Edinburgh Napier University

  Positive psychology has been an influential movement within psychology in the early years of the twenty-first century. This paper seeks to provide a critical and balanced assessment of the contribution to career counselling of this perspective, based on a review of the literature (published as Robertson, 2017). Positive psychology is associated with a number of useful concepts including 'eudaimonia', 'flow', the 'broaden and build' theory, 'character strengths', and 'calling'. These give fresh insights into career development that can enrich practice. Positive psychology helps to reframe our understanding of the outcomes of career counselling, by focusing attention on what a 'good life' means. In doing so, it potentially helps to unify the goals of career counselling and personal counselling. It provides an empirical basis for some elements of practice. However, the application of approaches derived from positive psychology to career counselling is problematic if practice is individualistic in outlook, and thus neglects the socioeconomic and institutional contexts in which careers are experienced and interventions take place. Furthermore, enthusiastic claims for its efficacy may sometimes go beyond a safe interpretation of the evidence base.