Roundtable Presentation 6th World Congress on Positive Psychology 2019

Scaling Positive Psychology Coaching: Meet Your Personalised Digital Coach (#321)

Rory Darkins 1
  1. What’s Right AI, Cronulla, NSW, Australia

Modern technology is best known for its negative impacts on well-being. However, it may also be the key to empowering flourishing on a global scale. This talk will present the case for intelligent, tech-powered coaching to advance the goals of positive psychology and make flourishing accessible to all. Support for this will include a summary of findings from our experiences in creating fully automated, yet personalised, psychological coaching solutions for populations ranging from school students through to Olympic athletes. Particular attention will be placed on the role that these types of coaching applications can play in breaking through barriers (e.g. cost, geographical isolation, education, and time constraints) that prevent millions of people throughout the world from benefiting from positive psychology concepts and practices. While the potential of tech-powered coaching is ever-expanding, so are the challenges in effectively utilising it in personalised, sensitive and ethical ways. These will be discussed in exploring what an optimal future of coaching toward global flourishing may look like as technology continues to advance.