Positive Psychology, Made Practical

PERMA and the well-being exercises, graded honestly on the evidence

What is positive psychology, and which of its interventions actually work?

Martin Seligman’s positive psychology studies what makes life worth living, organized around the PERMA model — Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment. Several of its signature interventions, including three good things, the gratitude visit, and using signature strengths, have genuine randomized-trial support for raising well-being and lowering depressive symptoms.

Positive psychology reoriented the field from only fixing what’s broken to also building what’s strong. Its lasting contribution is a set of testable interventions, not just a philosophy. Below are the core practices, each with the mechanism that makes it work and an honest read on the evidence — which for several of these is genuinely strong.