Second Wave Positive Psychology

Itai Ivtzan is a positive psychologist, a senior lecturer, and the program leader of MAPP (Masters in Applied Positive Psychology) at the University of East London (UEL). His research areas are mindfulness meditation, spirituality, and meaning in life. In addition to many journal papers and book chapters, he is the author of several books and the leading editor of "Mindfulness in Positive Psychology: The science of Meditation and Wellbeing".Tim Lomas is a lecturer at the University of East London, where he is the associate programme leader for the MSc in Applied Positive Psychology and Coaching Psychology. As well as publishing numerous peer-reviewed papers and books. Kate Hefferon is a chartered psychologist, Senior Lecturer and the Head of the Posttraumatic growth research unit at the University of East London. Her interests lie within the areas of post-traumatic growth, physical activity, health and well-being. She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed papers and book chapters as well as lead author on popular Positive psychology texts books. Piers Worth is a chartered psychologist, accredited psychotherapist and Head of Academic Department – Psychology for Bucks New University. Piers wrote and leads the Bucks MSc Applied Positive Psychology programme.

"Second Wave Positive Psychology: Embracing the Dark Side of Life is not only about seeing the reality of positive psychology more clearly, it’s about seeing who we are as human beings more clearly. Positive psychology studies and embraces all the vicissitudes of life. And here is the book that outlines this for us.What is most incredible and impactful about this book? Is it that it represents the thought leadership and scholarship of 4 distinguished positive psychology luminaries? Is it that it is the first positive psychology book to deeply integrate the positive and negative of human experience across a wide array of topics? Is it that it’s a clear and interesting read, easily peaking the reader’s curiosity page after page? Is it that those who crack the book open will immediately make it required reading for their students? Or, is it that despite being a scholarly, scientific work the book is also eminently practical in its guidance for readers to reflect and explore that which is personal and meaningful? My answer is clear: All of the above." - Ryan M. Niemiec, Psy.D., Author, Mindfulness and Character Strengths: A Practical Guide to Flourishing, Psychologist and Education Director, VIA Institute on Character"This timely book is a must read for anybody seriously interested in Positive Psychology. Rightly or wrongly, Positive Psychology has been often perceived as focusing only on the positive aspects of human life. However, as it reaches maturity, the discipline is increasingly moving in the direction of embracing human life as a whole from a positive, constructive perspective. For example, can we have something like 'Positive Death'? These are issues that this courageous book is grappling with. Written by scholars who have an excellent knowledge and experience of Positive Psychology, this book may well become a landmark in the evolution of the field." - Dr Nash Popovic, Author of Personal Consultancy: A model for integrating counselling and coaching

• Introduction. The Dialectics of Emotion. Positive Development – Our Journey of Growth. The Dark Side of Meaning in Life. Adversity, Resilience, and Transformational Growth. Mortality and Positive Psychology. Wellbeings: Suffering, Compassion, and Interconnectedness. Spirituality – Transcending the Self. The Hero’s Journey.