What can Positive Psychology tell us about Compassion and Altruism?

 Martin (Marty) Seligman  1999 APA Presidential Address  From good to great  From psychopathology to strengths  The Templeton Foundation  Sea Ranch meeting  Positive Psychology Degree  Introduce Positive Psychology course  Connect with Researchers  Psi Chi, 2002 : Bob Emmons on Gratitude

People during and after peak-experiences* characteristically feel lucky, fortunate, graced. A common reaction is ‘I don’t deserve this.’ A common consequence is a feeling of gratitude, in religious persons, to their God, in others, to fate or to nature or to just good fortune…This can go over into worship, giving thanks, adoring, giving praise, oblation, and other reactions which fit very easily into orthodox religious frameworks” ( Religions, Values, and Peak Experiences, 1964, 67-68) * transcendent moments of pure joy and elation

“When the second plane hit the south tower of the World Trade Center, I had just stepped out of an elevator onto the 44 th floor. Dust and rubble burst out of the elevator shafts and stairways. There was a lot of panic. I clung to the need to see and feel God’s love. The descent down the stairwells was orderly and efficient. So many people were actively expressing love for one another—helping them, calming their fears, embracing and comforting them. It sounds strange, but one of my abiding impressions was how much there was to be grateful for, and how many people to be grateful to…things got worse for a time, when the towers collapsed I was a block away…I was able to keep somewhat focused on the need to love and be grateful”

 an affirmation of the goodness in our life and the recognition that the sources of this goodness lie at least partially outside the self.  a sense of joy and thankfulness in response to receiving a gift.

201 students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions  The gratitude group: wrote down up to 5 things in their lives for which they were grateful or thankful each week  The hassles group: wrote down up to 5 hassles or complaints each week  The neutral (events) group: wrote down up to 5 major events and circumstances that impacted them each week Participants kept weekly logs of their moods, life appraisals, physical symptoms, and health behaviors for 10 weeks

 Hard to find parking  Messy kitchen no one will clean  Finances depleting quickly  Having a horrible test in health psychology  Rude customers on Sunday morning  Stupid people driving  Doing favor for friend who didn’t appreciate it

 Waking up this morning  Generosity of friends  The warmth of family  To God for giving me determination  Thankful for wonderful parents  That I have learned all that I have learned  To the Lord for just another day  Grateful to the Rolling Stones

Relative to the other two groups the Gratitude Group:  felt better (delighted vs. terrible) about their lives as a whole  were more optimistic about the upcoming week  reported fewer physical complaints

McCullough, Kilpatrick, Emmons and Larson (2001)  Gratitude motivates moral behavior  Receiving expressions of gratitude stimulates the beneficiaries (recipients of gratitude) to “behave pro-socially in the future.”  Reciprocity Norm…e.g. Christmas Cards  Later research has documented that recipients of gratitude are more likely to give… even to a third party.

Relative to control groups, the group which felt/expressed Gratitude reported :  Greater positive moods (experiencing happiness in the moment), although no difference in negative moods  Offering others more emotional support or help with a personal problem  Those who knew the participants well rated the participants in the gratitude group as more helpful than those in the other groups.

 At end of first class meeting, students randomly assigned to one of two groups  Gratitude: think back over the last week and write 5 things you were grateful for  Life Events: think back over the last week and write 5 things that happened to you  Then asked to rate their (1) positive and negative moods, (2) expectations for the upcoming week and (3) feelings about their life in general and (4) a brief Compassion Scale

 Positive & Negative Affect in the present moment (PANAS, Watson & Clark, 1988)..e.g. interested, sad, excited, alert, calm  What are your expectations for the upcoming week? pessimistic………………………………optimistic  How do you feel about your life as a whole? terrible……………………………………delighted

 When I hear about someone (a stranger) going through a difficult time, I feel a great deal of compassion for him or her.  I tend to feel compassion for people, even though I do not know them  One of the activities that provide me with the most meaning to my life is helping others in the world when they need help  I would rather engage in activities that help others even though they are strangers, than engage in actions that would help me.  I often have tender feelings toward people (strangers) when they seem to be in need.

 Gratitude Score as check on whether randomly assisgning students to write gratitudes or life events for the week had been successful in creating different levels of gratitude?  Gratitude composite score:  Grateful, thankful, and appreciative

 Examples of “Life Events:”  Being proposed to  Won $50 on lottery scratcher  Decided to leave a surprise snack for a co-worker  Realized I aced an assignment  My husband cuddled me unexpectedly  Perhaps taking a positive psychology course encouraged students to focus on positive events

 Use students in other classes  Include 3 groups:  Gratitudes  Hassles  Life events  Have them write daily for an entire week

 “Counting your blessings”: journaling, prayer, savoring life’s joys, disputing negative beliefs  Expressing gratitude to others: thank you notes, Gratitude letters (the Gratitude Visit), changing conversations  Expressing appreciation for others: giving concrete examples of how they show their strengths  Random acts of Kindness

 Powerful exercise, designed by Seligman, that I’ve been using for years  Optional Assignment:  Write a letter expressing your gratitude to someone you have never fully expressed gratitude  Make an appointment and read the letter to them  Write up the experience, answering specific questions –very emotional