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WORK TITLE: The Strength Switch
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://www.leawaters.com/
CITY: Melbourne
STATE:
COUNTRY: Australia
NATIONALITY: Australian
https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/display/person2778 * http://www.leawaters.com/about.html
RESEARCHER NOTES:
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PERSONAL
Female.
EDUCATION:University of Melbourne, B.S., 1992; Deakin University, Ph.D., 1999.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Psychologist, researcher, and motivational speaker, 1996–; University of Melbourne, professor, 1996–.
MEMBER:Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management, American Academy of Management, Australian Psychological Society, College of Organisational Psychology, Victorian Psychological Council, Australian Psychological Society.
WRITINGS
Has contributed chapters to books and articles to journals, including Journal of Positive Psychology, Frontiers in Psychology, and Journal of Happiness Studies as well as the Wall Street Journal, Time, Atlantic, Washington Post, London Guardian, and Sydney Morning Herald.
SIDELIGHTS
Lea Waters holds the Gerry Higgins Chair in Positive Psychology at the Centre for Positive Psychology in the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne, and is president of the International Positive Psychology Association. She specializes in positive education, positive parenting, and positive organizations. In addition to teaching, Waters contributes to journals, newspapers, and magazines, among them, Journal of Positive Psychology, Frontiers in Psychology, Journal of Happiness Studies, Wall Street Journal, Time, Atlantic, Washington Post, London Guardian, and Sydney Morning Herald. She also presents on radio and television and is often an invited speaker at conferences. Her program Positive Detective is used in schools in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Mexico, Finland, Ghana, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand. Her Visible Wellbeing initiative is run in schools across Australia.
Waters’s first book is The Strength Switch: How the New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish. Amy Scribner, writing in BookPage, noted that in this book Waters “urges parents to move away from the negativity bias and offers strategies for helping children build important strengths such as gratitude, self-control and mindfulness.” A critic in Publishers Weekly commented that Waters “comes off as a thoughtful parenting realist” and that her “clearly presented, easily implemented ideas will make sense.” In an interview at Kids Matter, Waters described her approach: “It’s about connecting your kids with their inborn strengths in their character (e.g. humour, kindness) as well as their pursuits such as writing or sporting ability.” In a review in the Sydney Morning Herald Online, Josh Jennings, applauded the result, which he emphasized is written in “ordinary, accessible language.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
BookPage, August 2017, Amy Scribner, review of The Strength Switch: How the New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish, p. 20.
Publishers Weekly, April 17, 2017, review of The Strength Switch, p. 65.
ONLINE
Kids Matter, https://www.kidsmatter.edu/ (January 10, 2018), author interview.
Lea Waters Website, http://www.leawaters.com (January 9, 2018).
Mentor Coach, http://www.mentorcoach.com/ (January 10, 2018), author profile.
Motto, http://motto.time.com/ (July 5, 2017), Belinda Luscombe, review of The Strength Switch.
Sydney Morning Herald Online, http://www.smh.com/ (July 15, 2017), Josh Jennings, author interview.
University of Melbourne Website, https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu/ (January 10, 2018), author faculty profile.
About Lea
President of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA)
Professor and Founding Director of Positive Psychology Centre, the University of Melbourne.
Inaugural Gerry Higgins Chair in Positive Psychology, University of Melbourne.
Registered psychologist (AHPRA), full member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and full member of the College of Organisational Psychologist (APS).
University of Michigan, Faculty Affiliate of the Center for Positive Organizations.
Cambridge University, Faculty Affiliate of the Well-being Institute.
South Australian Medical Health Research Institute, Advisory Board member.
TEDx speaker
Ambassador for the Positive Education Schools Association (PESA)
Westpac 100 Women of Influence winner 2015
Featured in ABC's Revolution School documentary
Co-director of Positive Detective
Author of "The Strength Switch"
Creator of the Strength Switch online parenting course
Founding Director of Visible Wellbeing
Lea's goal is to help people thrive
using the science of positive psychology
Download Lea's full bio
Media
Lea contributes regularly to the media in Australia, USA, Canada, Asia and the UK on the topic of positive psychology, positive education and parenting. Her print media contributions include the Wall Street Journal, Time, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Age, Sydney Morning Herald, Herald Sun, Educational Review, The Voice, The Conversation, Professional Educator, MX, Wellbeing Magazine, The Adelaide Advertiser, Early Learning Network, and South China Morning Post. Her research has also been featured in The Independent (UK) and the Huffington Post (USA).
Her radio media includes ABC National, ABC South Australia, ABC Sydney, ABC Canberra, RRR, Pulse Radio, 3SR and SYN radio. Lea was an expert speaker on the ABC 6 part series on Happiness hosted by Terry Robson.
Academia
Lea has a psychology researcher been at the University of Melbourne for 21 years. She has published over 90 scientific journal articles and book chapters.
In 2004 she was awarded the Best Paper Award at the highly prestigious American Academy of Management Conference. In addition, in 2005 she was awarded the Elton Mayo Prize by the Australian College of Organisational Psychologists in recognition of her significant contributions to the field of organisational psychology. She is included in the Marquis Who’s Who in the World for her outstanding research (2009-2014).
Consultancy
As a qualified organisational psychologist lea has worked across business, not-for-profit, welfare, retail, education, local Government and health sectors.
Lea has worked with companies such as Merril Lynch Investment Managers, Black Rock Investment Managers, Education First (Canada), REACH foundation, Department of Human Services, Australia Post, Centrelink, Salvation Army, Mission Australia, W.M.C.A, Corporate Services Victoria, Australian Human Resources Institute, City of Ballarat, Commonwealth Rehabilitation Services, Department of Protective Service, Department of Disability Services and the Australian Psychological Society.
