The Psychology of Well-Being in the Margins: Voices from and Prospects for South Asia and Southeast Asia

Abstract

Research and publications on the psychology of well-being have steadily increased in recent decades, but research on the peoples of South Asian and Southeast Asian is quite underrepresented in the research literature. Even as people from the regions comprise one third of the current global population, studies on well-being of individuals and groups from countries in the two regions are disproportionately fewer compared to other countries and regions. The special issue is a modest attempt to call attention to this underrepresentation, and to individuals and groups that are in the margins of these societies. The special issue features 11 empirical studies focused on well-being of people who either face economic hardships, have low-status occupations, experience discrimination due to gender, or experience physical disabilities. The studies highlight how well-being can be conceptualized as an adaptive process, which involves finding meaning and coping and drawing from one's agency and resources. The studies in the special, while limited in scope, will hopefully serve as catalyst for further research on the psychology of well-being in the two regions in ways that will enrich global theory and research.

Keywords: Internationalization; Positive psychology; South Asia; Southeast Asia; Well-being.