Appreciation and Well Being: Proposing Active Constructive Complimenting (ACC) and Active Constructive Accepting (ACA) to improve appreciation

Appreciation is extremely powerful. The exchange of this power through giving and receiving appreciation is enjoyed by many. Research has shown that appreciating others and receiving appreciation from others has a significant positive impact on our well-being. In this paper, along with discussing these benefits, I will elaborate on the various common languages of appreciation and the challenges faced while giving and accepting appreciation. Also, in addition to highlighting ways to make appreciation more aligned with the idea of positive psychology, I will draw on relevant literature from psychology and sociology, to propose the concepts of active constructive complimenting and active constructive accepting, as suggestions to better use the opportunity of giving and receiving verbal appreciation. In doing so, I suggest how we could transform our daily lives by building quality connections with others and have more meaningful interactions. To gain a better understanding of how people use appreciation in their daily lives, I created an online survey open to the non clinical adult population, which had inputs from 339 individuals from around the world.