In the Education sector, Lea has worked with over 100 schools across Australia, Asia, New Zealand and Europe. She has worked in the Government/Public System, Independent System, Catholic System and Jewish system. In her role as Director of the Master of School Leadership, she has assisted leaders from 100 schools within the Victorian Government system to create positive change projects. She has worked individually with schools including Geelong Grammar School, St Peter’s College (Adelaide), Carey Baptist Grammar, Ballarat Grammar, The Peninsula School, Lauriston Girls School, Ivanhoe Grammar, Kingswood College, Ave Maria College, Malvern Central School, Melbourne High School, Kew High School, Greensborough High School, Camberwell Primary School, William Ruthven Secondary College and Chinese International School. She has also worked with the DEECD Government/Public school systems, training leaders in the Boroondara networks and Sage networks.
She featured in the ABC documentary Revolution School
Public Speaking
Lea is an invited speaker for many International Conferences such as the Canadian Positive Psychology Association, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, International Positive Psychology Association, the European Network for Positive Psychology, the American Academy of Management, the British Psychological Society, International Positive Education Network, Mexican National Conference on the Science of Happiness and the New Zealand Positive Psychology Association.
In Australia, Lea has spoken at the Australian Positive Psychology and Well-being Conference; Australian Positive Psychology in Education Symposium; the Inaugural Australian Positive Education Conference ; the Positive Education Schools Association Conference; the Australian College of Education Conference; the Australasian Association of International Baccalaurette Schools; Mind and its Potential Conference; Festival of Ideas Conference; Happiness and its Causes; Wellness at Work; Educate Plus and the Good Childhood Conference. In 2011, 2013 and 2015 she was a Fellow in the St Peter’s College ‘Being and Becoming' Wellbeing Public Lecture Series.
Leadership and Service
President Elect International Positive Psychology Association
Co-editor of the special edition of the Journal of Positive Psychology
Founding Director, Centre for Positive Psychology, University of Melbourne (2009-2016)
Chair of the Scientific Committee for the Fourth World Congress for the International Positive Psychology Association Conference in Orlando
Co-director of the 4th Australian Positive Psychology Conference
Academic Board, University of Melbourne
Journal Editorial Board - Psychology of Wellbeing: Theory, research and practise
Journal Editorial Board - Journal of Happiness and Wellbeing
Journal Editorial Board - Australia New Zealand Journal of Organisational Psychology
Accolades & Awards
Lea was inducted as a Fellow of the International Positive Psychology Association and is the only Australian to be inducted (2015). She was listed in the Financial Reviews list of Top 100 Women of Influence (2015).
She was named the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management Educator of the Year (2004), received an Australian University Individual Teaching Excellence Award from (2007), was awarded the Teaching Excellence Award by the Melbourne Graduate School of Education (2011) and received a team Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning from the Australian Government’s Office for Teaching and Learning (2013).
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PROF Lea Waters
Positions
Academic, Melbourne Graduate School of Education
Careers and organisational behaviour
Positive education
Positive psychology
Strength based parenting
Overview
Affiliation
Publications
Research
Awards
Linkages
Supervision
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Overview
Overview
Professor Lea Waters (Ph.D.) holds the Gerry Higgins Chair in Positive Psychology at the Centre for Positive Psychology, Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne. She is the first Australian to be appointed a Professorship in Positive Psychology and has held an academic position at the University of Melbourne for the 20 years.
Lea is the president elect of the International Positive Psychology Association and holds affiliate positions at Cambridge University and the University of Michigan.
She is a registered psychologist (AHPRA), a full member of the Australian Psychological Society and is on the Advisory Board for the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute.
She was listed in the Financial Times and Westpac Bank 100 Women of Influence (2015)
You can follow her on Twitter and Instagram @ProfLeaWaters
You can learn more about Lea at her website www.leawaters.com
You can watch her TEDx talk at https://youtu.be/80U__KwX0iU
Lea's Youtube talk on 'Gratitude at work': http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMI27cwZABw
Lea's Youtube talk on Positive Education: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roP-aOKcxWs
Latest Publications
Waters, L. (2016). The relationship between parent mindfulness, child mindfulness and child stress, Psychology, 7, 40-51.
Rusk, R., Vella-Brodrick, D., & Waters, L. (2016). Gratitude or gratefulness? A conceptual review and proposal of the system of appreciative functioning. Journal of Happiness Studies, 5(1) first on-line
Brunzell, T., & Stokes, H. & Waters., L. (2016). Trauma informed positive education: Using positive psychology to repair and strengthen vulnerable students. Contemporary School Psychology, 20, 63-83
Waters, L. (2015). Strength-Based Parenting and Life Satisfaction in Teenagers, Advances in Social Sciences, 2, 158-173.
Waters, L. (2015). The Relationship between Strength-Based Parenting with Children’s Stress Levels and Strength-Based Coping Approaches, Psychology, 6, 689-699
Waters, L. & Stokes, H. (2015). Positive Education for school Leaders: Exploring the Effects of Emotion-Gratitude and Action-Gratitude. Australian Educational and Developmental Psychologist, 32, 1-22
Rusk, R., & Waters, L. (2015). Exploring the underlying components of positive psychology interventions: Five domains of positive function. Journal of Positive Psychology, 10 (2), 141-152.
