Evaluate strengths + weaknesses of pos app (10)

• Strength: real world application

  • P: a major strength of the positive approach is its wide-ranging and practical applications that have positively influenced many areas of life.

  • E: for example, the US Army implemented resilience training based on positive psychology to reduce PTSD and promote mental well-being in soldiers returning from combat. Additionally, positive psychology curricula (PPCs) have been introduced in schools in the US and UK to improve students’ emotional well-being and academic performance

  • E: these applications demonstrate the approach’s relevance and usefulness in real-life settings, particularly in education and mental health. By focusing on strengths and prevention rather than illness and cure, positive psychology promotes long-term flourishing rather than short-term symptom reduction.

  • L: therefore, pos appr meaningful impact on personal and social well-being reinforces its value and ethical relevance
• Weakness: culturally biased + simplistic

  • P: a key weakness of positive approach is that it can be culturally biased and overly simplistic by promoting ‘one-size-fits-all’ view of wellbeing

  • E: Christopher and hickinbottom (2008) argue approach is ethnocentric, stems from individualistic Western values, focuses on autonomy and self-fulfilment. emphasis on constant positivity doesnt align with collectivist cultures, where harmony, humility, and interdependence valued

  • E: furthermore Norem (2001) research highlights how so-called negative thinking - like defensive pessimism - adaptive for certain individuals. Encouraging blind optimism could harm performance + emotional resilience in some people

  • L: these findings suggest positive approach lacks universal applicability and risks ignoring important individual and cultural diffs
• Conclusion

  in conclusion, while pos app has shifted psychology towards more hopeful, empowering perspective with real-world benefits, it’s limitations - such as cultural bias and difficulty of defining happiness, means it cannot be applied universally. For balanced understanding of wellbeing, pos psychology should be integrated with other approaches rather than treated as complete solution