HC 1 INTRODUCTION
Negativity bias: Bad is stronger than good, Negative events have a bigger impact than positive events
(bv. People are more distressed by the loss of $50 than they are made happy by finding $50) –
- Evolutionary explanation: Humans attuned to preventing bad things thrive more than those
oriented toward maximizing good things
-> Psychological research has focused more on understanding ‘bad things’ (Baumeister et al., 2001)
“Evolution doesn’t want you to be happy or satisfied. We’re supposed to ‘survive and reproduce’”
Evolutionary psychologist Rafael Euba (2019)
“A huge happiness and positive thinking industry has helped to create the fantasy that happiness is a
realistic goal. Chasing the happiness dream is a very American concept, exported to the rest of the
world through popular culture. Unfortunately, this has helped to create an expectation that real life
stubbornly refuses to deliver
What characterizes happiness beyond an individual experience? (key questions in this course)
Do circumstances and living conditions matter?
Do material conditions have an influence?
Is happiness your own responsibility?
Can you increase your level of happiness?
Should government create conditions that make you happy (in their own interest)?
Measurement instruments for happiness (used by the government)
New-Zealand’s ‘wellbeing budget’ (Jacinda Ardern 2017)
Bhutan’s Happiness Index
Wellsh Wellbeing of Future Generations Act
OECD Better Life Index
United Nations World Happiness Report
Benefits of a happy population (Lyubomirsky et al., 2005)
more productive
healthier and live longer
contribute more to society (e.g., civic participation)
have better social relationships (e.g., fewer divorces)
What characterizes very happy people? (Diener & Seligman, 2002; Diener, Seligman, Choi, & Oishi, 2018)
1. Strong social relations
2. No shortage in basic needs (food, shelter)
3. Few health issues, low stress
4. Treated with respect
5. Have learned something new, can choose how to spend their time
6. Live in societies with high average well-being (-> have more happy people around them)
Note: correlations are not causal effects – either determinants or covariates
What determines happiness? (Lyubomirsky, Sheldon, & Schkade, 2005)
circumstances 10%, genetic setpoint 50%, intentional activity 40%
Warning: not applicable at an individual level!
The happiness pie in a formula: happiness = S + C + V (Lykken, 1999)
S = (genetic) set point, personality features
C = the individual’s circumstances (C)
V = voluntary factors that are under the individual’s control
V = Intentional activities: A meaningful life
, A happy life results from engaging in intentional activities that one is passionate about and that
contribute to the greater good (e.g., servicing the community)
People return to base line happiness levels more rapidly after changes in life circumstances than after
changes in intentional activities (Sheldon & Lyubomirsky, 2006)
Positive psychology acknowledges the importance of set point and life circumstances but emphasizes
that happiness can be actively pursued by addressing the factors that are under one’s control
Myths about happiness
1. The happier the better Can you be too happy?
Moderate levels of positive emotions engender more creativity but high levels do not (Davis, 2008)
People with extremely high positive-to-negative emotion ratios (i.e., >5:1) exhibit more rigid
behavioral repertoires (Fredrickson & Losada, 2005)
Very high degrees of positive emotion lead to riskier behaviors: alcohol consumption, binge eating,
drug use (Cyders & Smith, 2008)
Moderate levels of happiness predict better achievement outcomes (Chapter 14)
Moderate levels of happiness allow for unpleasant emotions that help to learn from these
experiences
2. No greater good than happiness Obsessed with happiness
Happiness Zeitgeist dictates that people should strive for happiness whenever and however possible
The pursuit of happiness does not always appear to lead to desired outcomes: the more you want it,
the less you seem to be able to get it (Kesebir & Diener, 2008)
High happiness standards lead to disappointment when falling short
Social pressure to seek positive emotions and avoid negative emotions increases rumination in
response to failure and eventually lower well-being (McGuirk et al., 2018)
Why you should not strive for happiness
People who valued happiness more reported lower levels of happiness, greater loneliness,
more sadness, higher levels of depression – less accepting of negative events (Ford et al.,
2014)
People who were made to value happiness more were less happy after watching a positive
movie clip (Mauss et al., 2011)
HC 2 DEFINING AND MEASURING HAPPINESS
What is happiness? (a lot of possible definitions)
- a state of well-being and contentment” (Merriam-Webster, 2018)
- “the experience of joy, contentment, or positive well-being, combined with a sense that
one’s life is good, meaningful, and worthwhile” (Lyubomirsky ,2008)
- “Good mental states, including all of the various evaluations, positive and negative, that
people make of their lives and the affective reactions of people to their experiences” (OECD,
2013)
- “Happiness is a feeling of pleasure and positivity.” (‘in simple words’)
- Lay definition: inner harmony rather than satisfaction or positive affect (Delle Fave et al.
