Toxic Positivity: When pursuing happiness can overemphasize its value and cause more unhappiness
By Brock Bastian, Professor, Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, The University of Melbourne; and Ashley Humphrey, Lecturer in Psychology, Federation University Australia The term “toxic positivity” has received a good deal of attention lately. Coming off the back of the “positivity movement” we are beginning to recognize while feeling happy is a good thing, overemphasizing the importance of a positive attitude can backfire, ironically leading to more unhappiness. Research shows that happier people tend to live longer, be healthier, and enjoy more successful lives. And “very happy people” have more of these benefits relative to only averagely happy people....
Read More