Review article

The Significance of Positive Emotions in Education

Dubravka Miljković orcid.org/0000-0002-1616-0792 ; Učiteljski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu
Majda Rijavec orcid.org/0000-0001-6361-9968 ; Učiteljski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu

Abstract

An increasing number of surveys have shown that positive emotions facilitate many social behaviours and cognitive processes, or, in other words, that they significantly improve our functioning. Introducing positive emotions into teaching broadens attention, allows us to clearly see the overall picture of the event, and increases the number of stimuli for acting and for general cognitive adaptability. Positive moods encourage the cognitive processing of both positive and negative information important for the achievement of a goal, they facilitate memorising, and positive people respond in a
more constructive and more flexible manner to important information about themselves and the environment. The style of thinking is more creative, more flexible and more open, decisions are made more quickly and in a more efficient manner, and we are more inclined towards altruistic behaviour. Since negative emotions, bad parents,
bad teachers and bad criticism are more influential than good ones, in order to overcome this negative effect, positive emotions must prevail over negative emotions in mutual relations (the ratio must be more than 3:1). This paper describes programmes aimed at increasing positive emotions in pupils and students and some
strategies that might be useful for increasing the positive in general.

Keywords

Positive emotions; learning; memorising; teaching; relations between teachers and pupils

Hrčak ID:

82831

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/82831

Publication date:

15.10.2009.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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