Allen, K., Ryan, T; Gray, D; McInerneyl D., & Waters, L. (2014). Social media and social connectedness in adolescents. Australian Educational and Developmental Psychologist, 31, 18-31
Has subject area
For 2008 6 Digit Code
Industrial and Organisational Psychology
Seo 2008 6 Digit Code
Management
Affiliation
Member of
Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management. Member 2004 -
American Academy of Management. Full Member 1999 -
Australian Psychological Society. Full Member 1999 -
College of Organisational Psychology. Full Member 1999 -
Victorian Psychological Council. Registered Psychologist 1996 -
Work/Life Association. Vice president 1999 - 2000
Australian Psychological Society. Associate Member 1993 - 1995
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Publications
Selected publications
2017
Authored Research Books
The Strength Switch How the New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish 2017
Research Book Chapters
Positive education in Australia: Practice, measurement, and future directions. Social and Emotional Learning in Australia and the Asia-Pacific: Perspectives, Programs and Approaches. 2017
School belonging and the role of social and emotional competencies in fostering an adolescent’s sense of connectedness to their school. Social and Emotional Learning in Australia and the Asia-Pacific: Perspectives, Programs and Approaches. 2017
Journal Articles
A complex dynamic systems approach to lasting positive change: The Synergistic Change Model. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 2017
Exploring Selective Exposure and Confirmation Bias as Processes Underlying Employee Work Happiness: An Intervention Study (vol 7, pg 878, 2016). Frontiers in Psychology. 8. 2017
Strengths and Subjective Wellbeing in Adolescence: Strength-Based Parenting and the Moderating Effect of Mindset. Journal of Happiness Studies. 2017
Understanding optimal human functioning - The 'call for qual' in exploring human flourishing and well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 12. 2017
Journal Articles Refereed
The Role and Reprocessing of Attitudes in Fostering Employee Work Happiness: An Intervention Study. Frontiers in Psychology. 8. 2017
2016
Journal Articles Refereed
Exploring Selective Exposure and Confirmation Bias as Processes Underlying Employee Work Happiness: An Intervention Study. Frontiers in Psychology. 7. 2016
Fostering School Belonging in Secondary Schools Using a Socio-Ecological Framework 2016
Gratitude or Gratefulness? A Conceptual Review and Proposal of the System of Appreciative Functioning. Journal of Happiness Studies. 17. 2016
Inside-Out-Outside-In: A dual approach process model to developing work happiness. International Journal of Wellbeing. 6. 2016
Mindfulness-Based Approaches For Young People With Autism Spectrum Disorder And Their Caregivers: Do These Approaches Hold Benefits For Teachers?. Australian Journal of Teacher Education. 41. 2016
Posttraumatic growth during unemployment: A qualitative examination of distress and positive transformation. International Journal of Wellbeing. 6. 2016
Psychological capital as a team phenomenon: Mediating the relationship between learning climate and outcomes at the individual and team levels. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 11. 2016
School Belonging: A Review of the History, Current Trends, and Future Directions 2016
TRAUMA-INFORMED FLEXIBLE LEARNING: CLASSROOMS THAT STRENGTHEN REGULATORY ABILITIES 2016
The Relationship between Child Stress, Child Mindfulness and Parent Mindfulness. Psychology. 07. 2016
What Schools Need to Know About Fostering School Belonging: a Meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review. 2016
2015
Research Book Chapters
A Comparison Between Theological Christian Approaches to Wisdom and Peterson and Seligman's Classification of Character Strengths and Virtues. EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES IN POSITIVE EDUCATION: IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR WELL-BEING IN SCHOOLS. Springer Verlag. 2015
Leading Whole-School Change. EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES IN POSITIVE EDUCATION: IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR WELL-BEING IN SCHOOLS. Springer Verlag. 2015
Measuring Whole-School Well-being in Students and Staff. EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES IN POSITIVE EDUCATION: IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR WELL-BEING IN SCHOOLS. Springer Verlag. 2015
Protean career orientation: a review of existing and emerging research. Flourishing in Life, Work and Careers: Individual Wellbeing and Career Experiences. Edward Elgar Publishing. 2015
Strengths-Based Approaches in the Classroom and Staffroom. EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES IN POSITIVE EDUCATION: IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR WELL-BEING IN SCHOOLS. Springer Verlag. 2015
Journal Articles Refereed
A Longitudinal Examination of the Association Between Psychological Capital, Perception of Organizational Virtues and Work Happiness in School Staff. Psychology of Well-Being: theory, research and practice. 5. 2015
A case study of 'The Good School:' Examples of the use of Peterson's strengths-based approach with students. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 10. 2015
A multidimensional approach to measuring well-being in students: Application of the PERMA framework. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 10. 2015
A psycho-social system approach to well-being: Empirically deriving the Five Domains of Positive Functioning. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 10. 2015
Case study of a school wellbeing initiative: Using appreciative inquiry to support positive change. International Journal of Wellbeing. 5. 2015
Case study of a school wellbeing initiative: Using appreciative inquiry to support positive change. International Journal of Wellbeing. 5. 2015
Components of Appreciative Functioning: A Thematic Analysis of Relevant Literature and Content Analysis of Existing Measurement Scales. Psychology of Well-Being: theory, research and practice. 5. 2015
Contemplative Education: A Systematic, Evidence-Based Review of the effect of Meditation Interventions in Schools. Educational Psychology Review. 27. 2015
Positive Education for School Leaders: Exploring the Effects of Emotion-Gratitude and Action-Gratitude. Australian Educational and Developmental Psychologist. 32. 2015
Positive Instruction in Music Studios: Introducing a New Model for Teaching Studio Music in Schools Based upon Positive Psychology. Psychology of Well-Being: theory, research and practice. 5. 2015
Strength-based parenting and life satisfaction in teenagers 2015
Teaching With Strengths in Trauma-Affected Students: A New Approach to Healing and Growth in the Classroom 2015
The Relationship between Strength-Based Parenting with Children's Stress Levels and Strength-Based Coping Approaches. Psychology. 6. 2015
Trauma-Informed Positive Education: Using Positive Psychology to Strengthen Vulnerable Students 2015
2014
Research Book Chapters
Uisng Protean Career Attitude to Facilitate a Positive Approach to Unemployment. Psycho-Social Career Meta-capacities. Springer International Publishing. 2014
Journal Articles Refereed
Assessing Employee Wellbeing in Schools Using a Multifaceted Approach: Associations with Physical Health, Life Satisfaction, and Professional Thriving. Psychology. 5. 2014
Protean career attitudes during unemployment and reemployment: A longitudinal perspective. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 84. 2014
Social Media Use and Social Connectedness in Adolescents: The Positives and the Potential Pitfalls 2014
2013
Book Chapters Other
Using positive psychology to foster character strengths and wellbeing in students. Forward Thinking: Emerging Answers to Education's Big Questions. Australian College of Educators. 2013
Journal Articles Refereed
The Role of Interpersonal Comfort, Attributional Confidence, and Communication Quality in Academic Mentoring Relationships. Education Research and Perspectives. 40. 2013
The importance of latent benefits and meaningful leisure activity in predicting quality of life in Australian retirees. Australian Journal of Career Development. 22. 2013
Tracing the size, reach, impact, and breadth of positive psychology. The Journal of Positive Psychology. 8. 2013
Journal Articles Unrefereed
