Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) Capstone Projects
The MAPP Capstone is an independent project that integrates what the student has learned in the program and advances the application of Positive Psychology.
If you are a MAPP graduate and would like to have your Capstone project uploaded onto this site, please submit your Capstone. If you are the only author on your Capstone project, your decision to upload the document will serve as your agreement to the terms (individual authors do not actually have to submit an agreement form). If you completed a Capstone project with multiple authors, each author will need to submit an Author Agreement form. Please send the completed forms to Aaron Boczkowski (aaronb2@sas.upenn.edu) and Kenny Whitebloom (libraryrepository@pobox.upenn.edu). Once received, one of the authors can upload the Capstone.
Papers from 2017
From Negative Biases to Positive News: Resetting and Reframing News Consumption for a Better Life and a Better World, Henry Edwards
Thriving Cities: How to Define, Apply, and Measure Well-Being at Scale, Jaclyn Gaffaney
Turning Division into Discourse: Educating Adolescents about Viewpoint Diversity, Erin McLaughlin Griffin
Positive Public Service: Turning Purpose Into Progress By Changing How Government Works From the Inside, B.J. Jones
Cultivating Meaning at Work, in Four Movements, Yumi Kendall
Burned-In, Not Burned Out: A Theory of How Excellent Urban Educators Shift Mindsets and Continue to Teach, Julia King and Sophia Kokores
Saving the World the Right Way: Altruistic Education, Supakorn Laohasongkram
How Positive Psychology Overlaps with a Culturally-Based Indigenous Addictions Treatment Program, Rolanda Manitowabi
Building Resilience in MBA Students: Bouncing Back and Forward through Challenges, Denitsa Marinova
Forgiveness: How it Manifests in our Health, Well-being, and Longevity, Kathi Norman
Genuine, Independent, Holistic, and Appropriate: Four Considerations for the Optimization of Positive Interventions, Luke August Obermann
Back to Work: The Effects of Goal Conflict on Working Mothers, Lauren Ogle
Career Matters: Leveraging Positive Psychology to Guide Us to Good and Right Work, Kerry Sanderson
Summer Camp Professionals’ Positive Psychology Certification Program, Kenneth Schainman
Appreciation And Well Being: Proposing Active Constructive Complimenting (ACC) And Active Constructive Accepting (ACA) To Improve Appreciation, Glory K. Singh
Bringing Awe Down to Earth: Inspiring High Performance Through Positive Executive Coaching, Chad Thomas
Positive Psychology in Collegiate Sport: Leveraging the Pivotal Role of the Athletic Trainer to Promote Student-Athlete Well-being, Jessica Turak
Papers from 2016
I've Got Your Back: Utilizing Improv as a Tool to Enhance Workplace Relationships, Jordana Cole
Getting to the Heart of It: Commitment at Work, Grace Cormier
Toward a Positive Medicine: Healing our Healers, from Burnout to Flourishing, Jordyn H. Feingold
The Long and Winding Road from Positive Psychology Theory to Corporate Application, Garrison M. Kitchen
United for Wellbeing: Using Appreciative Inquiry to Increase Social Cohesion and Student Wellbeing in an Ethnically Diverse Rural School District, Tracy L. Litchfield
Shoots & Ladders: Having Infinite and Influential Presence With Everyone Starts With our Mindsets, Alana R. Pudalov
Defining a Positive Citizenship; Wellbeing for Emancipation, Leora V. Rifkin
Channeling the River: Using Positive Psychology to Prevent Cultural Helplessness, as Applied to African-American Law Students, Dwayne Allen Thomas
The Resilience Compass: How Mindset, Skills-Development, Self-Compassion, Service, and Community Empower Actors to Bounce Back, Reclaim Their Passion, and Live Their Purpose, Kimberly Wimmer Totty
Mindfulness-Based Safety: Increasing Attention to Task in Alberta’s Oil and Gas Drilling and Completions Operations, Darrah E.M. Wolfe
Papers from 2015
Gracious Mindset: Practicing Respectful Interpretations, Donna Baumann
The Evolution of Business: Cultivating Flourishing for Organizations and Their Stakeholders, Andrew T. Brady
Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy: From Surviving to Thriving, Jennifer Cory
SEMEAR Project: Planting Seeds for a Better and More Virtuous World, Flora Regina da Silva M.A.
