Dr. Martin E.P. Seligman, Dr. Roy Baumeister (Florida State University), Dr. Peter Railton (University of Michigan), and Dr. Chandra Sripada (University of Michigan) are leading “Prospective Psychology Stage 1: Imagination and Being Drawn Into the Future,” a three-year initiative (2012-2015) with the aim of establishing the field of Prospection. Grant activities include empirical research in the disciplines of psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy, publication of original theoretical and research articles in leading journals, execution of unique and immersive retreats on topics in prospection, and the preparation and eventual publication of a trade book for both scholarly and educated lay audiences,.
Tentatively titled Homo Prospectus Socialis, this groundbreaking book will open with a Clarion Call to shift the focus of the psychological sciences from the past to the future. The authors (Seligman, Baumeister, Railton, and Sripada) will then cover topics spanning the history of teleology and prospection, intuition, imagination, culture and society, free will (“Engine of Freedom”), emotions, morality, creativity, dreaming, and prospection and psychopathology (“Prospection Gone Awry”). The coauthors have signed a publication contract with Oxford University Press, with an anticipated publication in late 2015 or early 2016.
Please navigate the links below to learn more about the goals and activities of Stage 1