While some of the most popular courses at Tufts involve fields such as international relations, English, economics and biology, a new psychology course currently taught at Harvard University has the potential to change this trend.
Dubbed "the course on happiness" by CNN, that course, called "Positive Psychology," outlines not only the content of a self-help book, but also details the steps necessary to create "a fulfilling and flourishing life."
Harvard students responded well: The class boasted an enrollment of 855 students this semester. Perhaps what drew such large numbers is the fact that the course focuses on a newer area of psychology - one centered on what makes people feel happy, rather than sad, upset or angry.
Despite how it may sound, the course, which saw similarly marked interest at the University of Pennsylvania, is more than just an "easy A" or a "fun" class students take as an alternative to rigorous academic courses.
Shane Lopez, an Associate Professor at the University of Kansas and co-author of a textbook on positive psychology, told CNN that Harvard's course lecturer, Tal D. Ben Shahar, is "the leader of the pack right now" on the subject.
According to Lopez, the course's emphasis on "What do I have going for me?" or "What have I done right today?" could have a great impact on students as they venture into the oftentimes cutthroat worlds of business and graduate school.
Tufts Assistant Psychology Professor Samuel Sommers said that part of the reason the positive psychology genre is catching on is the commonly held belief that psychology tends to focus more on the "negative" aspects of humanity.
"For example, when one studies memory, he learns about errors or forgetting. In social psychology, we study topics like aggression and prejudice - so some would argue that psychology, overall, puts too much of a negative slant on human tendencies," Sommers said. "Positive psychology is becoming very popular because some believe that studying trends in, say, positive moods would provide a more balanced take on human nature."
Although Tufts' own psychology department offers a wide range of courses in cognitive, developmental, and social psychology, a course on positive psychology has not yet been implemented.
Tufts' academically rigorous and competitive nature, however, could make it a fitting environment for such a course - even if only to provide the same kind of relaxation and balance as a pottery-making or yoga class.
"Why is it so big at Harvard? I'm not sure, but psychology, especially social psychology, is important to place in the context of life as a whole," Sommers said. "I'm always in favor of interesting psychology courses, and even though we don't have a course in positive psychology per se, many of our courses discuss a lot of those same issues."
Freshman Allie Jameson, who recently took "Introduction to Psychology," believes that introducing such a class at Tufts would ultimately be beneficial for students.
"I would consider taking the course if it was available - not only because people need to 'learn' how to be happy, but rather to look at different perspectives on what really matters for a happy life in general," Jameson said.
But the thought of "learning how to be happy" in a classroom setting may not be appealing to everyone - nor could it necessarily help students achieve ultimate contentedness or fulfillment.
"I would hope that students would take what was said in the class with a grain of salt, so to speak, because although there are many ways others can help you find happiness, it seems more like something you have to discover for yourself," Jameson said.
Sophomore Ella Carney, who is a psychology major, also said that "learning" how to be happy is not enough to affect any serious changes. "But offering guidance and steps to take [toward happiness] are valuable for yourself and for everyone else," Carney said.
"Psychology itself is about identifying the problem and taking initiative to fix it. There's always room for improvement," she continued. "[The course] wouldn't be a quick fix to happiness, but I definitely think it's worth investigating. This class would be more like therapy for people who want to be happy."
Sophomore Minah Je said that she would take the course out of pure curiosity.
"If we had such a class at Tufts, I personally would take it. I want to know what it takes to 'achieve fulfillment' with life," Je said. "But I think it would really only affect some people. Happiness and being content are more objective than anything."
