Strengthening the Strong. Chapter 7 Flourish

In Chapter Seven Seligman outlines one the boldest, grandest studies ever undertaken. Truth is, it was not (or maybe is not) being undertaken as an experiment. The chapter tells of the US Army’s use of Seligman and positive psychology to try to make the entire force into a resilient, healthier mega-organization. It can be considered an experiment for two reasons: first because it is the first time such a thing has ever been attempted, and more importantly, because there will be a huge amount of data collected that can keep social scientists busy for a few decades.

The real significance of this experiment, nay, project, is that it has the potential to revolutionize not only the army, but all of healthcare. Since the army is large enough to have significant influence on the rest of society, if people come through a program where PTSD is significantly lowered, and marital happiness is significantly increased, there will be a ripple effect across the entire society. It might take a few decades (as did racial equality) to move from the military to civilian life, but it is bound to happen.

The army program for resilience and positive psychology consists of two parts. The first is a Global Assessment Tool (GAT) and the second is a course that all soldiers are required to take.

The Global Assessment Tool includes an overall satisfaction scale plus five specific scales. Those are: Strengths, Emotional Fitness, Social Fitness, Spiritual Fitness, and Family Fitness. These scales are linked with each soldiers’ records, and there must be more than a million individuals in the data base by now. The possibilities are staggering. Phenomenal. But there are simple, now verified, ideas that can be developed into life saving programs. For instance, there is now hard data that as emotional fitness increases, both general health and the incidence of PTSD decline. Since this will save lives and millions of $$$$, the government should be willing to invest in it. The army is already investing in these programs, and we can hope that that ripple effect will flow through the rest of society.

The course component is actually an on-line course that consists of four modules: Emotional Fitness module, Family Fitness module, Social Fitness module, and Spiritual Fitness module. It takes an organization to develop and implement such a grand program. It was developed by the best of the best. The leading experts in every field were recruited by the army to put together this comprehensive training that is intended to increase each and every soldier’s resilience. Realistically, the military is expecting long, hard, relentless wars in the near future. Terrorism works by breaking down the enemy’s resistance, not by just killing off a lot of troops. Wars of attrition go on forever (almost.) But that is what is expected in the near future. So the goal is to train the troops with the skills they need to survive.

The Emotional Fitness module has a goal to get the soldiers in touch with their own emotions and, at the same time, give them tools to use their emotions in an efficient manner. Good thing. Being a soldier is one of the most emotional jobs in existence, and for too long the philosophy has been to ignore or repress those emotions (except at certain unavoidable times.)  Seligman gives some examples that I really enjoyed.

• Admiration: occurs when you think someone displayed great skill or talent. It helps you focus on learning from that person.
• Joy: occurs when you get or are getting something you desire. It alerts you to opportunities for new experiences.
• Pride: tells you that you, yourself, have done or achieved some culturally valued skill or task. While too much is considered negative, when use correctly, it is a catalyst for future achievement.
• Gratitude: you think that someone has shown that he or she cares about you. Assists in constructing positive relationships.

The Family Fitness module is a new type of concept for the army. In today’s world, the soldiers are in daily contact with their families back home. That means that they participate not only in the joys, but also the problems and crises. It has been shown that a marital riff is a strong predictor of poor performance, which in the army can be deadly. Also, it is a precursor for suicides in the army.  The need and benefits are obvious.

The Social Fitness module is more traditional military. It increases the group identity, which has always been a backbone of the military. But it can always be strengthened, and certainly needs attention when the other aspect of wellness are being worked on in order that there won’t be negative consequences to the group psyche. There is a wonderful finding in this section concerning the contagion of emotion. Using data from the famous Framingham study of 5,000 residents, the psychologists looked at how negative and positive emotions clustered geographically throughout the city. They found that if a family or individual was depressed it is likely that the neighbors also had negative emotions. But much more significant, it was true also for happiness. If there was a node of happiness, the neighbors were also more likely to be happy. But that’s not all. The happiness factor was stronger than the negative one. Happiness is more contagious than depression.

The last module is the Spiritual Fitness module. As Americans we pride ourselves as being dedicated to the ideals of freedom much more than allegiance to a king or ruler. There is a moral or spiritual ideal that the army strives for. It allows for revelations of immoralities such as the My Lai massacre or the Abu Ghraib debacle. In addition, this module helps the soldiers learn that people are very different one from each other. Hopefully, with this module the learners will understand that it is possible and desirable to accept other people’s views without giving up on their own.

Let’s pray for the ripples.

The Dirty Little Secret of Drugs and Therapy

Chapter three is extremely exciting for me. In this chapter Seligman confirms some ideas that I have had for years. In a sense I did not need his confirmation since I have been spouting them regardless of affirmation from the great of academic psychology. But we see here that Martin Seligman is also championing ideas that make him pretty much of an outcast in the greatest of ivory towers.

