Chinese Positive Psychology Revisited

Abstract

This paper argues that since Chinese culture is complex and profound, an uncritical transplant of American positive psychology to Chinese soil may not be fruitful. It proposes that a more promising approach to Chinese Positive Psychology (CPP) calls for research programs that meet the needs of the Chinese people in their unique cultural and political context. More specifically, it first describes the defining characteristics of the Chinese culture and then outlines three related tracks of research: (1) Basic psychological research based on Chinese yin-yang dialectics, (2) the indigenous psychology movement, and (3) cross- cultural psychology research. This paper concludes that Wong’s (2011) dialectical perspective of Positive Psychology 2.0 may provide a more culturally appropriate framework for a productive CPP and a hopeful future for China.