Illustrating positive psychology concepts through service learning: Penn teaches resilience

Abstract

We describe an undergraduate service-learning research course in which undergraduates are trained to disseminate an intervention designed to promote resilience and well-being in middle-school youth. The course provides undergraduates with an opportunity for active and collaborative learning in psychology and serves as a new model for the wide-scale dissemination of evidence-based prevention programs through supervised undergraduates. We provide insights into the strengths and weaknesses of the course, along with some thoughts about ways that readers might implement something similar at their own institutions, using the Penn Resiliency Program or other related interventions.

Keywords:

• teaching of positive psychology
• service learning
• adolescents
• resilience
• education