A system wide approach to positive education . Teacher Learning Network. 20. 2013
2012
Journal Articles Refereed
A Review of the Latent and Manifest Benefits (Lamb) Scale. Australian Journal of Career Development. 21. 2012
Predicting Job Satisfaction: Contributions of Individual Gratitude and Institutionalized Gratitude. Psychology. 3. 2012
Toward the Creation of a Positive Institution. AI Practitioner: The International Journal of Appreciative Inquiry. 14. 2012
Towards the Creation of a Positive Institution 2012
Journal Articles Unrefereed
Finding similarities and points of connection between Positive Psychology and Christianity 2012
2011
Other Refereed Contribution to Refereed Journals
A Review of School-Based Positive Psychology Interventions. Australian Educational and Developmental Psychologist. 28. 2011
2010
Journal Articles Refereed
Perceived acceptance and work standards as predictors of work attitudes and behavior and employee psychological distress following an internal business merger.. Journal of Managerial Psychology. 25. 2010
2008
Journal Articles Refereed
Using human brain dynamics to enhance workplace team dynamics: Evidence from two applied case studies. NeuroLeadership Journal. 1. 2008
2007
Book Chapters
The role of protean career attitude during unemployment and re-employment: a literature review and conceptual model. INDIVIDUAL IN THE CHANGING WORKING LIFE. Cambridge University Press. 2007
Journal Articles Refereed
Employability during unemployment: adaptability, career identity and human and social capital. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 71. 2007
Experimental differences between voluntary and involuntary job redundancy on depression, job-search activity, affective employee outcomes and re-employment quality. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. 80. 2007
The role of mentoring and peer support in contributing to small business success. International Journal of Organisational Behaviour. 12. 2007
Conference Papers Refereed
Mentor-protege perceptions of values similarity: the role of values congruency on mentoring functions 2007
2006
Journal Articles Refereed
Gender Differences in the Impact of the 'Work for the Dole' Programon wellbeing and access to latent benefits. Australian Journal of Career Development. 15. 2006
Workaholic worker type differences in work-family conflict: the moderating role of supervisor support and flexible work scheduling. Career Development International. 11. 2006
2005
Journal Articles Refereed
The Development and Preliminary Testing of a Scale to Measure the Latest Manifest Benefit of Employment. European Journal of Psychological Assessment. 21. 2005
Conference Papers Refereed
Organisational cynicism and participative work climates: Evidence from the public sector 2005
Workaholism and work-family conflict 2005
Conference Papers Unrefereed
Evaluating work for the dole in Australia: Do women get a fair go? 2005
2004
Journal Articles
Protege-mentor agreement about the provision of psychosocial support: The mentoring relationship, personality, and workload. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 65. 2004
Journal Articles Refereed
Careers and academic research collaborations: An inductive framework for understanding successful collaborations.. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 64. 2004
Protégé-mentor fit in perceptions of the provision of psychosocial support: The role of personality, job involvement, workload, and the mentoring relationship.. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 65. 2004
Web-delivered, problem-based learning in organisational behaviour: a new form of CAOS. Higher Education Research and Development. 23. 2004
Conference Papers Refereed
Employee involvement. Does being a union member make a difference? 2004
Voluntary and involuntary job redundancy: hope or helplessness? 2004
2003
Journal Articles Refereed
Money or Time? Comparing the Effects of Time Structure and Financial Deprivation on the Psychological Distress of Umemployment Adults. Australian Journal of Psychology. 55. 2003
Work for the Dole: A pathway to self-esteem and employment commitment, or the road to frustration?. Youth Studies Australia. 22. 2003
2002
Journal Articles Refereed
Predicting self-esteem during unemployment: the effect of gender, financial deprivation, alternate roles, and social support. Journal of Employment Counseling. 39. 2002
Psychological health and coping: A comparison of unemployed and re-employed people.. Journal of Organizational Behavior. 23. 2002
Reducing latent deprivation during unemployment: The role of meaningful leisure activity. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. 75. 2002
The role of formal mentoring on business success and self-esteem in participants of a new business start-up program. Journal of Business and Psychology. 17. 2002
The role of human resource practices in reducing occupational stress and strain. International Journal of Stress Management. 9. 2002
2001
Journal Articles
The impact of 'Work for the Dole' on psychological health and work involvement: A qualitative study. Australian Journal of Psychology. 53. 2001
The impact of time structure and financial deprivation on psychological well-being in two adult unemployed samples. Australian Journal of Psychology. 53. 2001
The role of formal mentoring in a business start-up program. Australian Journal of Psychology. 53. 2001
Journal Articles Refereed
Coping with economic deprivation during unemployment. Journal of Economic Psychology. 22. 2001
2000
Journal Articles
Coping with unemployment: A literature review and presentation of a new model. International Journal of Management Reviews. 2. 2000
Research
Investigator on
Contract
MOU between Knox Grammar School, Sydney, and the Centre for Positive Psychology (CPP), Melbourne Graduate School of Education administered by Melbourne Graduate School of Education 2015 - 2020
Seymour College Positive Education Project awarded by SEYMOUR COLLEGE 2014 - 2015
Grant
Tsinghua University & MGSE Centre for Positive Psychology Research Collaboration (International Research & Research Training Fund (IRRTF)) awarded by UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
Tsinghua University & MGSE Centre for Positive Psychology Research Collaboration (International Research & Research Training Fund (IRRTF)) awarded by UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
Awards
Education and training
PhD, Deakin University 1999
BA(Hon), University of Melbourne 1992
Awards and honors
Melbourne Graduate School of Education Teaching Excellence Award, 2011
Faculty of Business and Economics, University of Melbourne, Dean�s Certificate for Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching, 2008
Australian Universities teaching Excellence Award. Law, Economics and Business category, 2007
Dean's Certificate for Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching, Faculty of Economics and Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 2005
Dean's Certificate for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, Faculty of Economics and Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 2005
Edward Brown University Teaching Award, University of Melbourne, 2004
Dean's Award for Excellence in Postgraduate Teaching, Faculty of Economics and Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 2004
Awarded 'Management Educator of the Year', Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management, 2004
Best Paper Award at Annual Meeting (with Muller, J.), American Academy of Management (Career's Division), 2004
Dean's Individual Award for Innovation in Teaching, Faculty of Economics and Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 2002
Dean's Individual Award for Good Teaching and Innovation, Faculty of Economics and Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 2001
Best Paper based on a dissertation, American Academy of Management (Career's Division), 2000
Dean's Award of Good Teaching, Faculty of Economics and Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 2000
Isi Liebler Prize - Best PhD in the area of Community Relations, Deakin University, 1999
Australian Postgraduate Research Award, Deakin University, 1994
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Linkages
Geographic focus
Australia
Supervision
Available for supervision
N
Supervision Statement
Ong Ken. (2013 - on going). An evidence based synthesis of the influence of workplace mindfullness interventions on employee wellbeing.
