Publications

Integrating supervision into academic programs, particularly through the balance model of positive psychotherapy (PPT after Peseschkian), offers transformative benefits for psychology students and their clients. This approach bridges the gap between theory and practice, equipping students with a robust framework to better understand and address their clients’ needs.

The balance model fosters the development of key skills in future counselors, including self-awareness, problem-solving, and self-regulation. Simultaneously, it enables clients to gain clarity on their challenges and craft actionable plans for positive change. By focusing on strengths and adopting a holistic view of human life, this method promotes personal growth and overall well-being for both students and clients.

Feedback from participants underscores the effectiveness of this model in shaping skilled, empathetic, and confident professionals. Introducing innovative approaches like the balance model into university programs can significantly elevate the quality of training in psychology and counseling. This not only prepares students to make meaningful contributions but also emphasizes the need for further integration of positive psychotherapy into academic curricula and continued research to expand its impact.

Positive Psychotherapy (PPT after Peseschkian) provides a humanistic and resource-oriented approach to addressing personality disorders. This therapeutic model emphasizes the dynamic interplay of primary and secondary capacities, the Balance Model, and the influence of sociocultural factors on personality development. Rather than focusing solely on pathology, PPT highlights individuals’ latent strengths and their capacity for transformation. The therapeutic process integrates psychodynamic tools with PPT-specific interventions such as the five-step strategy (Observation-Distancing, Inventory, Situational Encouragement, Verbalization, and Broadening of Goals) to foster self-awareness, impulse control, emotional communication, and adaptive coping strategies. The role of transference and countertransference is also examined as a core element in therapy, providing deeper insight into relational patterns. By reinforcing self-esteem and relational skills, PPT helps individuals with personality disorders achieve greater psychological flexibility and social integration. This paper explores the application of PPT in treating personality disorders, illustrating its effectiveness in fostering sustainable personality development and emotional well-being.

The increasing dynamism, unpredictability and stress of the modern world have impacts on all areas of human life, leading to a generally worsened sense of security, quality of life, physical and mental health, and psychological well-being. A modern person’s living conditions, on the one hand, increase the probability of his/her traumatisation, and on the other hand, expand knowledge about trauma experiencing, which has not only negative consequences, but can also become a source of positive personality changes and post-traumatic growth. Current research on the factors contributing to positive adaptation shows that stress and worsened well-being occur when a person is too sensitive to perceived external stimuli and has insufficient internal resources to transform negative environmental impacts or change them. This section demonstrates the practical application of the Positive Psychotherapy (PPT after N. Peseschkian, since 1977) methodology, its arsenal of methods and tools for examining and developing internal resources for personality resilience, which is a kind of buffer that protects a person from negative psychogenic factors, helps to overcome difficulties without significant losses for mental health, promotes recovery and post-traumatic growth.

In many parts of the world, people are dealing with the long-term effects of multigenerational trauma. Collective historical trauma affects intergenerational group experiences. This chapter explores theories of trauma, transgenerational trauma, and historical collective trauma. As an illustration, a clinical analysis is presented, based on positive transcultural psychotherapy, of the impact on the current mental and social well-being of residents of a small town in Poland, as evidence of a new wave of collective re-traumatization from past traumas of Communism, Stalinism, and World War II.

This article presents the approach of Positive Psychotherapy (PPT after Peseschkian) in caring for victims of sexual violence and rape, as well as addressing their consequences, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PPT includes sexuality as a primary capacity in human development, playing an essential role in supporting a healthy mental health life. Misunderstandings and mistreatment involving unconscious, contradictory behavior aimed at pressuring or coercing an individual against their will represent abuse, violence, and alienation. This article will present some data from international studies, including data from wars, conflicts, and clinical practice.

