ABSTRACT
Positive psychology is flourishing in Portugal. The organization of national and international scholarly meetings, the development of positive psychology courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and the foundation of associations and research groups to study positive human functioning are providing visibility and value. In September 2010, positive psychologists from seven countries attended the First Portuguese Positive Psychology Congress in Lisbon. In addition, well-attended positive psychology courses are offered at several Portuguese universities, with a tenfold increase of applications since the inaugural course was offered in 2008. A recently opened master’s program in positive psychology in the Technical University of Lisbon, with a respectful body of international and national lectures, was offered to students from several backgrounds, such as psychologists, economists, engineers, marketers, managers, sociologists, geographers, historians, and jurists, among others. Additionally, positive psychology content and principles are being incorporated into other professional domains (e.g., nursing, education, management, and human resources) through courses and master’s and Ph.D. programs. Given this emerging interest in positive psychology in Portugal, a growing number research groups (e.g., Freire and colleagues from the University of Minho; Marques and colleagues from Porto University; Marujo and colleagues from Lisbon University; and Rego and colleagues from University of Aveiro) are actively working with institutions and communities to promote flourishing and to contribute to an evidence-based practice of positive psychology.
