Cooperation protocol signed in 'Positive Psychology'

A cooperation protocol was signed between Üsküdar University and the Turkish Psychological Counseling and Guidance Association. The collaboration, carried out within the scope of the 8th International Positive Psychology Congress, aims to strengthen academic, scientific, and practice oriented work in the field of positive psychology.

The signing ceremony, held in the Senate Hall at Üsküdar University’s Main Campus, was attended by President of Üsküdar University and Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, Turkish Psychological Counseling and Guidance Association Deputy President Prof. Mehmet Engin Deniz, Turkish PDR Association Istanbul Provincial Representative Assoc. Prof. Yusuf Akyıl, Turkish PDR Association Istanbul Provincial Office Principal Member Coordinator Specialist Psychological Counselor Sevda Kısrık, Üsküdar University Positive Psychology Coordinator Assistant Professor Fatma Turan, Head of Corporate Communications Nur Akman, and Head of the Education and Guidance Services Unit Özgür Akoğlan.

Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: “Psychological resilience is emphasized all over the world”

Drawing attention to the importance of preventive approaches in mental health, President of Üsküdar University and Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, stated that positive psychology has increasingly taken on a central role today.

Tarhan said: “After the pandemic, the value of positive psychology has been better understood. Psychological resilience is now emphasized all over the world. Focusing solely on correcting pathology is no longer considered sufficient because treating pathology is both costly and demanding. Preventive approaches have three stages: primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention. Primary prevention aims to strengthen psychological resilience so that healthy individuals do not become ill. Secondary prevention involves identifying risk groups and preventing them from developing illness. After that comes the treatment process, which is both burdensome and expensive. Tertiary prevention includes efforts to prevent relapse after illness. Positive psychology has a role and impact at all three stages and is actively used today. Real medicine is health medicine. It means not only treating people after they become ill but working to prevent illness in the first place. It means supporting healthy living. This understanding has recently begun to gain stronger recognition in psychiatry as well.”

“Preventive and strengthening mental health approaches are gaining greater importance”

Stating that positive psychology represents the future approach to mental health, Tarhan continued his remarks as follows: “Positive psychology is currently a field with great potential. We especially need to explain it correctly to students. In fact, positive psychology is the scientific, systematized, and methodologically structured form of values that have long existed within Anatolian wisdom. One of its starting points was Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences in the 1980s. Later, there were significant studies conducted with Martin Seligman. Seligman’s inventory of 6 Virtues and 24 Character Strengths was also shaped by this framework. Today, we apply positive psychotherapy methods to patients. In treatment, new generation approaches, almost like a fourth wave, are now being discussed. Mindfulness was accepted as the third wave, adopted globally, and challenged many established assumptions. These areas have a strong future because our main responsibility is not only to intervene after people become ill but to work so that they do not become ill. Preventive and strengthening mental health approaches are now gaining greater importance.”

Prof. Mehmet Engin Deniz: “Positive psychology is an approach rooted in our traditions”

Turkish Psychological Counseling and Guidance Association Deputy President Prof. Mehmet Engin Deniz also delivered remarks during the signing ceremony.

Deniz said: “I have been involved in these subjects for nearly 20 years. I first encountered the concept of self compassion in 2006 and adapted it into Turkish as ‘öz şefkat’ or ‘öz anlayış.’ Later, in 2011, I adapted the mindfulness scale into Turkish and named it ‘bilinçli farkındalık.’ Positive psychology is actually an approach that has strong counterparts within our culture, traditions, and intellectual heritage. When we look at the teachings of thinkers such as Yunus Emre, Hacı Bektaş-ı Veli, and Mevlana, we can see traces of what we now call mindfulness. Mevlana’s saying, ‘Yesterday is gone, my dear. Today we must say new things,’ perfectly emphasizes staying in the present moment and renewal. Therefore, bringing these concepts back into focus, keeping them alive, and discussing them on international scientific platforms is extremely valuable. Being included within the framework of a congress is also a particularly encouraging development.”