Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) Capstone Projects
Document Type
Thesis or dissertation
Date of this Version
8-2020
Abstract
Artificial intelligence has generated more ambivalence than any technology in human history. As Silicon Valley enters the third decade of its self-proclaimed era of artificial intelligence, there is still surprisingly little agreement about the nature of the 21st century’s defining invention, and even less about how our relationship with this seminal technology should be managed in the future. Positive psychology offers software engineers methods to cultivate a greater understanding of the unique strengths of the artificial intelligence programs they develop, as well as the effects to wellbeing triggered by the applications they deploy. In this paper, I will propose three tools inspired by my chosen field of study for use by artificial intelligence innovators: (a) a classification of the artificial intelligence strengths and virtues; (b) the THETIS dimensions of cybernetic wellbeing, and; (c) the definition of a positive existential posthuman philosophy of artificial intelligence design. The philosophy of positive psychology is perhaps most succinctly summarized with a single phrase: “other people matter.” If Silicon Valley is to deliver a clearer and more compelling vision of the future of artificial intelligence—one in which human and machine agents work and thrive in collaborative harmony—then it must update its innovation practices to embrace a similarly transformative point of view: “other consciousnesses matter,” too.
Keywords
Artificial intelligence, positive psychology, existential psychology, posthumanism, design-thinking, cybernetics
Topic
Well-Being/Flourishing, Character Strengths and Virtues, Artificial Intelligence
Format
Capstone
Date Posted: 17 August 2020