Change Resilience and Positive Psychology
Change resilience is the capacity of people and teams to adapt to change, recover from setbacks and keep functioning while things are uncertain. Positive psychology, launched as a field by Martin Seligman in the late 1990s, supports it by studying strengths, wellbeing and what already works, rather than only what is wrong.
Quick facts
- Type
- Concept (individual and team capacity)
- Origin
- Positive psychology: Martin Seligman's APA presidency (1998) and Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi (2000); resilience research, for example Masten (2001)
- Used when
- A change is long, uncertain, or one of several running at once
- Related models
- Appreciative Inquiry · Growth mindset · Change curve
- Exam relevance
- APMG CM Foundation, People & Change (PC0205)
What is positive psychology?
Positive psychology is the study of what helps people and groups thrive. Martin Seligman made it the theme of his term as president of the American Psychological Association, arguing that psychology had concentrated on repairing damage and neglected strengths. In 2000, Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi set out the field's scope: positive experiences, positive individual traits and the institutions that support them.
Seligman later summarized wellbeing in the PERMA framework: positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning and accomplishment.
Applied to change, positive psychology means building on people's strengths, wellbeing and what already works, so that resilience and engagement rise. It does not mean demanding optimism or suppressing concerns: legitimate worries still need to be heard.
Positive psychology therefore shifts the question from "what is wrong with people's reaction?" to "what helps them cope and contribute?"
What is change resilience?
Resilience is the ability to adapt well to difficulty and to recover after setbacks. Masten (2001) described it as "ordinary magic": it comes from common resources such as supportive relationships, a sense of competence and the ability to manage emotions, not from rare personal qualities.
Two points follow for change:
- It can be developed. Resilience is not a fixed trait that people either have or lack.
- It depends on context. Workload, support from managers, clarity and a sense of control matter as much as individual character.
Research on psychological capital, which combines hope, efficacy, resilience and optimism, links these resources to more positive emotions and to attitudes and behaviors that help organizational change (Avey, Wernsing & Luthans, 2008).
Change resilience is therefore a shared outcome of the person and the conditions the change creates.
How can a change manager support resilience during change?
At Brightwater Health, a clinic network is moving to new rosters while a records system is replaced. The change manager focuses on conditions people can feel:
- Clarity and control. Say what is known and what is not, and let teams choose how to implement where possible.
- Social support. Set up peer groups and regular check-ins by line leaders.
- Strengths. Give people roles that use what they do well, such as experienced staff coaching others.
- Small wins. Make early progress visible to build realistic optimism.
- Recovery. Watch workload and pace, and avoid stacking deadlines from several changes.
Teams also recall a past change they handled well and what made it work. Appreciative Inquiry applies this strengths-based logic to the whole organization through its 4-D cycle: Discover, Dream, Design and Destiny.
Change resilience is therefore supported by how the change is run, not only by resilience training.
What are the criticisms of positive psychology in change?
Positive psychology has broadened research beyond illness and deficit, and many of its practices are simple to apply. Critics warn about three risks.
- Forced positivity. Asking people to "stay positive" can silence concerns that point to real flaws in the change.
- Shifting the burden. Resilience programs can place on individuals the cost of problems the organization should fix, such as excessive workload.
- Overstated claims. Some popular findings did not hold up. Brown, Sokal and Friedman (2013) showed that the mathematics behind a widely cited "positivity ratio" did not hold, and the original paper was formally corrected.
Change resilience and positive psychology are therefore most credible when they sit alongside honest communication and realistic workloads.
Positive psychology vs. Appreciative Inquiry: what is the difference?
| Positive psychology | Appreciative Inquiry | |
|---|---|---|
| Originator | Martin Seligman, with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi | David Cooperrider and Suresh Srivastva |
| Form | A field of psychological research | A participative change method |
| Level | Mainly individuals and teams | Whole organizations or systems |
| Structure | No fixed steps; PERMA is one framework | The 4-D cycle: Discover, Dream, Design, Destiny |
| Main use in change | Build wellbeing, engagement and resilience | Design the future from strengths and peak experiences |
Both start from strengths rather than deficits; positive psychology explains what helps people thrive, while Appreciative Inquiry turns that logic into a group process for designing change.
Exam focus
At Foundation level (PC0205) expect comprehension of what positive psychology brings to change: a focus on strengths, wellbeing and what already works, to raise resilience and engagement. Appreciative Inquiry is mapped to the same topic and applies the strengths-based logic to the organization. A common trap reads positive psychology as demanding optimism or silencing concerns.
Practise this syllabus area →FAQ
What is change resilience?
Change resilience is the capacity of people and teams to adapt to change, recover from setbacks and keep working well during uncertainty. It can be developed, and it depends on context, such as workload, support and clarity, as much as on individual character.
Who founded positive psychology?
Martin Seligman is credited with launching positive psychology as a field in the late 1990s, during his term as president of the American Psychological Association. He and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi set out its scope in a 2000 article in American Psychologist.
What is the PERMA model?
PERMA is Martin Seligman's summary of the elements of wellbeing: positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning and accomplishment. In change, it reminds leaders that people need more than information: they also need connection, purpose and a sense of progress.
How do you build resilience in a team during change?
Give clarity about what is known and unknown, some control over how the change is implemented, peer and manager support, roles that use people's strengths, and visible small wins. Watch workload and pace, because exhaustion erodes resilience faster than any training can build it.
Does positive psychology mean ignoring problems?
No. Positive psychology adds attention to strengths and wellbeing; it does not remove attention from problems. Concerns raised during a change often contain useful information, and treating them as negativity to suppress damages trust and the quality of the change.
Sources
- Seligman, M. E. P. & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14.
- Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being. Free Press.
- Masten, A. S. (2001). Ordinary magic: Resilience processes in development. American Psychologist, 56(3), 227–238.
- Avey, J. B., Wernsing, T. S. & Luthans, F. (2008). Can positive employees help positive organizational change? Impact of psychological capital and emotions on relevant attitudes and behaviors. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 44(1), 48–70.
- Brown, N. J. L., Sokal, A. D. & Friedman, H. L. (2013). The complex dynamics of wishful thinking: The critical positivity ratio. American Psychologist, 68(9), 801–813.
- Last reviewed