Science of Happiness

aristotlefaceAristotle once said "Happiness is the meaning and purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence." Finding true happiness is serious business, and as a result, it has become big business.
On the internet and in the bookstores, a thousand gurus tout different remedies for human misery. How do we distinguish fact from hype?  We need to consult one of our greatest gurus, the scientific method. Over the last twenty years we have seen a dramatic upsurge in scientific studies aimed at discovering the causes of “subjective well being” or to put it simply, discovering what makes happy people happy. Many of the scientific studies point to certain key areas that can strongly impact our pursuit of happiness. In these pages, we review the most scientific studies, find areas of agreement, and translate the results into non-technical English. Let’s take a look at the areas of consensus that are emerging through the new science of happiness.

Seven Science-Based Strategies for Happiness

1. Communicating
2. Caring
3. Exercise
4. Getting in the Flow
5. Spiritual Engagement
6. Cultivating Strengths and Virtues
7. Positive Thinking: Optimism, Savoring, and Gratitude
 
These strategies are based on our analysis of key scientific studies (see bibliography): Read more about the contents of this page

1. Communicating

The top line: People who have one or more close friendships appear to be happier. It doesn’t seem to matter if we have a large network of close relationships or not. What seems to make a difference is if and how often we cooperate in activities and share our personal feelings with a friend or relative. Simply put, it's not the quantity of our relationships, but the quality that matters. In one study people were asked on random occasions about their mood. They were found to be happiest with their friends, followed by family members, and least happy if they were alone (Larson). Another study constructed a scale of cooperativeness, ie how willing people were to constructively engage in activities with others. This study showed that the cooperativeness of an individual was a predictor of their happiness, though it did not conclusively show if their cooperation resulted in happiness or the other way around (Lu). A study on the quality of relationships found that to avoid loneliness people needed only one close relationship coupled with a network of other relationships. To form a close relationship required a growing amount of "self-disclosure," or a willingness to reveal ones personal issues and feelings, and without it people with friends would still be lonely (Weiss). A similar study found that some students who had many friends with whom they often spent time were still plagued by loneliness, and this seemed to be related to their tendency to talk about impersonal topics such as sports and pop music instead of their personal life (Weeler).

Bibliography

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2. Caring

The top line: People who volunteer or simply care for others on a consistent basis seem to be happier and less depressed. This seems to be especially true in older individuals. Most people who care for others in a selfless manner do so because of a genuine desire to help and improve the world around them. Nonetheless, modern sociological research has shown that caring has benefits for all involved; people who volunteer or care for others on a consistent basis tend to have better mental well-being, including fewer depressive symptoms and higher life-satisfaction.   Although “caring” can involve volunteering as part of an organized group or club, it can be as simple as reaching out to a workmate or classmate who looks lonely or is struggling with an issue. Studies show that people who reach out like this, even for as little as 2-3 hours per week, can benefit in multiple ways. Of the many different ways in which individuals care for others, organized volunteering is the most widely studied form in the scientific literature. The majority of studies agree that there is a very significant association between volunteering and psychological well-being. Several studies have found that this correlation appears to be highest in older adults (Morrow-Howell et al., 2003; Wheeler et al., 1998). The same level of correlation has not been found in younger adults as a whole. Yet, a subgroup of younger adults who engage in sustained volunteering over long periods of time do in fact have higher levels of mental well-being (Wheeler et al., 1998). The authors of this study speculated that many young adults who volunteer for short periods of time may have been encouraged to volunteer by their schools or did so to boost their chances of getting into college.  In contrast, older volunteers tend to cite moral responsibility. This suggests that "intrinsically motivated" volunteers, ie those who are more motivated for the sake of volunteering itself, feel more satisfaction than "extrinsically motivated" volunteers (Midlarsky, Kahana, 1993). One more intriguing set of data reveals that the recipients of volunteer activities who were encouraged to participate or cooperate in some way, tended to experience greater happiness. In contrast to this, those who passively received the benefits did not become significantly happier, and in some cases became more depressed.  As is true for other areas of research, it is considerably more difficult to prove that volunteering causes improved mental well-being than to simply identify an association between the two. At least one study, however, has attempted to do so with a prospective, randomized trial (Yuen et al., 2008). The authors of this study randomly assigned a population of older adults into one of two groups: a group that volunteered for three months, and a control group that did not. At the end of the trial, the researchers found that those who volunteered scored higher on indices of mental well-being than those who did not. These effects persisted three months after the end of the trial, indicating that the benefits of volunteering may be long-lasting.
 
