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Positivity professor changes lives

Psychologists have long pointed to the evolutionary need for negativity. But positive emotions? They chalked them up to the mechanics of mating and moved on.

“That could not be the whole story,” said Barbara Fredrickson, UNC’s Kenan Distinguished Professor of Psychology, who was then in post-doctorate training. “There had to be an adaptive function beyond reproduction.”

Twenty years of emotions research later, her bestselling book, "Positivity," makes a solid claim: not only do we need positive emotions to survive — we need them to flourish, to survive well. (See video below.)

BROADEN AND BUILD

Fredrickson’s research led her to develop a theory called Broaden and Build. Over time moments of positivity accumulate, inspire creativity and open us to new experiences and relationships. From this, we build lasting resources that remain once the emotion has passed. We become better, more able versions of ourselves.

“Most scientists were looking for something to happen in the same moment, as with fear, when adrenaline pushes blood to the muscles so you can flee. For positive emotions, I expanded the range of time. I found that while each individual positive emotion won’t change your life, a steady diet of them can. Just as eating one piece of broccoli won’t make you healthier, adding more vegetables to your life will.”

POSITIVITY RATIO

Fredrickson noticed a tipping point at which positive emotions begin to influence lives. Experiencing positive emotions in a 3-to-1 ratio with negative ones is the point at which one achieves the benefits of Broaden and Build. This discovery changed Fredrickson from “a stoic workaholic,” she says, to “a recovering workaholic.”

“It was when we discovered the positivity ratio that this became much more than a scientific finding. This is life and how to live it, much more than some ‘gee whiz’ fact. A prescription was emerging, on how to value the moments of your life. I realized my parenting style should be different, how I relate to my spouse and students should be different. I was on my own path, evolving.”

THE NEXT 20 YEARS OF POSITIVITY RESEARCH

Fredrickson is looking for the next Broaden and Build. She wants to connect ideas in positivity directly to what she calls an “upward spiral” that leads to sustainable behavioral change and fuels personal development. She is also searching to find out if a diet of positive emotions affects us at a cellular level by triggering changes in gene expressions, especially in immune systems. Discoveries in this realm could change the way we view and treat a broad spectrum of illnesses.

“Every once in a while I get an email telling me that someone read my book and it changed their life,” she said. “I wrote this book because I thought it would matter, and it does. It’s a dream come true.”
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What’s your ratio? Take the test! http://www.positivityratio.com/single.php