Raising Flourishing Adults: How Positive Psychology Can Help Adolescents Rise Above Stressful Life Events to Lead Flourishing Adult Lives

Adolescence is a time of dramatic change and growth across multiple systems. Simultaneous development of neural, biological, and social domains of functioning renders adolescence a heightened period of sensitivity to early life experiences. Among these experiences, stressful life events are shown to disrupt the architecture of the developing brain, increasing the risk of future mental health disorders, such as depression and anxiety. In this paper, I discuss the risk of adolescence, such as the vulnerabilities to stress, alongside the unique plasticity that creates an opportunity for positive external influences (e.g., family milieu). Finally, I propose a multidimensional construct, known as RISE, for adolescent flourishing borrowing from other validated positive psychology concepts. A workshop and specific interventions to improve each of the four elements of RISE are proposed that can be used by parents.