Beyond Gratitude Exercises: The Future of Positive Psychology Lies in Transforming Negative Emotions and Habits

Abstract

Innovations in the field of positive psychology are rare nowadays, so new research approaches are needed to develop the field further. In the article, the incorporation of therapy effectiveness factors into positive psychology interventions is suggested. Furthermore, it examines the benefits and limitations of the integration of cognitive behavioral therapy methods, psychedelics, breathing techniques like Holotropic Breathwork, or methods from resilience research into positive psychology interventions to enhance well-being. Current interventions often show only small effect sizes in the enhancement of well-being measures and are not designed to help people get rid of unhealthy habits, for example. Therefore, there is still great potential to help people improve their well-being, because all humans have unhealthy habits, negative emotions and dysfunctional thought patterns, which can be transformed into positive emotions with the right techniques. Further research is required to validate these approaches on a larger scale.