Tom Brunzell. (2013 - on going). Neuroinformed learning and positive psychology for traumatised youth.
Rusk, Reuben. (2012- on going). Positive Psychology Interventions: A Nonlinear Dynamic Systems Approach using Five Positive Domains of Functioning
Vass, Athena. (2012 - on going). The impact of resilence training on teacher wellbeing
Strauss, Gabriel. (2012). The Effects of Leader Psychological Capital on Team Psychological Capital and Team Outcomes
Williams, Paige. (2011 - ongoing). Exploring implicit attitudes as the causal mechanism in the positive impact of individual psychological capital on perceptions of virtuous organisation culture and employee work happiness.
Abrahams, Lisa. (2010). The interrelationships between mentoring, job satisfaction, stress and teacher efficacy.
Sankey, Michael. (2006-2010). Examining the role of regulatory focus in escalation of commitment scenarios.
Yim. Laetitia. (2006-2009). The Role of Interpersonal Comfort, Attributional Confidence, and Communication Quality in Academic Mentoring Relationships
Joslin, Felicity. (2002-2005). A longitudinal examination of the process of acculturation during organisation change.
McArdle, Sarah (2005). The role of employability in assisting unemployed people to find quality re-employment.
Russo, James. (2004). The Association between workaholism and work-family conflict.
Dunstan, Sam. (2001). Mission statements and HRM: An exploratory case study of an Australian Organisational Change Initiative.
Hunter, Sarah. (2001).The impact of gender on the level and antecedents of work-family conflict.
Teo, Claire. (2000). The role of human resource practices in reducing occupational stress and strain: An examination of Singaporean white-collar employees.
Birrell, S. (2000). The impact of mentor and peer assistance on small business success: the experiences of tenant in small business incubators.
Contact Details
email icon l.waters@unimelb.edu.au
phone icon03 8344 0050
Location
Level: 02 Room: 215, 100 Leicester St, Carlton., Parkville
Lea Waters, PhD, author of The Strength Switch: How The New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish, holds the Gerry Higgins Chair in Positive Psychology at the University of Melbourne. Lea serves as President of the International Positive Psychology Association and is Founding Director of the Positive Psychology Centre at the University of Melbourne.
She is also a psychologist, researcher, speaker and author who specializes in positive education, positive parenting, and positive organizations.
She holds affiliate positions with Cambridge University and University of Michigan and is the Ambassador for the Positive Education Schools Association. She has published close to 100 scientific articles and book chapters. In 2015, she was listed as one of Australia's Top 100 Women of Influence by the Financial Review and Westpac Bank. Lea is a registered psychologist with AHPRA and has been a member of the Australian psychological Society for 24 years.
Lea is a highly regarded speaker and has received invitations to be the Key Note speaker at conferences across the world including the International Positive Educations World Congress, the International Positive Psychology Associations World Congress, the International Conference on the Science of Happiness, the Canadian Positive Psychology Associations National Conference, the Mexican National Conference on Happiness and the New Zealand Positive Psychology Associations National Conference.
A gifted teacher and facilitator, Lea has been awarded International and National Teaching Awards including the Management Educator of the Year (2004) by the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management and two National Teaching Excellence Awards from the Australian Government (2008, 2011).
Her Positive Education program, called Positive Detective, is being used in schools in United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Mexico, Finland, Ghana, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand. Her Visible Wellbeing initiative is being run in schools across Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales, Tasmania, Queensland and Victoria in both the State and Independent Education systems.
Lea's recent research sits at the intersection between positive organizational scholarship and educational psychology with a focus on how to create schools as positive institutions. Her focus is both at the student-level and staff-level and she researches the applications of positive psychology in classrooms, staff rooms, and school-wide cultural practices. At the student level, she is calling for schools to consider that curriculum which builds student character and well-being is of equal importance to curriculum focusing on academic achievement. She has researched mindfulness in schools together with examining the effects of positive education interventions on student hope, optimism, and resilience. She has also called for a greater focus on staff wellbeing and cultural virtues in schools. At the staff level, she has applied Cameron's Organizational Virtues model as well as Cooperider's Appreciative Inquiry technique to examine the factors that build a positive institutional culture in schools.
It's a hard job, but someone's gotta do it
Amy Scribner
BookPage.
(Aug. 2017): p20. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 BookPage http://bookpage.com/
Full Text:
Raising children has never been more complex, but with a mix of expertise, humor and compassion, these parenting books offer important advice for parenting in the modern age.
It's pretty easy to focus on weaknesses--our own and our kids'. How many times do we start sentences with "don't" or focus on the average grades on the report card instead of the excellent ones? In The Strength Switch (Avery, $27, 352 pages, ISBN 9781101983645), Lea Waters, founding director of the Centre for Positive Psychology at the University of Melbourne, urges parents to move away from the negativity bias and offers strategies for helping children build important strengths such as gratitude, self-control and mindfulness.
