Practise unrealistic optimism and positive psychology, applying comparative risk and pleasant, engaged or meaningful life concepts while evaluating intervention evidence.
Zainab has two daughters who are 8 and 17 years old. Zainab wants to help her daughters to continue to experience good mental health. She reads a book on positive psychology about the pleasant life, the good life and the meaningful life.
Suggest one way Zainab could encourage her 8-year-old daughter to have a 'pleasant life'.
Suggest one way Zainab could encourage her 8-year-old daughter to have a 'pleasant life'.
For suggested way:
Award 2 marks for a suggestion of the way to encourage 'pleasant life'. Award 1 mark for a basic outline of the way to encourage 'pleasant life'.
Pleasant life - Enjoying daily pleasures in life; doing things you enjoy. For example, eating good food, doing activities you enjoy (reading, walks, sport, watching films, games, etc.). Positive emotions.
For example:
Zainab could encourage her 8 -year-old daughter to lead a 'pleasant life' by doing things which bring about pleasure every day. (1) For example, she could suggest that her daughter does a pleasurable activity every day when she gets home from school such as playing a game she enjoys. (1)
Other appropriate responses should also be credited.
2
Credit any suggestion that involve daily pleasures.
Do not credit suggestions that imply the following:
Good life - Having gratitude, knowing strengths and weaknesses, feeling you have experienced more positive than negative things in your life. Feeling your life has been well lived. Positive connections to other people (e.g. good relationships with others), satisfying work and enjoyable activities outside of work.
Meaningful life - Having a purpose in your life that is greater than oneself. Being involved in service to others (e.g. charitable work/donations, altruistic behaviour).
Suggest one way Zainab could encourage her 17-year-old daughter to have a 'meaningful life'.
’.
For suggested way:
Award 2 marks for a suggestion of the way to encourage 'meaningful life'. Award 1 mark for a basic outline of the way to encourage 'meaningful life'.
Meaningful life - Having a purpose in your life that is greater than oneself. Being involved in service to others (e.g. charitable work/donations, altruistic behaviour). Positive institutions such as strong family and democracy (within the family). Developing positive connections with others.
For example:
Zainab could encourage her 17-year-old daughter to lead a 'meaningful life' by doing things which involve service to others/gives her life purpose. (1) For example, Zainab could help her daughter to find a charity where she could volunteer some of her time each week. (1)
Other appropriate responses should also be credited.
2
Credit any suggestion that help to create a meaningful life.
Do not credit suggestions that imply the following:
Good life - see above.
Pleasant life - Enjoying daily pleasures in life; doing things you enjoy. For example, eating good food, doing activities you enjoy (reading, walks, sport, watching films, games, etc.).
Explain one reason why using positive psychology might not lead to an improvement in mental health for Zainab's daughters.
Award 2 marks for an explanation of why positive psychology might not lead to improvement.
Award 1 mark for a basic explanation of why positive psychology might not lead to improvement.
Reasons may include:
- Her daughters could have a mental health problem which needs medical support (such as taking anti-depressants).
- Everyone has 'bad days'/periods in our lives which are very stressful where no amount of doing things you enjoy helps.
- Trying to engage in activities you enjoy/service to others could result in feeling stressed that you should be doing something.
- Spending time on activities you enjoy/charitable work means her daughters will have less time to spend on things such as schoolwork, seeing friends, a part-time job. Having less time for these activities may cause stress and worry.
- Mental health is already very good.
- Mental health is difficult to measure so hard to know if the activities that both daughters are involved with have improved their mood.
Example:
Zainab's daughters might be experiencing stress in their lives due to having a lot of schoolwork/exams approaching. (1) Doing the meaningful/pleasant life activities could take time away from doing schoolwork and therefore Zainab's daughters would experience a decrease in mental health due to the stress this creates. (1)
Other appropriate responses should also be credited.
2
Zainab's daughters not doing positive psychology at all (e.g. because they don't want to) = 0 marks
Can credit that trying to do positive psychology but they don't believe in it, doesn't suit their personality, not taking it seriously, etc.