The increasing number of forcibly displaced individuals worldwide highlights the urgent need for effective psychological support strategies for refugees. This chapter explores the dual challenge faced by mental health professionals who are refugees themselves while working with other displaced individuals. The study applies the principles of Positive Psychotherapy (PPT after Peseschkian) to analyze the psychological impact of refugee status and offers practical counseling approaches to aid adaptation and resilience. Using a framework based on social status theory, the study distinguishes between refugees and immigrants, emphasizing the unique psychological burdens of forced displacement, including trauma, loss, and socio-cultural adaptation challenges. The Balance Model of PPT is utilized to assess key adaptation domains—physical, organizational, socio-cultural, and worldview—illustrating how refugee status influences various life spheres. Case studies demonstrate how PPT’s Five-Stage Model supports refugees in processing trauma, rebuilding identity, and achieving emotional stability. The study concludes that PPT’s transcultural approach provides valuable therapeutic tools for fostering resilience and integration among refugees, while also benefiting mental health professionals working in similar conditions. This interdisciplinary perspective underscores the necessity of tailored psychotherapeutic interventions to address the complex psychological and social challenges faced by refugees.

This chapter focuses on providing pathways to trauma healing using methods of Positive Psychotherapy (PPT after Peseschkian). The PPT Trauma healing process follows the five steps of Positive Psychotherapy: Distancing, Inventory, Situational Encouragement, Verbalization, and Broadening of Goals. The healing starts with Distancing, where therapists maintain empathy while assessing the trauma following the proposed procedures like preparation, history collection, and identifying actual conflicts. In the Inventory phase, clients appraise their own emotional response, map their own past traumatic experience, and identify their key conflicts, basic conflicts, and inner conflicts. In order to address traumatic experience effectively, the therapist utilized three PPT models as a basic tool for healing traumatic experiences. The three tools are the Model Dimension, the Relation Dimension, and the Responsibility Dimension. The Model Dimension helps to identify past traumatic experiences. The Relationship Dimension will help to identify and work present contributing factors. The Responsibility Dimension helps to address the potential relapse of traumatic experiences in the future. Situational Encouragement encompasses reinforcing adaptive coping strategies, validating feelings, providing appropriate resources, and enhancing stabilization and motivation for hope. The step of Verbalization targets assertive communication to help clients to identify which aspects of traumatic consequences they can change and which they cannot change, and assisting the trauma healing process more successfully. Finally, in the Broadening of Goals the therapist helps clients in setting future-oriented goals, objectives, fostering healing, resilience, and a renewed sense of purpose as they move beyond their trauma.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had profound effects on both physical and mental health worldwide. Using the framework of Positive Psychotherapy (PPT after Peseschkian), this chapter explores the psychological impact of the pandemic, emphasizing resilience and coping strategies. The pandemic has led to increased stress, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and sleep disturbances, affecting various populations differently. Vulnerable groups, including healthcare workers, students, and the elderly, have faced unique challenges in adapting to the crisis. The chapter introduces the “Five-Finger Alliance,” a collaborative approach integrating psychiatrists, therapists, educators, and social workers to provide holistic care. By focusing on strengths and positive resources, PPT offers a structured way to address psychological distress, helping individuals regain balance and emotional well-being. Case studies illustrate the effectiveness of PPT interventions in addressing pandemic-related psychological issues. The chapter underscores the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and psychological resilience in navigating crises like COVID-19, offering insights for future public health responses.

This article explores the vital role of humor in positive psychotherapy and psychiatry, focusing on its evolutionary significance, neurological underpinnings, and therapeutic applications. It examines how humor enhances well-being by promoting emotional resilience, cognitive flexibility, and social bonding. The text also highlights programs to enhance sense of humor such as “The 7 Humor Habits” and “Parasympathetic Habits: Humor and Styles” to integrate humor into everyday life thus improving physical, mental, and relational health.

This paper explores the concept of meaning within the context of psychotherapy, drawing from Positive Psychology, Positive and Transcultural Psychotherapy (PPT), and Logotherapy. The focus is on how individuals can find fulfill life’s meaning through a balance between love, knowledge, and an understanding of life’s inherent limitations. Meaning, as seen in these therapeutic approaches, is both an objective reality (Bedeutung) and a subjective expression (Sinn). The therapeutic journey, grounded in the balance model of PPT, helps individuals navigate conflicts and develop capacities for love and knowledge, allowing them to find meaning in life’s challenges and achievements. Drawing upon stories, metaphors, and clinical exercises, the therapist acts as a guide in assisting patients understand their present, reflect on their past, and envision their future. The paper emphasizes that the search for meaning is a universal human endeavor, linked to balancing four life dimensions: physical, achievement, relational, and transcendental. Through this exploration, individuals are empowered to live authentically, overcoming existential challenges and embracing their uniqueness within a broader community.