The developmental context of school satisfaction: Schools as psychologically healthy environments.

Abstract

A positive psychology perspective on school psychology challenges us to think critically about the degree to which schools and schooling processes support children’s optimum adjustment. We argue that schools contribute to a student’s positive adjustment when they function as psychologically healthy environments for development. In this narrative re-view, we examine contemporary perspectives on positive adjustment in children and pro-pose a developmental-ecological perspective as one theoretical lens through which to view positive school adjustment. We will critique the empirical literature on contextual factors contributing to school satisfaction, one marker of positive school adjustment. Fi-nally, we will make recommendations for practice and research in this area. Psychology has turned an important corner. Whereas our predominant paradigm has focused on human deficits and pathology (Albee, 2000), we are beginning to recognize positive aspects of well-being as foci for the science and practice of psychology. Positive psychology emphasizes aspects of wellness, or the active quality of adapting to various situations and settings that is exhibited through positive behavioral, psychological, and physiological markers (Cowen, 2000).

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