ABSTRACT
Historically, medicine has focused on eliminating negative symptoms or “what is wrong” with someone rather than what makes one feel healthy and promotes flourishing (Engel, 1989). Traditional forms of psychotherapy, for example, cognitive-behavioral therapy, often emphasize decreasing negative thoughts, emotions, and behaviors (e.g. Beck, 2011). General physicians who heal physical ailments also mainly focus treatment on the disease itself. Recently there has been an acknowledgment of an important gap in medicine and patient care. Humanistic psychology arose during the 1950s to address the pessimism of psychology and focused on personal growth and self-actualization (Maslow, Frager, & Cox, 1970). In 1946, the World Health Organization defined health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO, 1946, p. 100), which showed a movement in medical care to acknowledging other aspects of health, such as happiness.
