serve as an introduction, or even supplemental higher level reading in positive psych for most courses. Chapters are lacking in content and tend to stray into more clinical topics rather than discuss what the chapter title promises. If you're looking for a positive psych text for students check out the Primer by Peterson or the big Snyder & Lopez text.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Positive Psychology, October 15, 2008

By 

Georgia Feiste "collaborativetransitions.com" (Lincoln, NE) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Human Strengths (Paperback)

A fairly technical book wrapped around the science of happiness, the measurement of happiness, and how that connects to a variety of human character strengths and virtues. Interesting reading for the psychologist that wants to break out of the rut of diagnostic and illness theory. My question is whether we truly believe we have a set point for happiness, or if we can choose to be happy.