Deck 2: Positive Psychology

Question 1

Today, Aristotle's theory of well-being is often contrasted with the more popular notion of happiness as ____ determined by one's appraisal of life satisfaction and positive feelings.

A) subjective well-being
B) hedonistic behavior
C) objective well-being
D) eudemonia

Answer 1

A

Question 2

____ refer(s)to the ability to envision one or more routes toward reaching a desired goal.

A) Potentialities
B) Agency
C) Optimal experiences
D) Pathways

Answer 2

D

Question 3

____ involves both identification and understanding, and is believed to be the driving force for acts of altruism, the act of helping unselfishly.

A) Forgiveness
B) Empathy
C) Gratitude
D) Loving-kindness

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In addition to leaned helplessness, people can also develop its opposite, learned ____. People who learn ____ can begin to see connections between their efforts and outcomes which then leads to a sense of hope.

A) helpfulness
B) selflessness
C) optimism
D) hopefulness

Question 5

____ is a learning theory concept where the novelty of a new stimulus eventually wears off after repeated exposure, i.e., the stimulus gradually has less and less impact on you.

A) Hedonic treadmill
B) Hedonic adaptation
C) Habituation
D) Setpoint

Question 6

Studies have found that intelligence is ____ to well-being.

A) positively correlated to a significant degree
B) negatively correlated to a significant degree
C) only superficially related
D) not appreciably related

Question 7

Negative emotions lead to ____ through facilitating the employment of specific narrow options and positive emotions lead to ____ through setting the stage for use of a general wide range of options.

A) long-term survival, short-term survival gains
B) instinct, equilibrium
C) action, pleasure
D) short-term survival gains, long-term survival

Question 8

Gender seems to account for approximately ____ of any differences in happiness.

A) .01%
B) 1%
C) 5%
D) 19%

Question 9

What does it mean to thrive?

A) To be content and meet basic expectations
B) To show vigorous growth or to flourish
C) To be successful at everything one tries and never fail
D) To be free of significant adversity or risk

Question 10

Now, with over 30 years of research on flow, we have a much better understanding of its universality across cultures, gender, and age; in school, at work, and during leisure; and how it can lead to ____, that is, living life fully and in the moment.

A) new pathways
B) optimal experiences
C) agency
D) perceived control

Question 11

A person who is ____ is not necessarily happier than a person who is just healthy.

A) super healthy
B) chronically unhealthy
C) diseased
D) slightly health-eased

Question 12

The ancient Greeks during the Golden Age believed that the formula for the good life could be determined by logic and reason. Socrates (469-399 BCE)was the best known teacher of this approach. He believed in the Delphic motto, "____."

A) Speak thy truth
B) Know thyself
C) Trust in reason and logic
D) Logic leads to Reason. Reason leads to happiness.

Question 13

Aristotle's approach is referred to as the ____ of happiness.

A) subjective well-being theory
B) hedonic theory
C) logic and reason theory
D) virtue theory

Question 14

There are individual differences in how people respond to extreme negative events such as severe disability. In fact, many people are called ____ in that they "not only cope with the event, they often learn and are transformed by their experiences" (Dunn, Uswatte, & Elliot).

A) resilient
B) hopeful
C) well-adjusted
D) adaptive

Question 15

____ is about the process of applying mindful awareness to enjoyment experiences-that is, applying "a deliberate conscious attention to the experience of pleasure."

A) Wakeful enjoyment
B) Loving-kindness meditation
C) Savoring
D) Mindfulness intervention

Question 16

____ is a feeling that we have when we witness suffering, and is described as "a process of connecting by identifying with another person," according to Cassell.

A) Altruism
B) Forgiveness
C) Gratitude
D) Compassion

Question 17

____ refers to "the experience of complete absorption in the present moment."

A) Flow
B) A subjective state
C) "Being out of the zone"
D) Goal-pursuit

Question 18

The idea of positive feelings, good moods, and pleasurable experiences leading to happiness embodies the ____ definition of happiness.

A) anhedonic
B) hedonic
C) eudemonia
D) subjective well-being

Question 19

Sarah Schneider makes the case that ____, a form of optimism that does not "involve self-deception, or convincing oneself of desired beliefs without appropriate reality checks," is the preferred form.

A) stalwart optimism
B) realistic optimism
C) pre-surgery optimism
D) dispositional optimism

Question 20

____ believed that the good life could be achieved by following the golden mean, the balance point between the extremes of life and believed that eudaimonia (i.e., happiness possessed of true well-being)was not a goal to pursue but rather a byproduct of living the virtuous life.

A) Socrates
B) Plato
C) Aristotle
D) The ancient Hebrews

Question 21

Explain the concept of mindfulness and its roots.

Question 22

Explain Barbara Fredrickson's broaden-and-build model. How do specific and non-specific action tendencies relate to this model?

Question 23

What is the happiness set point?

Question 24

What is learned helplessness?

Question 25

What is altruism and do you think it is a real phenomenon?

Question 26

Explain the bottom-up and top-down theories of happiness.

Question 27

When people are resilient to disabilities or other life challenges, they may show positive growth. Explain the concept of positive growth.

Question 28

What are Fredrickson's thought-action repertoires?

Question 29

What is the divine command theory of happiness?

Question 30

What is Carol Ryff's model of psychological well-being (PWB)?

Question 31

What are three sources of information one could use to determine a person's subjective well-being?

Question 32

Optimism can be seen as a type of explanatory style. What is meant by this?

Question 33

Define positive and negative affect and how they differ.

Question 34

What effect does gratitude have on one's well-being and what traits is it linked to?

Question 35

Why would conscientious people be more satisfied with their lives?

Question 36

What is dispositional optimism?

Question 37

Are married people happier? What is the relationship between marriage and happiness?

Question 38

What is hope theory?

Question 39

Discuss the concepts of hedonic adaptation and hedonic treadmill.

Question 40

What is the relationship between neuroticism and happiness?

Question 41

How do we define happiness? How do we measure it?

Question 42

What is the correlation between religion/spirituality and health and well-being? What are some of the specific impacts of practicing religion or spirituality on health?

Question 43

How do you think your level of happiness would change if you won the lottery? What about if you were paralyzed? Justify your answers.

Question 44

What is the relationship between wealth and happiness? Do you think your personal level of happiness would be different if you had a significantly greater or smaller amount of money or if you were from a much poorer or richer country?

Question 45

What is the relationship between forgiveness and well-being? Can you think of a situation from your own life where the knowledge of this relationship has been, or would be, beneficial to your well-being?

Question 46

How old is positive psychology? How long has it been around formally? How old are it's roots?

Question 47

Is there a connection between introverted or extraverted traits and happiness? Is your answer consistent with your own experience?

Question 48

What creates meaning or purpose in life, in general and for yourself? What difference does having a purpose make?

Question 49

Why did it take so long for the field of psychology to be seriously interested in and study positive emotions?

Question 50

Discuss Fredrickson's undoing hypothesis using an example from your own life.