 
 
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3. Exercising

The top line: Regular exercise is associated with improved mental well-being and a lower incidence of depression.  Have you ever noticed that you feel great after going for a run? Do you love working out or playing sports on a regular basis? It turns out that you are not alone, and that exercise may have a big effect on mood and mental well-being. While it might be no surprise that exercise can improve your mood, a good deal of scientific research has been done to discover the possible reasons for this. Some researchers argue that exercise may act as a diversion from negative thoughts, and the mastery of a new skill may be important. There is evidence to indicate that social contact between people who are working out or involved in sports may be an important source of satisfaction as well. Still others think that physical activity causes the brain to release chemicals called endorphins that cause one to feel good after exercising. Most of the researchers looking at exercise and mood compared groups of people who were exercising to those who were not. They then looked to see if those who were exercising felt better in the short term. Some researchers compared exercising to treatments for depression such as antidepressant medications or cognitive-behavioral therapy. The vast majority of studies have shown that there is a significant association between exercise and improved well-being. It has proved more difficult, however, to show that exercise directly causes mental well-being; people who are happier, after all, may simply be more inclined to exercise. Among the studies that support the theory that exercise directly causes improved mental well-being (as opposed to vice-versa) is one that looked at the effect of exercise on older adults with clinical depression (Blumenthal et al., 1999). The authors compared exercise to a commonly prescribed anti-depressant medication (Zoloft), and found that both were equally effective in reducing depressive symptoms. In contrast to these results, a group of researchers from the Netherlands found that exercise may not be nearly as important as genetics in determining one’s mental well-being (Stubbe et al., 2007). These researchers looked at pairs of identical twins in which one twin exercised significantly more than the other, and found that there was no significant difference in their level of happiness. In conclusion, there is a great deal of evidence that exercise is associated with improved mental-well being and a lesser incidence of depressive symptoms. Nevertheless, there is still controversy in the scientific community as to whether exercise causes improved mental well-being, or whether those with improved mental well-being have a predisposition for exercise. The truth may lie somewhere in the middle.

Exercise and Happiness in Depth: Reviews

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4. Getting in the Flow

The top line: If we are deeply involved in trying to reach a goal, or an activity that is challenging but well suited to our skills, we experience a joyful state called “flow.” One may find still greater happiness experiencing “flow" in working towards long-term, meaningful goals.
 
Do you ever find yourself so completely immersed in what you’re doing that you lose track of time? All of a sudden you look up at the clock and realize that hours have passed and you missed dinner time? Think a minute about this. When does this loss of time and total engagement typically occur for you? This could apply to a martial artist completely absorbed in perfecting a flying kick, or a violinist fiercely concentrating on a complex symphony. One may find still greater happiness working towards long-term, meaningful goals. This is perhaps one reason why religious people with a sense of “mission” seem comparatively happier. Viktor Frankl, who survived a Nazi concentration camp, once said “What man actually needs is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for some goal worthy of him.” A growing body of scientific evidence seems to support this.
This loss of self-consciousness that happens when you are completely absorbed in an activity – intellectual, social, or physical – is described in contemporary psychology as a state of Flow. In order for a Flow state to occur, you must see the activity as voluntary, enjoyable (intrinsically motivating), and it must require skill and be challenging (but not too challenging) with clear goals towards success. You must feel as though you have control and receive immediate feedback with room for growth. Interestingly, a Flow state is characterized by the absence of emotion – a complete loss of self-consciousness –however, in retrospect, the Flow activity may be described as enjoyable and even exhilarating!

Scientists such as Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi have studied the impact of Flow states on human happiness, productivity and success. In one study 250 high-flow and low-flow teenagers were asked to report on their feelings and activities at regular intervals. The high-flow teenagers on average reported more time spent on hobbies, sports and homework. The high-flow teenagers also measured higher levels of self-esteem and engagement. Interestingly, however, the high-flow teenagers self-reported lower levels of fun than the low-flow teenagers. Apparently, high-flow teenagers see their low-flow peers as experiencing more fun engaging in low-flow activities, such as video games, TV or socializing. However, the high-flow kids end up having greater long term happiness as well as success in school, social relationships and careers. If Flow has such incredible benefits to our happiness, relationships and success, then why do we habitually choose low-flow activities? Why do we, in the moment, choose another episode of American Idol over a game of pickup basketball? One hypothesis is that the high-flow activities require more initial motivation because they do require skill and concentration. In other words, high-flow activities are work! But work that pays off. And unfortunately low-flow activities, such as watching TV, often contribute to low levels of depression.

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5. Spiritual Engagement

The top line: People follow spiritual paths and join religious organizations for innumerable reasons, including faith, prayer, social support, community service, cultural tradition, friendship, commitment to the community and more. How often do you hear someone say that they committed to a religion or spiritual practice primarily to become happier? Perhaps not often. However, interestingly enough, studies demonstrate a close link between spiritual and religious practice and happiness.
 
Scientists who study this phenomenon hypothesize several possible reasons for a link between religiosity and happiness. Religious organizations provide strong social support from like minded people, providing various opportunities for socializing, community service and making friends. Social engagement is currently recognized as being most strongly linked to happiness.

