pursing happiness exam 1

reasons to be happy (physical and mental health)

Live longer

Healthier overall

Fewer psychological issues

Quicker recovery from illness

Less drug abuse and crime

reasons to be happy (social benefits)

Stay married longer

Help others more often

reasons to be happy (cognitive and work related)

More creative

Better workers

Make more money

Goals are easier to achieve

increase disease

negative emotions and stress ______ disease

decrease disease

positive emotions ______ disease

nun study

Nuns who wrote positively in their autobiographies lived longer

doctors and candy study

Doctors given candy made faster and more accurate diagnoses

75-80%

______ believe they are happier than the average person

positive

People experience a _______ state ~70% of the time

Lake Wobegon Effect

People overestimate their abilities and happiness — this illusion may support well-being

paradox of affluence

More wealth ≠ more well-being

Despite tech and material growth, happiness may not increase

Modern society tends to take good things for granted

flourishing

High well-being, low mental illness

struggling

High well-being, high mental illness

floundering

Low well-being, high mental illness

Languishing

Low well-being, low mental illness

Complete Mental Health

Emotional well-being +

Psychological well-being +

Social well-being =

yes we can!

can we become happier?

50%

genetics (happiness)

10%

circumstances

40%

intentional activity

epigenetics

Genetics are not fixed; gene expression can change

gun

Genetics loads the _____, environment pulls the trigger.

NOT major contributors

Money, attractiveness, or location = _____ major contributors

intentional activity (40%)

Helping others

Active relationships

Pursuing goals

greeks

_____ believed thoughts affect feeling

self-fufilling prophecy

a belief that leads to its own fulfillment

behavior

_____ influences attitude

learned optimism

Can create meaning and purpose

CBT

Change thoughts → change emotions and behaviors

past-negative perspective

Regret, pessimism about past

Past-Positive

Nostalgic, sentimental

Present-Hedonistic

Lives for pleasure

Present-Fatalistic

Believes in fate, lacks control

future-oriented

plans, goals, aspiration-focused

character

how we treat others is key to happiness

Truthfulness

Justice

Magnificence

Ethics rooted in:

Courage, integrity, gratitude

virtues support happiness

evaluation

Cognitive

bodily arousal

physiological

facial expression, tone, posture

behavioral

Olympics Medal Study

1st > 3rd > 2nd in happiness

Prospect Theory

Losses feel worse than equivalent gains

card stack study

Gut feeling guides better than thought

Smiling

____ can trick the brain into feeling happier

comic and pen study and botox study

____ and ____ studies that support facial feedback hypothesis

both

we need ____ happiness and tragedy/sadness

Comparison

_______Makes Happiness Meaningful

constructive guilt

Feel bad → change behavior

sadness

______ can increase empathy/helpfulness

negativity bias

3-4 negative words for every positive

3 good experiences to outweigh 1 bad

Frequency > Intensity

Many small positive emotions > rare intense ones

1879

Wundt in Germany — conscious experience

Psychoanalysis (Freud)

unconscious, childhood trauma, no research

Behaviorism (Skinner, Pavlov)

reward/punishment, rigorous research

Humanism (Rogers, Maslow)

idealistic, self-actualization, no research

Cognitive psych

decision-making, memory, CBT

Biological psych

brain chemistry, genetics, evolutionary theory

positive psych (1998, Seligman)

average person, evidence-based

humanism vs positive psych

Extraordinary individuals vs

Average person,

Idealistic, whole person vs

Scientific, realistic

no research vs research

unconscious

Outside awareness

Habits = 50% of behavior

Repressed memories

Helps more than it harms

car ad study

Sleazy ad influenced men unconsciously

sock study

Most chose the last pair, unaware why

why

People don't always know ___ they feel happy

poster study

Non-thinkers were happier with choices

pros/cons lists

good for non-emotional decisions

psychotic (DM)

severe distortions, unhealthy - delusions

immature (MD)

adolescents - projections

neurotic (MD)

"normal" used by most people - denial

mature (MD)

adaptive style, positive outcomes - sublimation

process

happiness is a ________, not a destination

hedonism

Pleasure-seeking (self-defeating)

hebrews

Obey divine rules (10 Commandments)

greeks (view of happiness)

Eudaimonia = living virtuously

Christianity

Happiness comes after death

Renaissance

Mechanism (life as machine)

Romanticism

Love-based marriage

20th-21st Century

Positive psychology and scientific inquiry

PERMA

Positive Emotion

Engagement (flow)

Relationships

Meaning

Accomplishment

two types of happiness

Hedonic: Pleasure-based

Eudaimonic: Meaning-based

self determination theory

Competence - Mastery

Relatedness - Mutual support

Autonomy - Make personal choices

less

Monday = _____ autonomy, ____ happiness vs weekend

Positive and Negative Affect

Separate dimensions

Can feel both at once

Stress can merge the scales

dynamic model of affect

Emotional balance shifts based on context

emotional intelligence

Perceive, understand, and manage emotions

Debate: trait or intelligence?

Can be developed

thinking

"There is nothing either good or bad, but _____ makes it so."

Cognitive Interpretation

______ ________ → Feelings

construal theory

How we interpret experiences affects happiness

evaluation theory

Constantly evaluate experience

Mood, comparison standards, culture affect well-being

measuring happiness

Empirical evidence used in positive psychology

Surveys (trust results but understand limits)

challenges in measuring happiness

Objective (food, housing) vs. Subjective (life satisfaction)

Example: Austria vs Nigeria (same objective, different subjective happiness)

peak end rule

End + peak moments shape memory of experiences

weather

sunny days improve happiness

german football fans

winning = more happiness

room design

affects perceived happiness

High school yearbook study

Bigger smile = higher happiness later

habits

many intentional activities are ____, half of what we do is automatic

rat race (veggie burger)

detriment in present and benefit future

happiness (ideal burger)

benefit future and present

nihilism (worst burger)

detriment in both present and future

hedonism (junk food burger)

benefit present detriment future