Authentic Happiness

June 24, 2002
In his latest user-friendly road map for human emotion, the author of the bestselling Learned Optimism
proposes ratcheting the field of psychology to a new level. "Relieving the states that make life miserable... has made building the states that make life worth living less of a priority. The time has finally arrived for a science that seeks to understand positive emotion, build strength and virtue, and provide guideposts for finding what Aristotle called the 'good life,' " writes Seligman. Thankfully, his lengthy homage to happiness may actually live up to the ambitious promise of its subtitle. Seligman doesn't just preach the merits of happiness—e.g., happy people are healthier, more productive and contentedly married than their unhappy counterparts—but he also presents brief tests and even an interactive Web site (the launch date is set for mid-August) to help readers increase the happiness quotient in their own lives. Trying to fix weaknesses won't help, he says; rather, incorporating strengths such as humor, originality and generosity into everyday interactions with people is a better way to achieve happiness. Skeptics will wonder whether it's possible to learn happiness from a book. Their point may be valid, but Seligman certainly provides the attitude adjustment and practical tools (including self-tests and exercises) for charting the course. Agent, Richard Pine. (Sept. 4)Forecast:A first serial in
Newsweek, an appearance on
Good Morning America and an author tour—not to mention Seligman's name recognition as a longtime proponent of positive psychology—should help the publisher sell out its first printing of 125,000 copies.