Even in seemingly opposed theoretical schools, then, the development of psychology during the twentieth century was leading inevitably towards positive psychology along several different channels (Sandage & Hill 2001). For decades, Robert Sternberg has been a major luminary in the realm of psychology, and though his most prominent theoretical contributions have been in the area of intelligence testing, measurement, and definition, his overarching approach to psychology can also be seen as having a largely humanist bent (Sternberg 2001; Salovey & Mayer 2002)
The other way around "positive emotions promote discovery of novel and creative actions, ideas and social bonds, which in turn build that individual's personal resources, ranging from physical and intellectual resources, to social and psychological resources." (Fredrickson) This is just another argument which supports the belief according to which good, positive thoughts will influence not only our mood, the quality of our actions and the quality of our health as well
And correlations (between, say, happiness and health) are not causations." (Shermer) Perception is another thing that must be brought into discussion
It was established that couples who had premarital education were less likely to experience marital problems. Marriage therapy was also established to be a strong and effective form of marriage intervention (Doss, 2010)
The use of random sampling could have posed generalization errors because the conclusions were based on probability. The study however exposed the use of PREPARE as a viable technique in predicting marriage success (Fowers & Olson, 1986)
The major flaw however was that the study didn't establish that the couples were married and could therefore have incorporated the input of couples who were in a short-term relationship. The results could however be beneficial in understanding marriage relationships and conflicts (Laurenceau, 2010)
The research study was qualitative in nature but could be flawed because respondents' claims couldn't be verified. Out of the findings, it could therefore be confirmed that positive psychology could be used in marriage therapy as a tool to make couples experience marital happiness all over again (Martin, 2005)
The major set back to this study was the use of probability to summarize the data. The report was however based on a quantitative analysis (Mishra, 2009)
There was however no way to verify the data availed by respondents. The study was quantitative in nature and could be used in understanding the underlying personality background of partners in marriage communication (Sanford, 2010)
It was however established that couples who hailed from divorced families were twice as likely to experience divorce unlike their counter parts from intact families. This report could be used in comprehending divorce as a factor in marriage conflict (Schwartz, 2010)
The purpose of the study was therefore to determine the long-term effect of marriage therapy on the couples. The research study was qualitative and used statistical techniques to compile data which made the study vulnerable to generalization errors of research (Snyder, 1991)
A further analysis showed that most couples who experienced marital problems came from couples whom at least one of the partners hailed from a divorced family. The study was qualitative in nature but proof couldn't be established on the responses from those in attendance (Walker, 2001)
Consistent with the imperatives underlying the present research, the source by McConnell & Sim confirms the value of SFT as a way of preempting the development or sustaining of relationship pathologies into adulthood. The article describes this approach to counseling the "treatment of choice when children's problems appear to develop from continued family conflict or family avoidance of problems' (Hodges, 1986)" (McConnell & Sim, p
It involves the study of contentment with the past, present happiness, and hope for the future, as well as strengths that foster better communities to live in. The good life is as genuine as what is bad, is not the absence of what is problematic, and requires its own explanation (Peterson, 2008)
It is desirable for adults in attachment relationships to be available and always response to the other partner's needs (Fraley). Also the following attachment styles are relevant to this paper: a) secure attachment (trusting, long-term relationships have secure attachments); b) ambivalent attachment (reluctance to get too close to another adult); c) avoidant attachment (this means there is reluctance to become intimate or share); and d) disorganized attachment (self-explanatory) (Cherry, 2010)
In the peer-reviewed American Journal of Family Therapy the authors report on a study involving fifty-one Israeli couples who were married for at least 40 years. They were given questionnaires with itemized questions about all aspects of their marriages and "global questions about their marital satisfaction" (Cohen, et al
Positive Psychology / Positive Relationships Marriage and Well-Being In the book, Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness and Flourishing, 2nd Edition, the authors explain that "…frequent findings in the literature on subjective well-being" reveals that there is a strong link between "marriage and self-reported happiness and life satisfaction" (Compton, et al
Adult Attachment Styles John Bowlby explains that adult romantic relationships in a real way emulate the attachment patterns that children experience with their parents. A responsive partner should have the same attraction to his or her partner -- and hence, experience a powerful sense of attachment -- that a child has towards the mother (or parents) (Fraley)
That said, Compton adds that the effect that marriage has on well-being "…is stronger for men than for women" -- and while single men are not as happy as women that are single, married men are "…as happy or happier than married women" (103). Psychology professor Howard Markman and colleagues explain that a "…great and happy marriage" has more power to "enhance your life" than almost anything else (Markman, et al
It is not a step-by-step instructional guide to helping a marriage flourish, but Seligman, who is viewed as one of the founders of positive psychology, uses approaches to optimism, motivation, and positive thinking to help the reader understand what it means to flourish as a human being. What is it the each person on the planet has that helps that person to flourish (to cultivate one's greatest talents; to build "…deep, lasting relationships with others" (Seligman, 2011)