"Savoring and gratitude help us and our children recognize the good times, intensify the juiciness of the moment, and do the strength building that happens when life is good," she writes.
Waters writes with typical Australian sunniness and uses stories from families (including her own) and educators to illustrate her points. The Strength Shift offers a roadmap for making small shifts that will yield big results for children.
LAUGH IT OFF
Jen Hatmaker and her husband, Brandon, are pastors in Austin, Texas. She's the bestselling author of 11 books, including several Bible studies, but her brand of religion is so inclusive, nonjudgmental and loving that her writing feels accessible to any woman--Christian or not-- seeking wisdom about how to embrace a messy, beautiful life.
Hatmaker's latest book, Of Mess and Moxie (Thomas Nelson, $22.99, 224 pages, ISBN 9780718031848), is not strictly about parenting. She writes passionately about many aspects of modern female life, such as resiliency, the importance of creating art and how to find time to exercise (although she admits that, for her, "The problem is, I prefer watching Netflix and eating
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snacks."). But her most poignant and hilarious chapters focus on her family of five children. From having the sex talk with her kids to grocery shopping for a family of seven, she mixes her advice with a healthy dose of humor and writes in a conversational tone that makes you feel like she's confiding in you.
TURNING POINT
Many in our society are still grasping what it means to be transgender, although the recent high- profile transition of Caitlyn Jenner has helped educate Americans on the issue. Transgender Children and Youth by Elijah C. Nealy (Norton, $27.95, 448 pages, ISBN 9780393711394) is an invaluable resource for those supporting children who are transgender. Nealy--a professor, clergyman and transgender man--provides in-depth explanations of what it means to be transgender and to be diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and what therapy and medical transitions entail. Perhaps most importantly, Nealy details how to work with young people and their families who are dealing with issues surrounding gender dyspho-ria and gender diversity.
Although the book is geared toward mental health providers and educators, it is a comprehensive and compassionate narrative that will prove useful for anyone seeking to better understand and support transgender youth. Using vignettes from his years of personal experience, as well as suggested approaches for professionals to take during family conversations, Ne-aly focuses not only on coming out as transgen-der but also on building and living a life as a happy trans-gender individual.
NO SHAME
Sarah Ockwell-Smith, a doula and homeopath, opens Gentle Discipline (TarcherPerigee, $16, 272 pages, ISBN 9780143131892) with a bold statement: "Almost everything we think we know about disciplining children today is wrong."
Can't get your toddler to brush his teeth? Why is your son suddenly swearing like a pirate? Ockwell-Smith may be a parenting expert, but even she has experience with her own son yelling an expletive in public. The truth was, her son was tired, he was hot, and he was thirsty. "He just snapped. Just as we all do at times," Ock-well-Smith writes.
That's the beauty of Ock-well-Smith's guidance: She's low on judgment and high on helpful insights into why your kid can go from angel to monster in 10 seconds flat. She details how children's brains develop, how they learn and some common physiological triggers for poor behavior (such as sugar, lack of sleep and plain old sensory overload), as well as psychological
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ones (mimicking the actions they see in others).
But what's truly thought provoking is Ockwell-Smith's view that most common discipline methods just don't work. Physical punishment like spanking causes kids to be more defiant. Distraction prevents children from discovering that emotions are OK. Ockwell-Smith offers excellent "gentle discipline" strategies for addressing some of the most common issues, such as whining, sibling rivalry and lying. This is a handbook for end-of-their-rope parents looking for a fresh approach to discipline.
BOYS AT THEIR BEST
If you're looking for help with parenting your teenage boy, turn to He's Not Lazy (Sterling, $19.95, 288 pages, ISBN 9781454916871) by Adam Price. As the mother of a 12-year-old son, I was drawn to child psychologist Price's empa-thetic views. He writes, "Not only are there the physical changes to contend with, but on a deeper level your son is grappling with profound questions... Who am I? What do I believe in? What should I become, and do I have what it takes to get there?"
Price focuses specifically on boys, as boys are much likelier to be diagnosed with learning disabilities, and many education specialists believe boys "are at an intrinsic disadvantage in a classroom that discourages their natural tendency to be active, and competitive." So rather than facing failure, boys simply opt out and are thus likely to be labeled as lazy.
Parents can help combat this by being their sons' advocates. No, this doesn't mean hovering while your son does his homework. It means helping your son find his own motivation. As Price puts it, "The qualities you most want him to develop--self-control, self-determination, self-regulation--all begin with the same word."
Price outlines common-sense tactics to support boys in finding those "self" words. I have a feeling I'll be pulling this book off the shelf to consult for years to come.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Scribner, Amy. "It's a hard job, but someone's gotta do it." BookPage, Aug. 2017, p. 20.
PowerSearch, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A499345383/GPS?u=schlager& sid=GPS&xid=3a73ea47. Accessed 20 Dec. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A499345383
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The Strength Switch: How the New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish
Publishers Weekly.