Spirituality and prayer also provide people with an opportunity to engage in a meditative act. Meditation has been shown to have a strong link with well-being because it calms the body, reduces stress and anxiety, and also supports positive thinking. Finally, both spirituality and organized religion can help provide people with perspective and hope. By believing in something greater than themselves, it may help them stay positive in times of sadness, and foster resilience. Generally, religiosity can be defined as one’s relationship with a particular faith tradition or doctrine about a divine other or supernatural power, while spirituality can be defined as "the intrinsic human capacity for self-transcendence, in which the self is embedded in something greater than the self, including the sacred" and which motivates "the search for connectedness, meaning, purpose, and contribution.”1 But these abstract ideas are measured in many different ways, from frequency of church attendance to asking people “how religious are you?” As for mental well-being and happiness, studies look at both negative (i.e. depression) and positive indicators of mental well-being (i.e. self-reported happiness, self esteem, positive relationships with others). Two recent surveys of the studies (meta-analyses) examine the different definitions and measurements of religiosity/spirituality as well as mental effects. One looks at adults, the other, adolescents, both with different results. A 2003 review of 34 studies with mainly adult populations found that personal devotion measures are most strongly related to mental well-being, while ideological measures showed less strong though positive effects, and institutional measures (i.e. religious service attendance) had the weakest. A 2006 review of 20 studies with adolescent populations (average age 10-20) reported that 90% of these studies show positive findings in the relationships between adolescent religious/spiritual engagement and mental well-being.3 In contrast to the mostly adult-based study, it was institutional involvement that had the largest effect on mental well-being, with ideological and personal devotion measures showing a smaller impact. Scientists suppose that the social and behavioral impact of institutional involvement may be more beneficial to young people, because it provides a sense of order and belonging during a difficult transitional period of their lives. In general, they found that religious and spiritual involvement was more beneficial to older teens’ mental well-being, perhaps because it reflects personal choices rather than imposed parental expectations. They also found that it has more of an impact for males, but are unsure why. One important point about the studies is that, even though most researchers say they are looking at the “effect” of religion on mental well-being, the vast majority only show that religious and spiritual people report higher levels of happiness and mental well-being. This means that good mental well-being might predispose people to religious involvement or vice versa. To look at whether religiosity/spirituality causes better mental well-being, scientists must study people over a long period of time.

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6. Cultivating Strengths and Virtues

The top line: The work of positive psychologists such as Seligman appears to show that the happiest people are those that have discovered their unique strengths (such as persistence and logic) and virtues (such as humanity and patience), and use those strengths and virtues for a purpose that is greater than their own personal goals. These kinds of people are doing what we have suggested in the section on “caring,”but on top of that they use their unique abilities and gifts to do it. You may have strengths that are so natural to you that you may not even consider them strengths. Think about an episode in your life when you were at your very best. What qualities enabled you to perform like that? While an infinite number of talents and strengths exist that humans can possess, Character Strengths and Virtues are ones that humanity morally values. When Martin Seligman and Chris Peterson sought to discover and classify common Character Strengths and Virtues across cultures, they created a classification of core virtues that humans morally value no matter what the cultural, racial and regional differences. Take the VIA Signature Strengths assessment to determine your top five Signature Strengths. (link here) Current research indicates that you are most likely to value a job, relationship, hobby or institution that aligns with your core signature strengths and allows you to regularly utilize them. In fact, research indicates that using signature strengths in new and consistent ways, and building on your current strengths may more effectively improve wellbeing than trying to improve your weaknesses.

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7. Positive Thinking: Optimism, Savoring, and Gratitude

The top line: If you want to be happy, think happy thoughts first! While it sounds simple and intuitive, optimistic thinking is highly correlated with happiness, though more studies are needed on the cause-effect relationship. Do we become happy because we are optimistic, or do we think optimistic thoughts because we are happy? Optimists are generally more persevering in their goals and activities because they have the confidence, commitment and motivation to overcome challenges. Optimists generally possess higher self-esteem because they believe more in their own capabilities in the present, and the future.
 
Optimism describes your cognitive orientation to the world around you. When you find out you were just admitted to your top college of choice, do you think – “well, of course, I’m brilliant!” or do you think “What a stroke of great luck!”? When you find out you were rejected from your school of choice, do you think, “I just wasn’t smart enough to get in to my top choice” or do you think, “a huge number of people applied from my geographic region this year.”While many people view optimism in a Polyannic sense of blind faith about the future, optimism is really more accurately defined as your attitude towards yourself and how successful you think you will be in the future.

Optimistic people view the same events as challenges and opportunities that pessimists may see as annoyances or frustrations. As a result, The only known downside to optimism is that optimists slightly underestimate risks, which is one of the reasons why professions were pessimism may prove to be more beneficial (such as law) also report higher levels of depression Martin Seligman’s book Authentic Happiness has an optimism assessment you can take. If you score low, don’t despair! Optimism is not a fixed character trait! You can improve your optimistic outlook on life through your hard word and cognitive discipline. The book Authentic Happiness by Martin Seligman outlines exercises and strategies for improving your optimistic outlook on life.

Optimism in the news: CBS News item on optimism

Gratitude in the news: Making a difference (Humorous and moving story about a "gratitude visit.")

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