The effectiveness of positive education intervention on happiness, depression, academic satisfaction, and academic achievement

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 MS. in educational psychology, Semnan University, Semnan, Iran

2 Associate professor, Department of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Semnan University, , Semnan, Iran

3 Associate professor, Department of Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Semnan University, Semnan, Iran

Abstract

Introduction: Positive psychology is a type of psychology focuses on a topic beyond illnesses and disabilities. Unlike other approaches that focus on problems and weaknesses, it focuses on positive emotions and quality of life. This study was performed to determine the effectiveness of positive education intervention on happiness, depression, academic satisfaction, and academic achievement.
Materials and Methods: This clinical trial conducted on high school female students in Shahroud city in the academic year of 2015-16. The participants were selected voluntarily among students of two schools then they divided into experimental group (n=15) and control group (n=15) randomly. The experimental group received 14 sessions of positive education. After intervention, both groups completed the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, and Hubner Academic Satisfaction. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance.
Results: Findings showed that positive intervention had a significant effect on happiness (P=0.005), depression (P=0.037) and academic achievement (P=0.031), but it had no significant effect on academic satisfaction (P=0.058).
Conclusion: It seems that positive intervention is a good strategy to increase happiness and academic achievement and decrease depression in students.

Keywords

References

  1. Seligman ME, Csikszentmihalyi M. Positive psychology: An introduction. Netherlands: Springer; 2014: 279-98.
  2. Lotfi E, Akbarzadeh TMR. Practical emotional neural networks. Neural Networks 2014; 56:

 

61-72.

  1. Kobau R, Zack MM. Mental health promotion in public health: Perspectives and strategies from positive psychology. Am J Public Health 2011; 101 (8): 1-9.

 

  1. Doyle JP, Filo K, Lock D, Funk D. Exploring PERMA in spectator sport: Applying positive psychology to examine the individual-level benefits of sport consumption. Sport Manag Rev 2016; 19(5): 14-2.
  2. Layous K, Chancellor J, Lyubomirsky S, Wang L, Doraiswamy PM. Delivering happiness: Translating positive psychology intervention research for treating major and minor depressive disorders. J Altern Complement Med 2011; 17(8): 675-83.

 

  1. Jabbari M, Shahidi Sh, Motabi A. [Effectiveness of group positive positivity in reducing the symptoms of depression and anxiety and increasing the satisfaction of young girls]. Journal of psychiatry and clinical psychology 2014; 4: 296-87. (Persian)
  2. Khazaei f, Khazaei O, Ghanbari HB. [Positive psychology interventions for internet addiction treatment]. Computers in human behavior 2017; 72: 304-11. (Persian)
  3. Rashid T, Seligman M. Positive psychotherapy. In: Corsini RJ, Wedding D. (editors). Current psychotherapies. 10th ed. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning: 461-98.
  4. Sepehrian A, Mohammadi F, Bedlpour N, Norouzadeh Z, Norouzadeh V. [Relation of hope and happiness with marital satisfaction]. Journal of health and care 2016; 18(1): 37-44. (Persian)
  5. Stewart ME, Watson R, Clark A, Ebmeier KP, Deary I J. A hierarchy of happiness?: Mokken scaling  analysis  of  the Oxford Happiness Inventory. Pers Individ Diff 2010; 48(7): 845-48.
  6. Carr A. [Positive psychology]. Pasha Sharifi H, Najafi Zand J. (translators). Tehran: Nazar Khan; 2008.
  7. Proyer RT, Gander F, Wellenzohn S, Ruch W. Nine beautiful things: A self-administered online positive psychology  intervention  on  the  beauty  in  nature, arts, and behaviors increases  happiness  and  ameliorates  depressive  symptoms. Pers Individ Diff 2016; 94: 189-93.
  8. Pictet A, Coughtrey AE, Mathews A, Holmes EA. Fishing for happiness: The effects of generating positive imagery on mood and behaviour. Behav Res Ther 2011; 49(12): 855-91.
  9. Hadavi M, Rostami N. [Depression rate and its effective factors in Rafsanjan nursing, midwifery and allied medical students in 2012]. Community health journal 2012; 3, 4(6): 58-65. (Persian)
  10. Sadock BJ, Sadock VA, Ruiz P. Synopsis of psychiatry: Behavioral sciences / clinical psychiatry. 11th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2014.
  11. Niko Moghadam S. [The effectiveness of teaching positive thinking skills on depression and life expectancy in divorce under coverage of Tehran's Welfare]. MS. Dissertation. Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Allameh Tabatabaei, 2015. (Persian)
  12. Flores A. Attribution style, self-efficacy and stress as predictors of academic

