Oral Presentation 6th World Congress on Positive Psychology 2019

Other People Matter: Evidence for the Value of Positivity Resonance (#442)

Barbara L Fredrickson 1
  1. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States

Professor Barbara Fredrickson expands on the phrase that her good friend Christopher Peterson made famous in positive psychology:  Other People Matter.  She will share an innovative perspective within the science of positive emotions that brings other people into the very definition of love. This new definition of love elevates momentary positive connections between and among people—even strangers—to be seen as life-giving. Using this new framework to guide her research, she will share her latest evidence that positivity that resonates with and through other people contributes to our relationship health, our mental health, our physical health, as well as our moral health. She will close by offering practical, lab-tested approaches for how best to promote individual and communal wellbeing.