Positive Psychology and the body the somatoPsychic side to flourishing Kate Hefferon Positive Psychology and the Body Positive Psychology and the Body The Somatopsychic Side to Flourishing Kate Hefferon Open University Press McGraw-Hill Education McGraw-Hill House Shoppenhangers Road Maidenhead Berkshire England SL6 2QL email: [email protected] world wide web: www.openup.co.uk and Two Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10121-2289, USA First published 2013 Copyright © Kate Hefferon, 2013 All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purposes of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher or a licence from the Copyright Licensing Agency Limited. Details of such licences (for reprographic reproduction) may be obtained from the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd of Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London, EC1N 8TS. A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library ISBN-13: 978-0-335-24771-4 ISBN-10: 0-335-24771-7 eISBN: 978-0-335-24772-1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data CIP data applied for Typeset by Aptara, Inc. Fictitious names of companies, products, people, characters and/or data that may be used herein (in case studies or in examples) are not intended to represent any real individual, company, product or event. Praise for the book “Finally, an author has addressed the white elephant in the room: the human body. Arguably one of the most important aspects of the self the body has long been overlooked by positive psychologists as a serious point of study. This book has it all: from sex to genetics to illness Hefferon brings an expert review of research, clear advice and fresh thinking.” Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener, Managing Director, Positive Acorn, LLC “With this fine textbook, Positive Psychology expands its scope considerably, to include new and important perspectives from the very foundation of any psyche: the body. Indeed, we may argue that as much as any organ, the psyche is part of the body, if certainly still very strangely so. Kate Hefferon with her colleagues are to be strongly applauded for making new understandings of the mind-body-unity so accessible to students and everyone else interested in this fascinating topic.” Hans Henrik Knoop, Aarhus University, Denmark and President, European Network for Positive Psychology “In a field – positive psychology – overcrowded with simplistic treatments of happiness and the good life, Kate Hefferon has put together a truly original book. By linking principles of positive psychology with the body, Hefferon brings to light the need for a more holistic approach to the good life, one that honors the reality that we carry out this project called “life” tethered to this world through our bodies. Anybody interested in a more grounded positive psychology should read this book.” Corey L. M. Keyes, Professor of Sociology, Emory University, USA “In showing the relevance of positive psychology to sexuality, nutrition, health and physical activity Kate Hefferon pushes the boundaries of positive psychology into new territory. Packed with ideas that we can apply in our own lives, students and others interested in positive psychology will find this book an excellent introduction. Well worth the time to read.” Stephen Joseph, author of What Doesn’t Kill Us: The New Psychology of Posttraumatic Growth v Dedication To my husband vi Contents Acknowledgements viii Preface ix List of Figures, Tables and Questionnaires xiii Guided Tour xv 1 Positive Psychology and the Body 1 2 Positive Psychophysiology (Kate Hefferon and Angela Clow) 20 3 Positive Neuroscience 39 4 Genetics and their Role in wellbeing (Kate Hefferon and Michael Pluess) 59 5 Positive Health 77 6 The Body during Illness and Trauma 92 7 Positive Sexuality 108 8 Positive Nutrition 136 9 Physical Activity 158 10 Adornment and Body Modification 182 11 Body Therapies 201 References 219 Index 249 vii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my ever-expanding family, Anthony and Milton, for their support and company over the past several months; my Mum and Dad who support from near and afar and Claire and Fin who support without even realizing. I would also like to thank the two chapter co-authors, Dr Michael Pluess and Professor Angela Clow, for their contribution and expertise. Thank you also to my colleagues who gave up their time to enhance the book, Dr John Turner and Dr Itai Ivtzan. Thank you to the artists who supported and believed in this book as a medium for their work. Finally, a big thank you to all those who shared their stories for the case studies so that we could bring research to life. viii Preface PurPose of the book As positive psychology continues to make leaps and bounds in terms of scientific advancement, the focus on the importance of the body within optimal physical and psychological functioning is still lagging. There are 7 626 books written about positive psychology on amazon.co.uk. Not one of them focuses on the body and its role in the facilitation of wellbeing. Indeed, within major textbooks (excluding Hefferon and Boniwell, 2011), there are only brief references to physical activity, touch, nutrition, etc. which leaves one of the most fundamental pieces of the happiness puzzle missing – the body. This book aims to provide a glimpse into the vast amount of scientific research completed on the physical mechanisms which assist either momentary experiences of pleasure or longer-lasting feelings of meaning and self-development. The approach to this book is a critical reflection on the omission of the body in positive psychology as well as a critical review of the literature to date. This book spans topics such as physical activity, interpersonal touch, sexual behaviours, nutrition and many more, from a phenomenological to a more psycho-biological approach to happiness. Some of the topics covered in themselves are contradictory to the concept of wellbeing, hence the criticality stems from the reflection on their potential role in flourishing. PersPeCtives within this book My fascination with the body has spanned decades, starting from the early years as a professional dancer and into my university education when I specialized in sport and human performance. In all these, the body, physical activity and wellbeing have been at the forefront of my inquiry. Since then, I have had the privilege of working with individuals who have suffered physical trauma and illness, which opened my eyes to the powerful influence of the body on optimal human functioning. However, the role of the body need not be only noticed during or after extreme adversity. Indeed, in everyday life: ■ how we treat our body; ■ how we move our body; ■ how we soothe our body; ■ how we feed our body; ■ how we dress our body; ix