Assessment 1 Instructions: Happiness and Well-Being Reflection Paper
• Write a 2-page paper reflecting on what you learned when completing a measurement related to well-being and how you can apply that to your life.
Introduction
Note: You are encouraged to complete the assessments in this course in the sequence in which they are presented. It is best to complete Assessment 1 first. Assessment 1 will help to prepare you for the other assessments. It is best to complete Assessment 4 last since it is the most complex of the four assessments.
Positive psychology explains that a person’s well-being can be described on a continuum from floundering at low levels of well-being to languishing at moderate levels of well-being, to flourishing by experiencing high levels of well-being. The goal of most psychotherapy is to help people with symptoms of floundering to move up to the less symptomatic and less painful level of languishing. The goal of positive psychology is to help people flourish, not just flounder or languish.
How are you? When asked, most people say “fine” or something similar without even thinking about it. But what if someone really asked you. How would you answer? Happiness and well-being are complex concepts that have different components to them. You might be happy about the promotion you received, but sad about the argument you had with your sister. You might be happy the week you are on vacation and a little sad when you return to your routine. Measurements, such as the Positivity Ratio Assessment and the Satisfaction with Life Scale, help you think about your well-being and happiness across different areas of your life or across time. In this assessment, reflect on what you learned when completing one of these measurements and how you can apply that to your life.
Overview
Note: You are encouraged to complete the assessments in this course in the sequence in which they are presented. It is best to complete Assessment 1 first. Assessment 1 will help to prepare you for the other assessments. It is best to complete Assessment 4 last since it is the most complex of the four assessments.
Instructions
Organize your paper, using the following headings to ensure that you address each element of the assessment.
• Activity Summary
o Describe the measurement you are focusing on for this assessment.
o Summarize and explain your personal reflections and insights to demonstrate what you learned from this experiential learning activity. What did you learn about yourself or others?
• Relationship to Positive Psychology
o Explain how this experiential activity is related to optimal human functioning. How does this activity demonstrate the principles and concepts of positive psychology?
• Application to Personal or Professional Issues
o Summarize how you would apply what you learned from this activity to your personal or professional life.
Additional Requirements
Your paper should meet the following requirements:
• Written communication: Written communication should be free of errors that detract from the overall message.
• APA formatting: Your paper should be formatted according to current Evidence and APA guidelines.
• Number of References: Your paper should include at least two properly cited professional resources (such as a textbook and peer-reviewed scholarly journal article from the Capella library).
• Length: 2–3 double-spaced pages of content in addition to the title page and reference page.
• Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12-point.
Review the Happiness and Well-Being Reflection Paper Scoring Guide for details on how your paper will be graded.
Portfolio Prompt: You may choose to save this learning activity to your ePortfolio.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:
• Competency 1: Explain the relationship among positive experiences, positive traits, and optimal human functioning.
o Explain how a particular activity demonstrates the relationship between experiential activities and optimal human functioning.
• Competency 2: Apply concepts of positive psychology to real world situations.
o Explain reflections and insights related to experiential learning activities.
o Apply concepts of positive psychology to personal or professional situations.
• Competency 5: Write using a clear purpose, organization, tone, and sentence structure.
o Address assessment purpose in a well-organized text with appropriate tone and grammatically sound sentences. Explain the connection between having positive experiences and having positive qualities in order to have optimal human functioning. This is the first competency.
o Provide an explanation as to how a particular action illustrates the connection between experience activities and the most effective functioning of the human body.
• Applying ideas from positive psychology to problems that occur in the real world is the second requirement for this competency.
a Description of your thoughts and discoveries in relation to the activities of experiential learning.
o Apply the principles of positive psychology to either your personal life or your work life.
• Compose using a clear purpose, organization, tone, and sentence structure. This is the fifth and final competency.
o Discuss the aim of the Assessment in a document that is well-organized, has an acceptable tone, and has sentences that are grammatically correct.
o Use APA style formatting in citations and references.
Preparation
For this assessment, complete one of the following activities in the Positive Psychology Activities media piece. You are encouraged to record your personal reflections (thoughts) and insights (things learned or relearned). These notes will help you complete the assessment.
• In Section 1, Activity 1.1 Positivity Ratio Assessment.
• In Section 1, Activity 1.2 Satisfaction With Life Scale and
• In Section 1, Activity 1.3 Flourishing Scale.
Description
Click the link to go to the Positivity Ratio Assessment website and complete Barbara Fredrickson’s “two minute” 20-item online assessment of the intensity of several groups of emotions you may have felt over the last 24 hours. Submit your answers, then a half-page report is produced showing your positivity score, your negativity score and your positivity ratio (positive score divided by your negative score) for the last day. For example, if your positivity score was 9 and your negativity score was 2, then your positivity ratio would be 4.5.
Fredrickson’s research suggests that people whose positivity ratio is 3.0 or higher are flourishing while those with ratios below 3.0 (80% of U.S. adults) may be languishing or worse. Because this assesses your emotions for only the last 24 hours, more meaningful results can be obtained by completing this assessment on several days and looking for emotional trends or the impact of significant events in your life.
Reflection Guidelines
After reviewing the results of your Positivity Ratio Assessment, consider the following questions. You may want to take detailed notes as it may help you complete your Happiness and Well-Being Reflection Paper.
• How was this activity meaningful to me?
• Was this activity uncomfortable or challenging for me to complete? Why or why not?
• What did I learn (or relearn) about myself as a result of this activity?
• How can I incorporate information from this activity into my personal or professional life?
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