"Regenerative" Positive Psychology · InnerDevelopment@Work

"Regenerative" Positive Psychology

A colleague of mine recently attended the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA) World Congress in Brisbane where she heard Michael F. Steger propose three pillars for "Regenerative Positive Psychology" - moving the focus of pos psych from 'me' to 'we'. I was interested in the the three pillars and thought you might be too:

Three Pillars of Regenerative Positive Psychology

(1) Expand definitions of wellbeing. Wellbeing is understood not only as the thriving of the individual, but also as the health and growth in capacity of the systems that include the individual.

(2) Build a science of wellbeing systems. It is vital to encourage and inspire the production of research, interventions, educational programs, and organizational approaches that explicitly address, at minimum, the environmental, social, and political systems that sustain a good life.

(3) Generate knowledge of positive human caretaking. Priority is placed on research, education, and interventions that encourage and cultivate traits, attitudes, and behaviors that position individuals as positive caretakers and benefactors of mutual and collective wellbeing, as well as the systems that support that wellbeing.

Michael F. Steger (2025) Regenerative positive psychology: A call to reorient wellbeing science to meet the realities of our world, The Journal of Positive Psychology, 20:3, 373-396, DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2024.2365259

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2024.2365259

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