Positive psychology: East and West

thors, no doubt. Their photos, however, seemed to offer only one kind of account: that which belongs to the dominant cultural group in the United States. Where were all the authors who could reflect the manifold variety of the United States'! Where in this issue were the writers who speak about the histories, courage, chal- lenges, and success of people of color? The contributing authors deconstructed some of the major dominant theories on psychology, but little was offered toward deconstructing how, in hosting such a relevant theme, the major journal in the field simply kept the perspectives of psychologists of color si- lenced and invisible. The reader may have concluded that overcoming, struggling with, surviving, and thriving in adversity is a sub- ject that belongs to White American authors and subjects. . Addressing issues of social justice from the perspective of a positive psychology can- not be replaced by a study about bio-cultural inheritance (Massimini & Delle Fave, Janu- ary 2000) or a cross-cultural study that com- pares attributions of well-being by citizens from a selected group of countries (Diener, January 2000). Seligman and Csikszentmi- halyi (2000) stated that they wanted to be comprehensive without being redundant (p. 8), but the results demonstrated the lack of inclusion that people of color so often experi- ence when psychologists address themes that they construe as significant. Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi suggested that the articles were intended to be broad overviews with an eye turned to cross-disciplinary links and practical significance (p. 9). Is it possible that there are no seasoned scholars of color or perspectives that use a positive psychology framework to speak about nondominant groups in the United States, not only within psychology but also across disciplines? A blind eye that continues to render large seg- ments of society invisible. cannot be compen- sated for by one informed eye turned only toward individuals and groups in mainstream psychology. IW'EUNCES Diener, E. (2000). Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and a proposal for a national index. American Psychologist, 55, Massimini, F., & Delle Fave, A. (2000). Indi- vidual development in a bio-cultural per- spective. American Psychologist, 55, 24- Seligman. M. E. P., & Csilcszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduc- I tion. American Psychologist, 55, 5-14. Correspondence concerning this comment should be addressed to Gonzalo Bacigalupe, January 2001 • American Psychologist University of Massachusetts Boston, Graduate College of Education, Boston MA 02125- 3393 . Electronic mail may be sent to gonzalo.bacigalupe@umb.edu. DOI: 10.10l71/000l--066X.S6. I .83 Positive Psychology: East and West RogerWulsh University of California, Irvine 1 don't think I have ever been as excited by an issue of the American Psychologist as I was by the January 2000 issue on positive psy- chology edited by Martin E. P. Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. At last the leaders of the American Psychological Association are focusing on the positive rather than only the pathological and are discussing topics such as happiness, well-being, and creativity. I feel happier already, and I applaud their effocts. At the same time, I feel compelled to point to an unfortunate gap: The issue is ethnocentric and lacks attention to, or even mention of, non-Western psychologies and therapies, as well as the field oftranspersonal psychology, which has worked to integrate Western and non-Western approaches. This is especially unfortunate because it is now apparent that certain Asian psychologies are not only sophisticated systems with effective techniques-meditation and yoga being the best known- -but also focus specifically on positive well-being and exceptional develop- ment. For example, the Indian psychologies of Buddhism and yoga lack infonnation on the nature and treatment of major psychopa- thology. However, they contain a wealth of information on exceptional psychological health, postconventional transpersonal devel- opment, exceptional abilities, and the meth- ods for cultivating them (Tart, 1992; Walsh, 2000). A large body of research- several hundred studies on meditation alone-sug- gests that meditation and yoga have effects ranging across psychology, physiology, and biochemistry and can enhance both psycho- logical and physical health, sometimes to ex- ceptional degrees. ln the psychological arena, personality, performance, and perception may be en- hanced. Intriguing findings include evidence for enhanced empathy, perceptual sensitivity, creativity, lucid dreaming, marital satisfac- tion, and a positive sense of self-control. Studies of transcendental meditation suggest that it can foster maturation as measured by scales of moral, ego, and cognitive develop- ment, intelligence, academic achievement, self- actualization, and states of consciousness (Alexander, Rainforth, & Gelderloos, 1991; Mwphy & Donovan, l 997; Walsh & Vaugh- an, 1993; West, 1987). A variety of specific meditations exists to cultivate exceptional ca- pacities such as concentration, compassion, and altruism, although little experimental work has been done on these (Walsh, 1999). Researchers of positive psychology have a theoretical and practical gold mine of more than 2,000 years of exploration of positive psychology on which to draw. The field of transpersonal psychology draws on this data and has developed theo- ries that integrate Asian ideas with Western concepts and research. As such, it has begun to develop the outlines of a global integral psychology, best exemplified in the writings of Ken Wilber. A valuable overview of his ideas can be found in Wilber (1996), and a denser survey can be found in Wilber (2000) or in his collected works. ln drawing attention to the omission of Asian perspectives and the work on I.hem already done by transpersonal psychologists, I do not wish in any way to detract from the superb work done by contributors to the American Psychologist on positive psychol- ogy. 1 wish only to urge Western psycholo- gists to look beyond Western psychology and culture to incorporate the best of all psy- chologies and cultures. RIFERENCES Alexander, C., Rainforth, M., & Gelder!oos, P. ( 1991 ). Transcendental meditation, self- actualization and psychological health: A conceptual overview and statistical meta- analysis. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 6, 189-247. Murphy, M., & Donovan, S. (1997). The physical and psychological effects of medi- tation (2nd ed.). Sausalito, CA: Institute of Noetic Sciences. Tart, C. (Ed.). ( 1992). Transpersonal psy- chologies (3rd ed.). New York: Harper Collins Walsh, R. ( 1999). Essential spirituality: The seven central practices. New York: Wiley. Walsh, R. (2000). Asian therapies. In R. Corsini & D. Wedding (Eds.), Current psychothera- pies (6th ed., pp.407-444). Itasca, IL: Pea- cock . Walsh, R., & Vaughan, F. (Eds.). (1993). Path.v beyond ego: The transpersona/ vi- sion. New York: Tarcher/Putnam. West, M . (Ed.). (1987). The psychology of meditation. Oitford, England: Clarendcn Press. Wilber, K. (1996). A brief history of every- thing. Boston: Shambbala. Wilber, K. (2000). Integral psychology. Bos- ton: Shambhala. Correspondence concerning this comment should be addressed to Roger Walsh, Dep8r1-