264.16 (Apr. 17, 2017): p65. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
The Strength Switch: How the New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child and Your Teen to Flourish Lea Waters. Avery, $27 (352p) ISBN 978-110198-364-5
The framework of positive psychology, combined with recent studies into strength, yields here a parenting method that ditches a culturally dominant negativity bias in which parents are focused on correcting weaknesses. Psychologist Avery encourages parents to "flick the switch" by instead focusing on acknowledging and building on their children's strengths so that their children develop self-esteem, optimism, resilience, and self-control. Waters teaches parents to identify their children's strengths at the intersection of spontaneous high performance, high energy, and high use, and then to find natural opportunities for these strengths to be used and developed. She sketches out a framework that considers problematic behaviors as resulting from overuse or underuse of strengths. Waters also offers parents and children alike methods for achieving other aspects of positive psychology--attention, gratitude, and mindfulness. Despite the focus on positivity, Waters comes off as a thoughtful parenting realist and not a spacey happiness guru, supporting her ideas with a mix of parental anecdotes and pointers to psychological research. Waters's clearly presented, easily implemented ideas will make sense to parents looking to escape the corrective mind-set that can make both them and their children feel defective or broken, especially in the children's teen years. (July)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"The Strength Switch: How the New Science of Strength-Based Parenting Can Help Your Child
and Your Teen to Flourish." Publishers Weekly, 17 Apr. 2017, p. 65. PowerSearch, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A490820849/GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS& xid=85b4cdd7. Accessed 20 Dec. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A490820849
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Talking about strength-based parenting with Lea Waters
Professor Lea Waters is a registered psychologist, professor and founding director of the Positive Psychology Centre at the University of Melbourne. Lea has been a psychology researcher for over 20 years, with a focus on positive parenting, positive education, and in recent years, strength-based parenting. Lea is one of the co-founders of The Strength Exchange, a strength-based parenting resource and is bringing out a book “The Strength Switch: Using the new science of strength-based parenting to help you and your child flourish“ in the coming months. KidsMatter has been lucky enough to be able to sit down with Lea for her professional insight into the following questions.
Why focus on children’s strengths?
We can sometimes focus too much on things our children don’t do as well as other children. While there’s no doubt that parents can help children improve in these areas, an emerging field of research reveals that focusing on children’s strengths means they’re more likely to enjoy higher levels of life satisfaction and wellbeing. It means placing more emphasis on amplifying your children’s potential than fixing their shortcomings. Focusing on children’s strengths can help build things like their confidence, resilience, competence, coping abilities and self-worth, which can help provide the skills to develop some of their weaknesses and reduce the risk of mental health difficulties developing.
In the past a strength has been seen as something your child is good at, but two decades of psychological research shows us that it is more than that. A strength has three elements:
Performance – a child is good at it
Energy – it leaves them feeling energized and motivated
Use – a child will naturally choose to use that strength
For example, my 13-year-old son is good at piano, but it’s not a true strength because he never finishes his practice. The ‘energy’ and ‘use’ elements are missing. When you see your child do something well, do it with energy and do it a lot, you will know you have unearthed a strength. This doesn’t only apply to activities such as music or sport but more importantly it applies to our character strengths. Character strengths are our positive personality qualities such as kindness, persistence, curiosity and bravery. Every child has character strengths and you’ll notice that your child has some aspects of their character that they perform well, e.g. high levels of emotional intelligence. A character strength will also evoke high levels of energy when used and the child will naturally use that strength over and over.
You can learn more about character strengths at the Values in Action Institute website.
What is strengths-based parenting and what are the benefits?
Strength-based parenting (SBP) is an approach where parents deliberately identify and cultivate positive states, processes and qualities in their children. It’s about connecting your kids with their inborn strengths in their character (e.g. humour, kindness) as well as their pursuits such as writing or sporting ability.
SBP is a style of parenting that encourages you to intentionally and regularly build upon your child’s positive qualities. It is about noticing what your kids have done right before you look at what they have done wrong. Rather than clearing a path for children or ‘helicopter parenting’, it’s about helping children develop inner resources and strengths that allow them to clear their own pathways. Let’s say you notice your child shows an aptitude for creativity and art. You might try to create environments where your child can play to their strengths by enrolling them in an art class and making sure you’ve got good quality pencils and paint at home. You could display the artwork in your home or suggest that your child give it to a family member as a gift.
SBP is also helpful during challenging times and is particularly helpful when children are experiencing problems. Let’s say your daughter is going through friendship issues. You might talk to her about the strengths she has that will help her navigate the problem, such as forgiveness, empathy or bravery. Discuss how she’s managed stressful times in the past – perhaps she’s a good listener, negotiator or, in a worst-case scenario, makes new friends easily.
Children whose parents use SBP techniques cope better with conflict, use their strengths to meet homework deadlines and have lower levels of stress. Unsurprisingly, they also have a better understanding of their own strengths. SBP is also associated with higher levels of life satisfaction, positive emotions and confidence in the ability to cope with stress.
Can you give us a few tips for strengths-based parenting?
1. Label their strengths. I call it the ‘See It and Say It’ approach. Let’s say your child wants to share a toy. Instead of just saying ‘Thank you for sharing’, a strength-based parent will add a strength-based sentence like ‘That’s kind of you’. You’re letting your child know ‘You have an inner strength called kindness’.
2. Provide experiences and the environment to foster that strength. When you start to see a hint of a strength – chess, say, or a strong sense of social justice, or a love of nature – start to get your child involved in it. Buy them a chess set, help them fundraise for a cause they choose or enrol them in a community garden.
3. Give them the right equipment. It might sound simple but it’s easily overlooked. For example, when my daughter is watching TV, she always has a pencil in her hand drawing the cartoons. Her Creativity strength has the ‘performance’ element but also ‘energy’ and ‘use’. I always keep the craft box full.
4. Practise. Even though our strengths may be partly genetic, we need practise to develop them.
5. Role model. Connect your children with role models who possess the same strength, either in real life or through biographies in books, websites or YouTube. If they’re too young to read, talk to them about figures instead, like Mother Teresa if your child’s strength is compassion.
What can this mean for parents?
Being a strengths-based parent is about using your own strengths too. Ask yourself ‘What are my strengths? What do I do well, get energy from and would choose to do, and how can I bring that to my parenting?’ You might have a variety of character strengths that you can bring to parenting and to help your child develop their strengths. You might also be the creative parent who signs up to design the costumes for the school concert, or the prudent parent who helps a teenager craft a monthly budget. It’s a strength if these things are energising for you.
Strength-based parenting doesn’t just benefit our children; it also improves the life satisfaction and confidence of the parents themselves. In one of my studies, parents who went through a four week strength-based parenting program found parenting more interesting, felt more confident in their role as a parent and experienced more positive emotions toward their children.
While the importance of providing love and emotional support to children is well understood, we now know the importance of deliberately identifying and building strengths in our children.
Can you suggest some practical tips, resources and links?