His section on cure versus relief outlines the biggest problem with clinical psychology today. He notes that in the clinical world of psychopathology there is no interest in curing the pathology, merely relieving the disturbing symptoms. I have used the sore throat analogy. If you go to a doctor with a sore throat, she can tell you that you have a sore throat and you can take a Cepacol. Thanks, doc. I really needed that. Or she can do a test and find that you have a strep throat and prescribe an antibiotic. Now that’s more like it! We now cure the disease by killing the pathogen (bug). The first reaction was what we get in psychiatry. Partially because the DSM is all about symptoms, partially because drugs work on symptoms, and mostly because academic psychology has not looked for ways of real cure.

This last reason is where Seligman sheds the most light for me. From his perspective, being privy to the biggest of the big in psychology he relates how psychology strove to imitate “real” science and kept itself away from applied studies. He tells of meeting with Jerry Bruner in 1995. Jerry Bruner was the “elder” of academia, and participated in a 1946 meeting where it was decided to abandon study of real life and work on the basic components of psychology. Seligman tells how and why that was a mistake for psychology and the world.

For me, it justifies something that I have been struggling with for 30 years. I decided early on not to be involved in academia because I want only to help people. I was always ambivalent about it since I also believe in the value of advanced education. But having been in an undergraduate school that emphasized “pure” research I felt that study of rats’ memories, or contrived social situations did not directly help people. Reading that Martin Seligman felt the same way was a bit relieving. OK, he is an academic, but he has more ability than me to pursue two directions at once. So, that does not make me feel bad.

Not to leave a chapter without a useful exercise Seligman gives us the outline of four possible styles of responding to some news that a partner of some sort might share. The responses are divided by two dichotomies giving four styles: Active and Constructive, Passive and Constructive, Active and Destructive, Passive and Destructive. He gives illustrations and explanations. Quite helpful and interesting. Obviously the active and constructive is the most useful and enhancing for relationships. But I won’t be a complete spoiler….

Martin Seligman’s Flourish: A look at Chapter 1

In this series I will summarize and give my own impressions of Martin Seligman’s new book, Flourish.

I must admit that the first thing I liked about Seligman’s new book was the second “Praise for Flourish” on the very first printed page of the volume (before the cover page.) It simply says, “I greatly enjoyed the book! It’s another Postive Psychology classic!” –Yakov Smiroff

If you do not understand why I like it, google Yakov Smirnoff.

I have just read the first chapter, and I will give you my impressions as I go along.

The most impressive fact about the first chapter, and probably about the whole concept of this book, is that it is a restructuring of a research concept by the main proponent of that first concept. Most people have a difficult time giving up their theoretical view of their profession, even with a great preponderance of conflicting evidence. Seligman revamps his whole view of positive psychology and opens up a huge window for study and research.

The main thesis of this first chapter is that positive psychology became known (albeit against his will) as the psychology of happiness. Seligman shows how this is grossly insufficient and redefines the field as the study of the human quest to flourish. (Hence the name of the book.) He calls the former theory the theory of “Authentic Happiness” and the new theory, “Well-Being Theory.”

In the Happiness Theory the science studied and measured life satisfaction and assumed that the goal of healthy people was to increase life satisfaction. Seligman became convinced that this was not robust enough to encompass all of life positive activities, particularly since he was shown that some people engage in major activity for the sole purpose of succeeding and achievement for achievement’s sake.

So Seligman constructs a more comprehensive idea. I use this term because the idea of well-being he defines as a “construct.” This means that it cannot be measured directly and can be made up of various amounts of other measurable elements. The obvious flexibility here is enormous. Just like there are an infinite amount of weather conditions (weather being a construct) made up of elements of temperature, humidity, wind, etc. there can be an infinite amount of states of well being. The task then is to identify the elements of well being, and find a way of measuring them, and classifying the different types of general combinations.

The five elements that Seligman identifies are represented in the mnemonic: PERMA

• P: Positive emotion: this is a carryover from the happiness theory, but it now includes within it the aspects of happiness and life satisfaction. I have to admit that I need more time to contemplate this.
• E: Engagement: This is also a carryover from the happiness theory, and this is related to the state of “Flow.”
• R: Relationships: While it seems obvious, we all need to have positive human contact to feel any sense of well-being. Without positive contact we feel dead. There is saying in the Talmud, “Give either friends or death.” (My addition not Seligman’s)
• M: Meaning: This is the idea that we engage in behavior because it connects us to something greater than ourselves. That can be a religion, a nation, a cause, etc. While this is very culture and time dependant, people can pursue a life of meaning even when the other element s are lacking.
• A: Achievement: Again, people will engage in behavior for the sole purpose of achieving a goal, even if that behavior is not fun, does not foster positive relationships, is not engaging, and is devoid of greater meaning. Success for the sake of success.

I assume that the rest of the book will illuminate and illustrate these principles. I will try to summarize them as I read them. Stay tuned.