2016)
Tripartile model of happiness
1. Cognitive Life evaluation – a reflective assessment on a person’s life or some specific aspect
of it: general satisfaction with life or domain-specific satisfaction with marriage, work,
friendship, leisure, the weather …
2. Positive Affect – a person’s feelings or emotional states, typically measured with reference to
a particular point in time (momentary): e.g., excited, interested, enthusiastic
Negativity bias: Bad is stronger than good, Negative events have a bigger impact than positive events
(bv. People are more distressed by the loss of $50 than they are made happy by finding $50) –
- Evolutionary explanation: Humans attuned to preventing bad things thrive more than those
oriented toward maximizing good things
-> Psychological research has focused more on understanding ‘bad things’ (Baumeister et al., 2001)
“Evolution doesn’t want you to be happy or satisfied. We’re supposed to ‘survive and reproduce’”
Evolutionary psychologist Rafael Euba (2019)
“A huge happiness and positive thinking industry has helped to create the fantasy that happiness is a
realistic goal. Chasing the happiness dream is a very American concept, exported to the rest of the
world through popular culture. Unfortunately, this has helped to create an expectation that real life
stubbornly refuses to deliver
What characterizes happiness beyond an individual experience? (key questions in this course)
Do circumstances and living conditions matter?
Do material conditions have an influence?
Is happiness your own responsibility?
Can you increase your level of happiness?
Should government create conditions that make you happy (in their own interest)?
Measurement instruments for happiness (used by the government)
New-Zealand’s ‘wellbeing budget’ (Jacinda Ardern 2017)
Bhutan’s Happiness Index
Wellsh Wellbeing of Future Generations Act
OECD Better Life Index
United Nations World Happiness Report
Benefits of a happy population (Lyubomirsky et al., 2005)
more productive
healthier and live longer
contribute more to society (e.g., civic participation)
have better social relationships (e.g., fewer divorces)
What characterizes very happy people? (Diener & Seligman, 2002; Diener, Seligman, Choi, & Oishi, 2018)
1. Strong social relations
2. No shortage in basic needs (food, shelter)
3. Few health issues, low stress
4. Treated with respect
5. Have learned something new, can choose how to spend their time
6. Live in societies with high average well-being (-> have more happy people around them)
Note: correlations are not causal effects – either determinants or covariates
What determines happiness? (Lyubomirsky, Sheldon, & Schkade, 2005)
circumstances 10%, genetic setpoint 50%, intentional activity 40%
Warning: not applicable at an individual level!
The happiness pie in a formula: happiness = S + C + V (Lykken, 1999)
S = (genetic) set point, personality features
C = the individual’s circumstances (C)
V = voluntary factors that are under the individual’s control
V = Intentional activities: A meaningful life
, A happy life results from engaging in intentional activities that one is passionate about and that
contribute to the greater good (e.g., servicing the community)
People return to base line happiness levels more rapidly after changes in life circumstances than after
changes in intentional activities (Sheldon & Lyubomirsky, 2006)
Positive psychology acknowledges the importance of set point and life circumstances but emphasizes
that happiness can be actively pursued by addressing the factors that are under one’s control
Myths about happiness
1. The happier the better Can you be too happy?
Moderate levels of positive emotions engender more creativity but high levels do not (Davis, 2008)
People with extremely high positive-to-negative emotion ratios (i.e., >5:1) exhibit more rigid
behavioral repertoires (Fredrickson & Losada, 2005)
Very high degrees of positive emotion lead to riskier behaviors: alcohol consumption, binge eating,
drug use (Cyders & Smith, 2008)
Moderate levels of happiness predict better achievement outcomes (Chapter 14)
Moderate levels of happiness allow for unpleasant emotions that help to learn from these
experiences
2. No greater good than happiness Obsessed with happiness
Happiness Zeitgeist dictates that people should strive for happiness whenever and however possible
The pursuit of happiness does not always appear to lead to desired outcomes: the more you want it,
the less you seem to be able to get it (Kesebir & Diener, 2008)
High happiness standards lead to disappointment when falling short
Social pressure to seek positive emotions and avoid negative emotions increases rumination in
response to failure and eventually lower well-being (McGuirk et al., 2018)
Why you should not strive for happiness
People who valued happiness more reported lower levels of happiness, greater loneliness,
more sadness, higher levels of depression – less accepting of negative events (Ford et al.,
2014)
People who were made to value happiness more were less happy after watching a positive
movie clip (Mauss et al., 2011)
HC 2 DEFINING AND MEASURING HAPPINESS
What is happiness? (a lot of possible definitions)
- a state of well-being and contentment” (Merriam-Webster, 2018)
- “the experience of joy, contentment, or positive well-being, combined with a sense that
one’s life is good, meaningful, and worthwhile” (Lyubomirsky ,2008)
- “Good mental states, including all of the various evaluations, positive and negative, that
people make of their lives and the affective reactions of people to their experiences” (OECD,
2013)
- “Happiness is a feeling of pleasure and positivity.” (‘in simple words’)
- Lay definition: inner harmony rather than satisfaction or positive affect (Delle Fave et al.
2016)
Tripartile model of happiness
1. Cognitive Life evaluation – a reflective assessment on a person’s life or some specific aspect
of it: general satisfaction with life or domain-specific satisfaction with marriage, work,
friendship, leisure, the weather …
2. Positive Affect – a person’s feelings or emotional states, typically measured with reference to
a particular point in time (momentary): e.g., excited, interested, enthusiastic
