Gallery Presentation International Positive Psychology Association 7th IPPA World Congress 2021

Catch them doing things right (#317)

Lisa Sansom 1
  1. LVS Consulting, Kingston, ON, Canada

Background: Many positive psychology interventions can be distilled to their essential component, which is to catch others (or yourself) doing something right.

Aims: This workshop will share a new research-based framework (in development) with attendees to help them figure out the best ways to catch others (or themselves) doing things right, in order to increase task performance and positive relationships.

Methods: There are several different dimensions that need to be taken into account when catching others (or yourself) doing things right. These dimensions include time modalities (past, present, future focus), self-other, process-outcome, general-specific, right-wrong and logical-emotional. Without awareness and practice, we might catch others (or ourselves) doing something right in a way that is actually detrimental to task performance and/or relationship enhancement. For example, general praise about intelligence can lead to fixed mindset (Dweck) or late acknowledgement for a self-centered task could lead to mistrust in the relationship, leading the recipient of the feedback feeling like they are being manipulated rather than genuinely appreciated.

Results: With appropriate use of positive recognition along these different dimensions, attendees will learn how to truly express their appreciation of others (and themselves) in ways that enhance task performance and positive relationships.

Conclusion: This may seem self-evident - that we should catch people doing things right. However, anecdotal evidence and observation indicate that people are not very skilled at this, and there is far more education "out there" about how to deliver negative feedback than how to focus on the positive.

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  • Keywords: Achievement, Business and Organizations, Leadership/Management, Motivation, Relationships