Is positive thinking magical?

What is positive thinking?

There is a permanent relationship between thought and emotion, body and behavior: Thoughts affect emotions and emotions affect thoughts; thoughts and emotions affect the body, and the body affects thoughts in a continuous cycle (Schwab, Baldwin, Gerber, Gomori, & Satir, 1989). When people think negative thoughts, their moods change accordingly, and they are filled with negative emotions. In contrast, positive thoughts make people feel good and help them cope with different obstacles that may stand in their way.

Two approaches in thinking can be discerned in this context: optimistic thinking, which relates to the positive aspects of reality and helps one perceive goals and purposes with hope; and pessimistic thinking, which picks the negative aspects from reality and sometimes leads to despair. In various studies dealing with reducing anxiety, treating feelings of helplessness and creating mental strength, it was found that the creation of positive thinking leads to a change in other dimensions - the emotional, the physical and the behavioral (Seligman, 2002). Through thinking we choose our point of view. Will we look at the glass half-full or half- empty? What we are focusing on and what we ignore? Will we treat things as fixed or subject to change? In the same way that we convince ourselves that we cannot do anything, we can convince ourselves that we can (Seligman, 2002).

Previous studies on positive thinking and academic achievements

Various studies have found connections between academic self-perception and the feelings experienced by students in school (Goetz, Frenzel, Hall, & Pekrun, 2008; Goetz, Pekrun, Hall, & Haag, 2006). Pleasant emotions, such as pleasure and pride, are positively related with positive academic self-perceptions, while unpleasant feelings, such as anxiety and anger, are negatively related with positive academic self-perceptions (Frenzel, Pekrun, & Goetz, 2007; Goetz, Frenzel, Pekrun, & Hall, 2005; Pekrun, Elliot, & Maier, 2006).

Support, acceptance, and love from the environment surrounding the individual are important elements in the development of high self-esteem (Witkow & Fuligni, 2010). During school years, children begin to become more aware of the qualities considered important in society and feel high self-esteem when they have these qualities. The school also has a role in shaping self-esteem, since academic achievement play an important role in the self-esteem of the child at this age (Furrer & Skinner, 2003).

School climate was linked to students' perceptions of the school, their behaviour in the classroom, and their attitude towards learning and activities. School climate is the school's "personality", the atmosphere that a person can feel when they enter the perimeter (Pashiardis, 2000). Therefore, it is important to focus on it and optimize it so the school environment will allow proper interpersonal relationships and children will develop positive feelings and a sense of belonging to the school.

Studies have shown that a stronger sense of belonging to the school and a sense of belonging to the peer group are positively correlated with school achievement (Baker, 1998). These feelings are also positively associated with positive attitudes towards school, involvement, participation in learning activities, and investment in learning (Osterman, 2000).Consequently, the intervention program focuses on these aspects.

Positive Thinking in School (PTS)

The PTS program, designed by the author, focuses on positive thinking by learning interpersonal and intrapersonal skills such as: self-awareness and self-management, self-control, empathy, assertiveness, problem solving, decision-making and coping with stress and change. It is currently being implemented in an elementary school in central Israel.

PTS focuses on the students’ mental well-being. The program considers the educational staff as significant change agents and key figures in their impact on children and adolescents in a constant process of personal, educational, social and emotional development. The lessons in the program differ from the "regular" classes. During the lessons, a personal diary will be written by participants. An atmosphere of trust is created through a "class contract," in which participants can share personal experiences or personal feelings. During the activities, the participants will become better acquainted with themselves, their strengths and the things that make them feel good and make them happier (Shoshani, Steinmetz, & Kanat-Maymon, 2016).

Theoretical approaches

PTS was designed in accordance with three theories: Positive Psychology, Phenomenological Humanistic Theory and Self-Determination Theory (SDT).

Positive Psychology (Seligman, 2003)

Positive Psychology deals with the optimal functioning of individuals and groups and the factors that promote positive emotions (Gable & Haidt, 2005), positive traits, self-realization and success (Schueller & Seligman, 2010).

Positive Psychology focuses on ways to improve quality of life and optimal personal functioning in order to bring about personal and social change (Gable & Haidt, 2005). It is based on the belief that people naturally aspire to live a meaningful and self-fulfilling life, nurture the best within themselves and increase their experiences in love, work and play. Therefore, Positive Psychology focuses on human growth, with an emphasis on the importance of the sense of meaning and satisfaction in life (Seligman, 2002).

Positive Psychology focuses on three main issues:

• Positive emotions that focus on past satisfaction, happiness in the present and hope for the future.

• Positive personality traits - the development of each person's strengths, such as the potential for love and work, courage, compassion, creativity, curiosity, honesty, self-worth, moderation, self-control and wisdom (Bryan, Mathur, & Sullivan, 1996).

• Positive ways of behaving - emphasizing the strengths of better communities such as justice, responsibility, good parenting, work ethic, leadership, teamwork, goal setting and tolerance.

Phenomenological Humanistic Theory (Rogers, 1980)

Humanistic Psychology emphasizes that people have a choice and the responsibility to choose, and that one acts to seek meaning and self-realization (Rogers, 1980).

According to Rogers' approach, it is not past events that affect our behavior, but the way we perceive them today. In the same manner, our expectations for the future affect our behavior in the present (Boeree, 2006).

Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000)

SDT is a motivational theory developed by Deci and Ryan (2000) that expresses a humanistic view of human nature and emphasizes the universal tendency of people towards psychological growth and development.

According to SDT, responding to basic psychological needs is the basis of students' intrinsic motivation to invest effort, to persist and to be deeply involved in certain activities (Ryan &Deci, 2000).It is also essential for the development and well-being of students as well as the development of self-perceptions, primarily positive ones (Assor, 2003).

The PTS program characteristics

The PTS intervention program includes activities that are based on the principles of Positive Psychology such as factors that promote positive emotions, positive traits, self-realization and success and activities from existing programs of Israel’s Ministry of Education – such as “Life Skills” and "The Key to the Heart”- with the goal of developing positive thinking among learners.

“The Key to the Heart” (Education for life in society)

This program is based on the premise that an individual is a social being who lives and works in society and who interacts with individuals, groups, and society as a whole. The program enables individuals and groups in schools to examine universal and democratic values, to study the social-moral values derived from them, and to experience the application of these values and contents in the diverse settings of daily life (classroom, school, community), while interacting with a variety of populations: children, teachers and parents.

This program is being currently implemented as a field of study in grades 1-6 as part of the regular curriculum once a week, as well as additional frameworks and times that enable the promotion of values from a school perspective (The Key to the Heart, 2017).

The PTS program goals

The goal of the PTS intervention program is to develop positive thinking among students on the assumption that it will contribute to improving their scholastic performance and the social climate in the classroom. The assumption in building the program is that positive thinking contributes to raising self-efficacy, ability and motivation, and thus can improve scholastic achievements.

Impact study

The PTS intervention program will be accompanied by a study that will examine the impact of this program on academic achievement and a positive climate in the classroom. The study population will be 130 students aged 11-12 and 4 teachers