Positive Social Psychology: A Multilevel Inquiry Into Sociocultural Well-Being Initiatives.

Article


Lomas, T. 2015. Positive Social Psychology: A Multilevel Inquiry Into Sociocultural Well-Being Initiatives. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law.
AuthorsLomas, T.
Abstract

Although the field of positive psychology has made great strides in developing interventions for wellbeing, many of these are aimed at individuals, designed to engender adaptive psychological qualities and skills. As such, relatively little attention has been paid within the field to the socio-cultural factors that influence health and wellbeing. However, there is an emergent body of work that does focus on these factors, as summarised in this paper. Using Urie Bronfenbrenner’s (1977) multileveled ecological systems theory as a framework, the paper provides an overview of socio-cultural wellbeing interventions and research at multiple levels of scale (microsystems, mesosystems, exosystems, macrosystems, and ecosystems). In doing so, the paper has two main aims: (a) to show how positive change in wellbeing can be affected by the strategic manipulation of socio-cultural contextual factors; and (b) to suggest ways in which the adoption of such a contextual approach can inform policy making.

JournalPsychology, Public Policy, and Law
ISSN1939-1528
1076-8971
Year2015
PublisherAmerican Psychological Association
Accepted author manuscript
Web address (URL)http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/law0000051
Publication dates
Print08 Jun 2015
Publication process dates
Deposited30 Jun 2015
Accepted08 Jun 2015
Copyright information© 2015 APA. This article may not exactly replicate the final version published in the APA journal. It is not the copy of record.
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