Oxford Handbooks offer authoritative and up-to-date reviews of original research in a particular subject area. Specially commissioned chapters from leading figures in the discipline give critical examinations of the progress and direction of debates, as well as a foundation for future research. Oxford Handbooks provide scholars and graduate students with compelling new perspectives upon a wide range of subjects in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Book jacket.

This book is the definitive text in the field of positive psychology, the scientific study of what makes people happy. The handbook's international slate of renowned authors summarizes and synthesizes lifetimes of research, together illustrating what has worked for people across time and cultures. Now in paperback, this second edition provides both the current literature in the field and an outlook on its future.

Psychology has long been enamored of the dark side of human existence, rarely exploring a more positive view of the mind. What has psychology contributed, for example, to our understanding of the various human virtues? Regrettably, not much. The last decade, however, has witnessed a growing movement to abandon the exclusive focus on the negative. Psychologists from several subdisciplines are now asking an intriguing question: "What strengths does a person employ to deal effectively with life?" The Handbook of Positive Psychology provides a forum for a more positive view of the human condition. In its pages, readers are treated to an analysis of what the foremost experts believe to be the fundamental strengths of humankind. Both seasoned professionals and students just entering the field are eager to grasp the power and vitality of the human spirit as it faces a multitude of life challenges. The Handbook is the first systematic attempt to bring together leading scholars to give voice to the emerging field of positive psychology.

This handbook is the first comprehensive text on positive psychology and disability. Emphasizing paradigmatic changes in understanding disability, the text covers traditional disciplines in positive psychology; and applications of positive psychology to domains like education or work.

Revised edition of: Oxford handbook of positive psychology and work / edited by P. Alex Linley, Susan Harrington, Nicola Garcea. -- Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2010.

In the short time since the publication of the Handbook of Positive Psychology esearch results on the psychology of human strengths have proliferated. However, no major volume has documented the methods and theory used to achieve these results. Oxford Handbook of Methods in Positive Psychology fills this need, providing a broad overview of diverse contemporary methods in positive psychology. With contributions from both leading scholars and promising young investigators, the handbook serves to illuminate and, at times, challenge traditional approaches. Incorporating multiple levels of analysis, from biology to culture, the contributors present state-of-the art techniques, including those for estimating variability and change at the level of the individual, identifying reliability of measurements within and across individuals, and separating individual differences in growth from aspects of phenomena that exhibit shorter-term variability over time. The volume covers such topics as wisdom, health, hope, resilience, religion, relationships, emotions, well-being, character strengths, and laughter. It enhances our understanding of the balance between human deficits and strengths and demonstrates their connections to other problems. Oxford Handbook of Methods in Positive Psychology will be the essential reference for methods in positive psychology.

The scientific study of hope has flourished in the past twenty years since C.R. Snyder first proposed a model of hope that defined it as "a positive motivational state that is based on an interactively derived sense of successful (1) goal-directed energy (agency) and (2) planning to meet goals (pathways)." Hope has long been a topic of interest for philosophers, psychologists, educators, and physicians and in the past few decades researchers from various disciplines and from around the world have studied how hope relates to superior academic performance, improved outcomes in the workplace, and improved psychological and physical health in individuals of all ages. The Oxford Handbook of Hope will provide a comprehensive update on the past 25 years of hope research while simultaneously providing an outline of what leading hope researchers believe the future of hope research to be. The Handbook will be targeted towards researchers, professors, and advanced students interested in learning about current status and future directions of the science of hope. It will provide a comprehensive overview of the science of hope and will also be able to serve as a textbook for advanced seminars for undergraduates and graduate students interested in one of the most robust areas of positive psychology research.