Integrating positive psychology and autism: A roundtable

A new Roundtable Discussion in the peer-reviewed journal Autism in Adulthood explores how the two fields of positive psychology and autism might integrate and benefit each other, and the autism community at large. Click here to read the Roundtable.

The Roundtable was co-moderated by Patricia Wright, PhD, MPH who is the Executive Director of Proof Positive: Autism Wellbeing Alliance, an organization committed to integrating autism services and the field of positive psychology and Rachel Moseley, PhD, from Bournemouth University. Expert panelists included Dan Tomasulo, PhD, from Teachers College, Columbia University; Hari Srinivasan, a PhD neuroscience student at Vanderbilt University; Jodie Wilson, BVSc, MAPP, from Latrobe University; Sara Woods, PhD, University of Washington; and Tayyab Rashid, PhD, a licensed clinical and school psychologist in Toronto.

Positive psychology helps answer the question, “What makes life worth living?” In addition to alleviating suffering, it is important to provide the tools to enhance elements of positive emotions: cultivating relationships, learning how to engage, have a meaningful life with accomplishments. Positive psychology can benefit the autism community by understanding strengths and how to use them. Appreciating character strengths can impact interpersonal dynamics, communication dynamics, and the framework through which a person responds.

Rather than solely addressing deficits, positive psychology adjusts, enhances, and amplifies strengths. It provides the tools, techniques, and processes to adapt to those strengths.

About the Journal
Autism in Adulthood is a peer-reviewed journal dedicated to research and scholarship on the most pressing issues affecting adults on the autism spectrum, from emerging adulthood to later life. Led by Editor-in-Chief Christina Nicolaidis, MD, MPH, Portland State University and Oregon Health & Science University, the Journal is the premier source for original research, in-depth analysis, and inter-professional dialogue, providing new insights and evidence to promote practice, systems, and policy change. For complete information, please visit the Autism in Adulthood website. 

About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. is a global media company dedicated to creating, curating, and delivering impactful peer-reviewed research and authoritative content services to advance the fields of biotechnology and the life sciences, specialized clinical medicine, and public health and policy. For complete information, please visit the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. website.