 

Success and academic satisfaction in college students. Ph.D. Dissertation. Salt Lake city: University  of Utah, 2007.

  1. Gargari Rahim B, Beyrami M, Debirie S. [The model of prediction of satisfaction and academic achievement through two-dimensional perfectionism and progress goals in high school students]. Quarterly journal of psychology 2013; 9: 21-46. (Persian)
  2. Putwain D, Sander P, Larkin D. Academic self-efficacy in study-related skills and behaviors: relations with learning-relate emotions and academic success. Br J Educ Psychol 2013; 83(Pt 4): 633-50.
  3. Abbaszadeh Khonighi Y. [The effect of positive thinking skills training on the student achievement motivation for high school girls]. Proceeding of the First Academic Research Conference on Educational Sciences and Psychology of Social and Cultural Dangers in Iran. Islamic Azad University of Khomein, 2014. (Persian)
  4. Ali Pour A, Nourbala A. [Preliminary study of the reliability and validity of Oxford Happiness Inventory in Tehran University students]. Iranian journal of psychiatry and clinical psychology 1999; 5(1-2): 55-66. (Persian)
  5. Argyle M, Lu L. The happiness of extroverts. Pers Individ Diff 1990; 11(10): 1011-17.
  6. Ali Pour A, Nouri N. Validity and reliability of depression-happiness in employees in the city of Isfahan. Quarterly journal of health sciences 2016; 8: 87-96.
  7. Huebner ES, Gilman R. Student who like and dislike school. Appl Res Qual Life 2006; 1: 139-50.
  8. Huebner ES, Laughlin JE, Ash C, Gilman R. Further validation of the Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale. J Psychol Assess 1998; 16: 118-34.
  9. Seligman MEP, Steen T, Park N, Peterson Ch. Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. Am Psychol 2005; 60(5): 410-21.
  10. Burns GW. Happiness, healing, enhancement, your casebook collection for applying positive psychology in therapy. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 2009.
  11. Sin N, Lyubomirsky S. Enhancing well-being and alleviating depressive symptoms with positive psychology interventions: A practical-friendly meta-analysis. J Clin Psychol 2009; 65(5 :(467-87.
  12. Fayyazi M, Semaralles N, Kaveh M. [The use of positive psychology in organizational management and leadership (an expanding movement)]. Proceeding of the National Conference on Management Challenges and Leadership in Iranian Organizations. Isfahan University of Science and Research, 2010. (Persian)
  13. Nikmanesh Z, Zandvakili M. [Effect of positive education on quality of life, depression, anxiety of adolescent delinquents]. Positive psychology research 2015; 1(2): 53-64. (Persian)
  14. Farsijani H. [World class organization and quality management comprehensive]. Tehran: Iran Industrial Research and Training Center; 2007.
  15. Amin Bidokhti A, Jafari S, Nouroozi J, Khosravinia M. [The effect of social capital on academic satisfaction]. Bi-quarterly journal of educational planning studies 2012; 2: 107-38. (Persian)
Journal of Fundamentals of Mental Health
Volume 21, Issue 6
November and December 2019
Pages 379-386

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics