Psychological well-being and human happiness will be the central themes of this activity, which will be based on the current called Positive Psychology. 

For a long time, psychology has been dedicated to investigating the negative aspects of human beings: anxiety, stress, depression, among others. On this occasion, the second conference of the cycle ''Psychology and contemporary society'', organized jointly by the Directorate of Extension and the Department of Psychology of the University of La Serena, will address the so-called positive psychology, its main findings and practical applications in human relationships. The activity is titled ''Happiness and positive psychology: Research and applications'' and will be given on Wednesday, May 28, at 11:30 a.m., by Mg. Mauricio Cerda Beroiza, academic at the ULS. According to what the rapporteur announced, very interesting discoveries have been made in the research of this new branch of psychology, and among them one of the things that gives people the most happiness It has to do with the quantity and quality of the human relationships they establish and not so much with the income they obtain. ''It has been found that for people, economic income is very important, but up to a certain point, from then on, even if people begin to double or triple their income, the truth is that this does not give them much more in terms of income. of the satisfaction or happiness they feel, but on the other hand, things like quality in human relationships, not only with family but also with friends or quality in work relationships become very important,'' Cerda stated.

It should be noted that in addition to the findings found in the research, attendees will be able to delve deeper into different positive aspects for their health. ''It has been seen that people who have a level of subjective well-being (...) are people who have better indicators of physical health, for example, they get sick less from a variety of things, live longer, have longer life expectancies, There are also better mental health indicators, they are more resistant to stress, they have fewer anxious and depressive symptoms,'' the rapporteur commented. 

The activity will seek to expand knowledge about this paradigm shift, the scientific advances that allow psychologists to use tools to not only treat emotional discomfort, but also prevent its appearance through the training of techniques and strategies, based on the fact that it has been It has been proven that positive mental states act as barriers to psychological disorders and have a preventive and even rehabilitative effect and can be used in psychotherapeutic treatment.

On the other hand, the topic will be analyzed from a political and governmental perspective, how the United Nations has reached Chile, even instituting an international day of happiness, and its relevance in political, economic, social and, above all, human development terms. 

''All people in one way or another aspire to happiness, we seek to feel happy, we seek for our lives to have meaning, we want to feel good with what we do, with the life we ​​have and the interesting thing is that very relevant things are happening that They are going to become increasingly noticeable, both at the level of large social policies that are changing the way of seeing things, but also from psychology itself, recommendations can be given. Research is showing things that are valid for many people that can help them feel better, experience greater personal well-being, what things should be avoided, some of this I will also touch on in the presentation. I imagine that more than someone can get something good and something positive for their lives,'' Mauricio Cerda concluded. 

For more information on this free entry activity, go to the ULS Extension Center, Prat 446, La Serena, call 051-2-204171, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or on social networks.