This blog is influenced by Appreciative Inquiry (AI), an increasingly popular and respected  approach to organization development.

According to David Cooperrider, Appreciative Inquiry “deliberately seeks to discover people’s exceptionality – their unique gifts, strengths, and qualities. It actively searches and recognizes people for their specialties – their essential contributions and achievements. And it is based on principles of equality of voice – everyone is asked to speak about their vision of the true, the good, and the possible. Appreciative Inquiry builds momentum and success because it believes in people.”

The above quote is drawn from  the AI Commons website, hosted by Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management at https://appreciativeinquiry.champlain.edu/learn/appreciative-inquiry-introduction/

AI at UNC

See the UNC Health Sciences Library’s new Appreciative Inquiry & Positive Psychology resource guide at http://guides.lib.unc.edu/AI .  This guide contains valuable introductory material about Appreciative Inquiry (AI) and Positive Psychology, including “Getting a Handle on AI” and “Getting a Handle on Positive Psychology.”

Kenan Distinguished Professor of Psychology Barbara Fredrickson is a leader in the field of positive psychology, which is closely allied with appreciative inquiry. Dr. Fredrickson is Principal Investigator of the Positive Emotions and Psychophysiology Lab at the University of North Carolina. See https://peplab.web.unc.edu/.