Positive psychology at Melbourne strengthened by major gift

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This is the second Chair and fourth academic position at the University named to honour Gerry Higgins, an Irishman who emigrated from Kiltimagh in County Mayo, Ireland in 1949 and established Higgins Coatings, a successful commercial painting business, in Melbourne. Those posts are in philosophy, Irish studies, and medieval art history, and were variously supported by generous philanthropic support from Allan Myers, Maria Myers and John Higgins.

The Chairs (in Irish studies and now Positive Psychology) have been established in collaboration with Newman College, a Catholic residential college of the University, and incumbents play a role in College life.

Mr Higgins is a member of the Advisory Board of the Centre for Positive Psychology and also a board member of the Campaign for the University of Melbourne. He is passionate about education and has a vision that every student be exposed to the principles of positive psychology through their time at school, so they have the skills to influence their own lives, and those of the people around them.

“Psychology has traditionally supported people to move from minus ten to zero,” he has said. “What I love about positive psychology is it helps people move from zero to plus ten.”

www.education.unimelb.edu.au/research/research_centres/positive_psychology_at_melbourne

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