title: Mental health promotion in public health: perspectives and strategies from positive psychology.
abstract: Positive psychology is the study of what is "right" about people-their positive attributes, psychological assets, and strengths. Its aim is to understand and foster the factors that allow individuals, communities, and societies to thrive. Cross-sectional, experimental, and longitudinal research demonstrates that positive emotions are associated with numerous benefits related to health, work, family, and economic status. Growing biomedical research supports the view that positive emotions are not merely the opposite of negative emotions but may be independent dimensions of mental affect. The asset-based paradigms of positive psychology offer new approaches for bolstering psychological resilience and promoting mental health. Ultimately, greater synergy between positive psychology and public health might help promote mental health in innovative ways.
authors.affiliation: Division of Adult and Community Health; Arthritis, Epilepsy, and Quality of Life Branch, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA. rkobau@cdc.gov
authors.forename: Rosemarie
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kobau
authors.forename: Martin E P
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Seligman
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Ed
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Diener
authors.forename: Matthew M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Zack
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chapman
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Thompson
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002605:Character; D002648:Child; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D010551:Personality; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D012931:Social Environment