My top five signature strengths now in 2010 are:

1. Curiosity [Wisdom and Knowledge]
2. Love [Humanity]
3. Appreciation of beauty and excellence [Transcendence]
4. Creativity [Wisdom and Knowledge]
5. Perspective [Wisdom and Knowledge]

Compared with my top five signature strengths two years ago:

1. Creativity, ingenuity, and originality [Wisdom and Knowledge]
2. Curiosity and interest in the world [Wisdom and Knowledge]
3. Appreciation of beauty and excellence [Transcendence]
4. Capacity to love and be loved [Humanity]
5. Leadership [Justice]

My comments:

Apparently, my survey results are categorised in the 76% who have 3 or more strengths in common in their top 5 between the first and second test taking, with curiosity, love, appreciation of beauty and excellence, and creativity coming up tops (VIA Institute on Character, 2009).  Also, the results display 2 of the 5 most common strengths, curiosity and love, in which 92.5% have as one of their top 5 strengths (VIA Institute on Character, 2009).

As to date, the VIA survey has adequate test-retest reliability (>.7) and moderate psychometric and predictive validity (rs = .5) (Peterson, 2010), evident in my own personal assessment with the VIA survey.

I found it interesting that my personal taking of the VIA dropped from 4 to 3 Virtue categories, with a slightly more pronounced bias on the Wisdom and Knowledge Virtue category.  Nevertheless, Leadership is not too far down the list, and has been superseded by Perspective.

On deeper hindsight, this particular blend of strengths reflect the development of my character in these 2 years.  I have always been curious, and even more so now with the more people and situations I encounter.  The more I encounter and empathise with, the higher the priority I place on my loved ones and my values and principles.  With the passing of time and experiences of life, I appreciate the simplest beauty and excellence of my environment, the people and things around me and within my knowledge.  Creativity has been synonymous with me, and it serves to spice up life not only in the ‘conventional’ creative ways, but now oozing in ‘unconventional’ words, thoughts and actions.  Perspective is the new kid on the block on my list of top 5.  I reckon I had a steep learning curve and radical transformation in these 2 years that led to this strength being developed earlier than most people.  To be taken with a pinch of salt, my VIA results are in the top 3% of the test-takers, adjusted against gender and educational background.  This is to be cautiously interpreted as the VIA is still a self-assessment, and may be subjected to individual bias or mis-representation.  On the funny side, I am as wise as an ancient, white-haired guru, looking as young as a teenager, as beautiful as a celebrity, with a superbly curious bent, oozing and breathing love and creativity, and with my head always angled up and drinking in the beauty and excellence of the skies and nature!  I wonder what to make of this description!

Do you want to get acquainted with your signature strengths?  Take the VIA Survey, and let me interpret it for you.  Remember, I am curious to know you, and love to know that you are living fully with your strengths – every day, all the time.

References

Peterson, C., 2010. VIA Survey Psychometric Data. In VIA intensive: Strengths – Character strengths and virtues in practice.

VIA intensive: Strengths – Character strengths and virtues in practice.

Some interesting things to note:

The VIA used to stand for “Values In Action”, however, it now simply represents  the literal meaning of VIA – “the way”.  It is the way to Happiness, via our strengths.

No changes in the strengths’ names, however, there is a growing amount of positive literature and research conducted on these over the 2 years.

2009

Wisdom and Knowledge

1. Creativity
2. Curiosity
3. Judgment & Open-Mindedness
4. Love of Learning
5. Perspective

Courage

1. Bravery
2. Perseverance
3. Honesty
4. Zest

Humanity

1. Capacity to Love and Be Loved
2. Kindness
3. Social Intelligence

Justice

1. Teamwork
2. Fairness
3. Leadership

Temperance

1. Forgiveness and Mercy
2. Modesty and Humility
3. Prudence
4. Self-Regulation

Transcendence

1. Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
2. Gratitude
3. Hope
4. Humour
5. Religiousness and Spirituality

2010

1. Wisdom and Knowledge

• Creativity
• Curiosity
• Judgment & Open-Mindedness
• Love of Learning
• Perspective

2. Courage

• Bravery
• Perseverance
• Honesty
• Zest

3. Humanity

• Capacity to Love and Be Loved
• Kindness
• Social Intelligence

4. Justice

• Teamwork
• Fairness
• Leadership

5. Temperance

• Forgiveness & Mercy
• Modesty & Humility
• Prudence
• Self-Regulation

6. Transcendence

• Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
• Gratitude
• Hope
• Humor
• Religiousness & Spirituality

Here is a tabulation of strengths classified under each virtue, Wisdom and Knowledge, Courage, Humanity and Love, Justice, Temperance, and Transcendence (Seligman, 2002).

Wisdom and Knowledge

1. Curiosity/Interest in the World
2. Love of Learning
3. Judgment/Critical Thinking/Open-Mindedness
4. Ingenuity/Originality/Practical Intelligence/Street Smarts
5. Social Intelligence/Personal Intelligence/Emotional Intelligence
6. Perspective

Courage

1. Valour and Bravery
2. Perseverance/Industry/Diligence
3. Integrity/Genuineness/Honesty

Humanity and Love

1. Kindness and Generosity
2. Loving and Allowing Oneself to Be Loved

Justice

1. Citizenship/Duty/Teamwork/Loyalty
2. Fairness and Equity
3. Leadership

Temperance

1. Self-Control
2. Prudence/Discretion/Caution
3. Humility and Modesty

Transcendence

1. Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
2. Gratitude
3. Hope/Optimism/Future-Mindedness
4. Spirituality/Sense of Purpose/Faith/Religiousness
5. Forgiveness and Mercy
6. Playfulness and Humour
7. Zest/Passion/Enthusiasm

My top five strengths are Creativity, ingenuity, and originality; Curiosity and interest in the world; Appreciation of beauty and excellence; Capacity to love and be loved; and Leadership. What is yours?

References

Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new Positive Psychology to realise your potential for lasting fulfillment. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Is everything that makes you feel good positive? That is an interesting question I will consider in due course.

Going by psychological convention, manuals are possibly a convenient method of classifying the unclassified. When there is a yin, there is also a yang. After concentrating on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), a ray of sunshine is paved with the development of Values in Action (VIA) Classification of Strengths Manual (Seligman, 2003, as cited in Pawelski, 2004). The VIA comprises 24 strengths categorised under six virtues: Wisdom and knowledge, Courage, Humanity and love, Justice, Temperance, and Transcendence (Seligman, as cited in Pawelski). The strengths listed under these six virtues are great fodder for more research which I hope to undertake in the future.

The study of Positive Psychology also seeks to address not only positive individual traits (classified by the VIA), but also on two other related issues: positive subjective experience and conducive environments for positive traits and experiences (Peterson & Seligman, 2003). In a morbid metaphor, the study of traits is the skeleton, and the experience, the flesh on the skeleton. Together, they exist together (that is, the environment) to create happiness.

Traits, experience and the environment are the ingredients of the spectrum of emotions. Be it happiness or sadness, the study of “negative” Psychology, without which, would not have laid the foundation for the current interest and popularity in Positive Psychology.

References

Pawelski, J. O. (2004). The promise of positive psychology for the assessment of [and building] character. Retrieved January 24, 2008, from http://www.lifeskillstraining.org/seligman.htm

Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2003). Values in action (VIA) classification of strengths. Retrieved January 24, 2008, from http://www.ppc.sas.upenn.edu/viamanualintro.pdf

Positive psychology. (n.d.). Webster’s New Millennium™ Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.7). Retrieved January 17, 2008, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/positive psychology