Resilience Training for Firefighters: A Proposed Approach, Karen F. Deppa
Building Attorney Resources: Helping New Lawyers Succeed Through Psychological Capital, Martha Knudson
Positive Psychology At Work: Psychological Capital and Thriving as Pathways to Employee Engagement, Ronald A. Levene
Walking Their Talk: The Role of the Body in Effective, Positive Leadership, LeeAnn M. Mallorie
Learning from Health Care Exemplars: How The Best Produce Extraordinary Results, Donna M. Payne
Message in the Music: Do Lyrics Influence Well-Being?, Patricia Fox Ransom
Energizing Social Interactions at Work: An Exploration of Relationships That Generate Employee and Organizational Thriving, Robert M. Rosales
Job Crafting and Personal Development in the Workplace: Employees and Managers Co-Creating Meaningful and Productive Work in Personal Development Discussions, Michaela Schoberova
What are Coaches Afraid of? An Exploration of Courage and the Path to Coaching Mastery, Joshua Steinfeldt
Tough Teammates: Training Grit and Optimism Together Improves Performance in Professional Footballers, Patrick J. Steinfort
Pilot Your Life Decisively for Well-Being and Flourishing, David P. St. George
DARE: Desire to Strive Beyond Current Capabilities, Shannon L. Thompson
Practical Wisdom and the Pursuit of the Good in the Good Life, Daniel Torrance
Papers from 2014
From Paralyzed to Catalyzed: Supporting Adolescent Girls Through Positive Psychology Coaching, Jessica Berger (Hopkins)
Building the Positive Law Firm: The Legal Profession at Its Best, Anne M. Brafford
Standing in Love: Unpacking and Unlocking the Supreme Emotion, Patricia De La Torre
Better Decisions Through the Application of Positive Psychology, Bill Fair
ConnectMore: A Relationship-building Curriculum for First-year College Students, Hayley Goldenthal
The Right Reflection: Improving Women's Self-Acceptance, Pam Alfrey Hernandez
Physical Activity and Thriving Community: Can Group-Walking Generate Social Capital? A Literature Review, Harold Lee
Strengths Building, Resilience, and the Bible: A Story-Based Curriculum for Adolescents Around the World, Dana McDaniel Seale
The Benefits of Being Yourself: An Examination of Authenticity, Uniqueness, and Well-Being, Abigail A. Mengers
Positive Interventions: Developing a Theoretical Model to Guide Their Development and Use, David S. Nevill
The Search for Purpose in Life: An Exploration of Purpose, the Search Process, and Purpose Anxiety, Larissa Rainey
Putting the Ha! In Aha!: Humor as a Tool for Effective Communication, Brandy Reece
Teaching Beautiful Questions: Using Literature to Teach Youth Appreciative Inquiry (AI), Shira R. Reicher
Signature Well-being: Toward a More Precise Operationalization of Well-being at the Individual Level, Michelle M. Reitzner
Introducing Self-Permission: Theoretical Framework and Proposed Assessment, Nico Rose
Magic at the Movies: Positive Psychology for Children, Adolescents and Families, Linda Jones Rufer MD
The Silver Realigning: How Baby Boomers Who Have Lost Their Jobs Can Become More Positive and Find New Meaning in Their Lives, Patrick Sweeney
Acting Strengths: The Development of Resilience and Character Strengths in Actors, Laura E. Taylor
How WeChat, the Most Popular Social Network in China, Cultivates Wellbeing, Jiaqi Wu
A Novel Calling Intervention for Career Development and Well-Being, Susanna Wu-Pong
Papers from 2013
Flourishing Mothers: A Positive Psychology-Based Coaching Strategy for Women, Brooke Booth
Soaringwords Empirical Research to Measure the Well-being of Hospitalized Children, Lisa Buksbaum
Thirteen Universal Assessments Which May Contribute to the ‘Good Life’, Jer Clifton
Character education: A role for literature in cultivating character strengths, Emily M. FitzSimons
Curating The Self: A Proposed Intervention for Positive Identity Crafting Through Self-presentation and Clothing, Jen Grace Baron
Aging in America: Time to Thrive, Deborah H. Hammons
What Positive Psychologists and Mormons Can Learn From Each Other, Elisa V. Hunter
Co-Destiny: A Conceptual Goal for Parental Bereavement and the Call for a “Positive Turn” in the Scientific Study of the Parental Bereavement Process., Joseph E. Kasper MD
Towards Positive Education: A Mindful School Model, Chin Leng Ong
Positive Recovery, Jason ZW Powers
Decision Adversity: a Character Strengths Perspective on Decision Uncertainty and Error, Elena Thompson
The Wellbeing Index: A Landscape of Worldwide Measures and the Potential for Large-Scale Change, Karen Smith Warner
Papers from 2012
Positive Psychology and Work-Life Integration: The Mutually Satisfying Relationship, Katie Comtois
Blending The Roots and Rhythm of Tai Chi with Positive Psychology: A Handbook, Justin Gruver
Well-Being At Work: An Engineer Short Circuits Workplace Dysfunction, Thomas Heffner
Victim Initiated Positive Disengagement: How Victims Can Flourish in the Aftermath of a Crime, Amy R. Holloway
Positive Media: An Introductory Exploration, Meghan B. Keener
The Impact of Positive Traits on Teacher Performance Within A Systems Driven Charter School Management Organization, Adam B. Maurer
Law Students in Balance: A Proposal for a Well-being Course for Law School Students Founded on the Constructs and Findings of Positive Psychology, Tatiana I. Pavlova-Coleman
Integrated Well-being: Positive Psychology and the Natural World, Aislinn Pluta
Super Women Lawyers: A Study of Character Strengths, Patricia Snyder
Papers from 2011
From Coach to Positive Psychology Coach, Peter L. Berridge Mr.
The Importance and Application of Explanatory Style, Emotional Control, and Goal Setting for Athletes: A Psychological Skills Program, Diana Caramanico
Innovating News Journalism through Positive Psychology, Cathrine Gyldensted
Unleashing the Power: Anthony Robbins, Positive Psychology, and the Quest for Human Flourishing, Stephanie M. Ramones
Living On Purpose: Why Purpose Matters and How to Find It -- A Framework for Gen X Women to Thrive, Carin Rockind
Resilience, Character Strengths and Flourishing: A Positive Education Workshop for Singapore Teachers, Sha-En Yeo
Positive Psychology and Men: The Tell-Tale Heart, Corey Zadik
Papers from 2010
Strengths Technology, Bridget Biggar and Ninh N. Tran
Happy at Work: How the Science of Positive Psychology Will Revolutionize the Workplace, Daniel S. Bowling III
Aid from Africa: Lessons for the West from the Motherland, Jaime B. Cundy Miss
Heart Start: A paradigm shift in early childhood education, Elizabeth Gragg Elizardi