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Speaking of Psychology · May 28, 2025 · 36m
Positive Psychology in a Pandemic: Lessons from Martin Seligman
Martin Seligman, the founder of positive psychology, discusses what his field has learned from the pandemic years — how resilience, learned helplessness, and PERMA (Positive Emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Accomplishment) framework apply to collective trauma.
This summary was generated from show notes and public descriptions, not from a full transcript review. Details may contain inaccuracies.
Canon
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Mills: Seligman's PERMA model identifies five pillars of human flourishing: Positive Emotions (joy, gratitude, serenity), Engagement (flow states), Relationships (connection and belonging), Meaning (purpose beyond self), and Accomplishment (mastery and achievement). Well-being requires investment in all five, not just one.
Highlights
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Learned helplessness is reversible — and the reversal process teaches us about resilience
Mills: Seligman's original research on learned helplessness showed that organisms exposed to uncontrollable adversity stop trying — even when escape becomes possible. His later work showed this is reversible: experience of mastery and control restores agency. Resilience is not a fixed trait — it can be built.Was this useful?