Posted at 4:56 PM on April 4, 2005 by Arnie Herz

Since posting on the science of happiness, I've been reading up on positive psychology. As this article details, positive psychology departs from the field’s mainstream focus on “dysfunction, illness, healing and coping strategies” by seeking “to understand and build human strengths.” Embracing empirical science, the pioneers of positive psychology project “that the movement's research will yield methods of making exercise less tedious, work more rewarding, relationships more enjoyable--in short, making what is good in life even better.” Amen to that. And all these positive vibes seem to be spreading to the institutional level. An emergent branch of the organizational sciences called positive organizational scholarship (pdf) “focuses on the dynamics in organizations that lead to the development of human strength, foster vitality and flourishing in employees, make possible resilience and restoration, and cultivate extraordinary individual and organizational performance.” Having just examined similar ideas at LexThink! Chicago (more reflections on this terrific and inspiring event in the coming days), I can say that both disciplines are pertinent to optimizing professional service delivery and I look forward to learning more about them.