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Positive psychology and business organizations
revealed six major factors of this ‘Magic of MAPP’, including being ‘called’ towards this profession, openness to personal transformation, experience of fun or positive emotions, intense intellectual stimulation and rigour, connectedness with others and being a part of something larger (or larger meaning). With the projected rapid growth of postgraduate programmes in Argentina, Australia, Italy and other countries, further research will be needed to establish if a similar phenomenon would occur. With governments around the world taking an active interest in children’s wellbeing, availability of research and science in positive psychology and a multitude of initiatives, positive education is set for a positive future. Nevertheless, it is important to recognize that we are still at the very beginning of the journey. For these programmes and interventions to succeed, active research needs to continue.
Positive psychology and business organizations
P
ositive organizing is the term used to describe the links between positive psychology and organizational theory, ‘in general terms, it refers to the generative dynamics in and of the organizations that enable individuals, groups and organizations as a whole to flourish (Fredrickson and Dutton, 2008: 1). Positive organization scholarship regards organizations as macro contexts that shape positive states and positive outcomes for individuals, groups and whole organizations (Cameron et al., as cited in Fredrickson and Dutton, 2008: 1). Positive organizational behaviours is a vein of this work that focuses more narrowly on developed positive psychological states that enhance human performance. In 2004, Jane Henry proposed several practices of positive organizations including: ■
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Job variety: employers can offer the opportunity to try out another area/skill of the job in order to engage their workers. Intrinsic motivation: as employers move away from setting external rewards, organizations can enhance intrinsic motivation by increasing their employees’ autonomy (flexible working time), relatedness (social groups, networking) and competence (allowing employees to shadow, attend development courses). Confidence: organizations recognize the importance of confidence and therefore help target confidence levels within their employees. Creativity: positive organizations have an open ethos and encourage creative thinking. Strengths work: the organization can use a strengths-based approach to their staff development plans, rather than fixating on weaknesses. Team building: the organization invests in new teams and develops old teams through team-building weekends or exercises. Metaperspective: the organization maintains a balanced perspective with regards to strengths and competencies; they can be either positive or negative.
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