Strengths surveys: There are a number of online surveys that children can take to help them identify and think about their strengths. The Gallup Institute has the StrengthsExplorer for children aged 10-14 and the StrengthsQuest for children aged 15-25. If parents and children are interested in identifying personality strengths, they can go to The Values in Action Institute and complete the free online VIA-Youth survey.
Strengths spotting: Think about the strengths that underpin your child’s actions and let them know what you see. Spot the kindness that underpins them sharing with their friends, their self-control to finish homework on time rather than watch TV and the persistence they are using in sports training.
Strengths letter: Write a letter to your child letting them know about the strengths you see in them and how these strengths will help them cope with challenging times as well as helping them to thrive during the good time.
Strengths role model: It always helps to see how other parents and kids are using their strengths. Visit the The Strengths Exchange and discover how parents and children of all ages apply character strengths to everyday.
Pre-order Lea’s book:The Strength Switch: Using the new science of strength-based parenting to help you and your child flourish
Family strengths as identified by Australian families
Why Parents Need to Dial Back the Criticism
By Belinda Luscombe
July 5, 2017
'Strength-based' parenting is better for kids
So much of parenting feels like helping kids master the skills they find challenging, whether it’s tying their shoes, learning to be patient or not punching another sibling in the back of the car when he sings that annoying song again. It’s often a complex and time-consuming project, requiring a variety of strategies.
There’s nothing wrong with helping our kids learn to do better, but if it’s all parents do, it begins to seem like we’re just machines for the production of criticism, for which children are the vessels. Even if it’s well-meaning, that kind of instruction can grind both kids and parents down.
In her new book The Strength Switch, Australian psychologist Lea Waters suggests that we take the opposite approach and try to parent the kids in a way that enhances a child’s strengths rather than overcomes his weaknesses. This is not the same as being a “Tiger Mom” and insisting a reluctant child practice her piano. Waters, following the techniques of positive psychology, defines strengths differently.
“Strengths are things your child does well, does often and does with energy,” she says, citing research on what makes children gifted. “Think of the child who is good at playing the piano but consistently resists practicing, doesn’t love the lessons and hates recitals. There’s performance, but little energy or motivation. This means that even though he is good at playing the piano, it’s not a true strength.”
So how can parents figure out what a kid’s true strengths are? According to Waters, they have three components:
He or she is good at it.
He or she feels good and becomes energized while doing it.
He or she often chooses to do it.
Strengths need not always arise from physical or mental talent, says Waters. They could also be strengths of character. “Talents are performance-based and observable,” says Waters. “We can see the passion, the skill and the gifts of a talent reasonably easily. We can also see where our child sits compared to others.” Character strengths are a little less obvious. According to Waters, “They come out subtly through a child’s actions and feelings. They are morality-based, not performance-based, and they guide our children’s kindness, compassion, courage, persistence and so forth.”
How can parents encourage their kids without overwhelming or smothering their interest? Or blowing a huge wad of cash on equipment or lessons and then having them end up never mastering anything like Buster Bluth? Waters recommends that parents first show interest in knowing more. “Be curious. Ask questions. Find role models,” she says. “Go to a game with them or watch a show with them.” Try to make sure the kids stay in the driver’s seat. In any activity involving their strengths, they’re doing the teaching and showing, rather than the other way around.
How kids answer their parents’ questions will also demonstrate how motivated they really are and whether helping them to pursue their interest is a helpful or counterproductive investment. It’s key for the kids to be the ones driving the bus. “Let them take the lead,” suggest Waters. “Go at a fast pace if that’s what they show they need, go at a slower pace if this is what they need.”
Lastly, Waters cautions parents to avoid the stage parent syndrome by making sure it’s not about their dreams and hopes but their kids’. “Remember this is about helping them grow into who they are,” she says, “rather then who you think they should be.”
Flicking the positive psychology switch
Josh Jennings
Positive psychology expert Dr Lea Waters has written a parenting book in ordinary, accessible language.
Positive psychology expert Dr Lea Waters has written a parenting book in ordinary, accessible language. Photo: Supplied
One of the first things psychologist Dr Lea Waters talks about is her own experiences with adverse mental health.
The eating disorder she developed in her teens evolved from a childhood affected by her mother's mental illness, she says.
In her 20s, she struggled with anxiety and depression while she trained to become a psychologist.
Today, however, Waters is clear about how formative those experiences are on her career outlook. "I really have a strong sense of mission and purpose to do whatever I can to help build and protect and support the mental health of as many young people as possible," Waters says.
Waters is the Gerry Higgins chair in positive psychology at the Centre for Positive Psychology at the University of Melbourne.
She is also an author, consultant (she has worked with more than 100 schools in Australia and internationally), prominent public speaker – of TED Talks ilk – and co-founder and designer of a number of online wellbeing programs for schools and families.
Through positive psychology programs including Visible Wellbeing, The Strength Switch and Positive Detective, her goal is to make her scientific acumen accessible and actionable in the broader community.
"Really the point for me is, 'How do I take science – that I know can have a real impact on people's lives – out of the ivory tower and make it actionable and real for people and spread it as widely as I can?'." Waters is a 20-year academic at the University of Melbourne and the first Australian to attain a professorship in positive psychology.
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She is also the recipient of a slew of significant professional awards and accolades including the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management's Educator of the Year (2004), the Melbourne Graduate School of Education's teaching excellence award (2011) and one of the Australian Financial Review's Top 100 Women of Influence (2015).
This year, her career has taken another turn, with the release of her new practical-parenting book, The Strength Switch.
Completing the book in sporadic late-night and weekend bursts over 2½ years took its share of Cadbury chocolate and coffee, she says, adding that writing the kind of parenting book she would like to read, in ordinary language, was a liberating outlet.
As this interview continues, Waters reveals she is doing it in a dressing gown (cobbled over the gym clothes she put to use after dropping her kids off at school), as part of her scheduled pyjama days.
Those pyjama days are the balance the self-confessed workaholic needs to have the career that drives her.
"For me, it's really about getting as many families as possible to start adopting a strength-based approach to their family life," says Waters.