happiness midterm

1. life satisfaction

2. positive affect

3. negative affect

what 3 elements encompass subjective well being

ed diener

who is known as dr happiness

The Epic of Gilgamesh from 2100BCE where he is seeking immortality but discovers that mortality is what can allow us to sit in the happy moments

what is the oldest surviving work of happiness denoted

looked at happiness as hedonic well being which is pleasure and eudaimonic which is living according to virtue

• both provide happiness but they are different

how did Aristotle describe happiness

the role of psychotherapy is to turn hysterical misery into ordinary unhappiness

• you will still not achieve happiness but just normal unhappiness

Freuds perspective on happiness

Maslow and Rogers psychological approach tries to fill in the healthy half of psychology which is supposed to bring about happiness

what is the humanistic approach to happiness

1. Martin Seligman founded positive psychology that focuses on positive brain functioning rather than dysfunction - put it into science

2. current approaches lack a global perspective - focus too much on US and the west

modern day approaches to happiness

1. individual/personal level

2. societal level

3. scientific/research level

3 perspectives of happiness/SWB

World Happiness Report

an annual survey that ranks countries based on how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be

• measures life evaluations with GDP, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity, and corruption as indicators of happiness levels

The Cantrill Ladder

a widely used tool to measure a person's subjective well-being and life satisfaction that asks for a rating out of 10 based on how they feel they are living their life

number 15 with a 6.9 and old populations at happiness, young at least happy

• 1st place is Finland

where does Canada rank on the world happiness ratings

1. Bhutan replaced GDP with gross national happiness to gauge societal progress

2. Uk has hired a Minster of loneliness to combat low vibes

3. us and canada have reported an epidemic of loneliness and isolation which have plans for fixing

3 legislations governments have enacted to promote happiness

Lyubomirsky’s happiness pie

a happiness model that illustrates how happiness is influenced by genetics, life circumstances, and intentional activities

• life circumstances or the set point make up 50%

• intentional activities make up 40% but are very powerful

• circumstances make 10%

1. life satisfaction

2. affective/emotional component

2 factors of subjective well being

1. cantril ladder

2. satisfaction with life scale - Diener

3. subjective happiness scale - Lyubomirsky

3 scales that measure life satisfaction component of SWB

1. PANAS - positive and negative affect scale

2. SPANE - scale of positive and negative experience

2 scales that measure emotional/affective component of SWB

SPANE scale

a subjective well being scale that focuses more on emotional affect

• considered to be more culturally sensitive as it bring about more specific definitions and descriptors of happiness for more accurate answers

1 item scales of happiness

scales of happiness that ask one broad question that takes into account everyday life or current perspective on personal happiness

• ex. Taking in all things, how happy are you feeling right now? (scale of 1-10)

experience sampling methods

alternative way to measure happiness that randomly texts participants at specific points of the day to ask them brief rating questions on their happiness levels

day reconstruction method

alternative way to measure happiness that asks participants to reconstruct a short diary of the previous day and rate how they felt with 12 descriptors

1. people may not reliably self report

2. momentary circumstances can change ratings

3. some measures may be internally physiologically stable but they are subjective measures

cautions with self report scales for happiness

The Experience Machine

a thought experiment where a person is presented with the option to plug into a machine that would provide them with any pleasurable experience they desire but completely disconnect them from real reality

• aims to question whether happiness solely based on simulated experiences is truly valuable compared to living in the real world, even with its complexities and potential hardships. 

The Flourishing Scale

scale made by Diener that assess meaning and fulfilment in adults.

• captures important human functioning of positive relationships, feelings of competence, having meaning and purpose in life, and engagement in activities.

• measures well being in a broad eudaimonic way (associated with meaning)

1. extraversion

2. emotional stability

• optimism and self esteem are also strongly correlated with happiness

what 2 traits are the strongest predictors of happiness

during initial marriage happiness rises but then it settles to a baseline

how does happiness change with marriage

gender is not consistently linked to happiness but women have been shown to report more negative affect but positive emotions

how is gender linked with happiness

intelligence is not linked to happiness

health is linked with happiness (high health = more happy)

how are health and intelligence related to happiness

• influenced 40-50% by genes but we still habituate which is part of the other influence

• unfortunate circumstances (war) control how overall happiness may be perceived (ex. Canada vs Syria)

• there are also cultural and linguistic differences of expressing happiness (low vs high arousal emotions)

how is SWB influenced by situations and circumstances

1. health and longevity

2. social relationships

3. evolutionary factors (we need to be happy to move on but not too happy or else we cant predict danger)

3 factors that predict beneficial SWB (reciprocal elements)

1. gratitude

2. acts of kindness

3. using character strengths in new ways

4. savouring experiences/spending money on others

5. interacting with strangers

5 interventions to raise SWB

emotional well being stops increasing after 75k/year

life evaluations continues to increase at any money value

how is money/income associated with emotional well being vs life evaluations

log income

a way of evaluating/equating happiness on different levels of income

• ex. you will feel so much more happy fi you have 10 dollars and you get 100 dollars but it won matter much if you already have 1 thousand

having more poistive affect than negative affect is important in raising SWB

what affect is more important in subjective well being

the pain of lifes misfortunes that can lower happiness are further exacerbated by poverty causing less happiness even on weekends

• causes more stress and negative affect

• having more money here could aid in multiple low happiness factors

how does poverty impact happiness

1. with experience sampling and asking about experiences in the moment there is no plateau of experienced well being at the 75k mark or any other income level

2. low earners were happier if they thought money was unimportant (opposite for high earners)

3. with lower well being, more people equated money with success

what did Killingsworth (2021) show about modern relations of money and emotional well being

low happiness people always experiences the money and happiness plateau around 75k

• if you’re not happy (low emotional WB), money wont fix it

what population does a money and happiness plateau occur for

6.8 life satisfaction despite only earning 1000USD a year

• achieving high life satisfaction does not require large material consumption or high monetary value cross culturally

with the Indigenous sample in Galbraith et al (2024) how did life satisfaction ranking differ

1. spending it on others

2. spending it on experiences

3. spending it to buy time

3 ways spending money can up your happiness

participants who were in a prosocial spending position show greater happiness boost than those in the self spending condition

• the way people choose to spend their money is as important is how they much money they make

how has spending money on others shown to promote happiness

• those with time scarcity show lower happiness/SWB

• participants that used money to buy more time (Ubers) show greater life satisfaction

• using money on time saving measures also shows end of day positive affect, lower negative affect, lower stress (increases positive affect)

how does spending money on time promote happiness

by avoiding accumulation and materialism with buying goods for yourself you reduce the amount that you become used to buying these things

• physically not present purchases ensure the experience is always new

how does spending money not on yourself avoid hedonic adaptation

hedonic adaptation

the process by which individuals return to baseline levels of happiness following a change in life circumstances, referring to getting used to the pleasantness of experiences

• ex. not happy forever when you win the lottery

1. if i have this thing i would be happy

2. i have this thing and its so exciting

3. i am used to this thing, its getting boring

4. this thing looks so much better

cycle of the hedonic treadmill

life satisfaction baselines may be reached after events that have to do with others more often but ratings may continue to lower or not return to baseline for more severe isolating events like unemployment or disability

how may hedonic adaptation vary with different circumstances

impact bias

our tendency to mispredict the emotional impact that future venets will have on our happiness andwellbeing

• impacts the intenisty and duraton

• trye for positive and negative events

negativity bias or our mispredictions that negative events will be bad are stinger

• over predict the bad and under predict the good and be surprised

which impact bias side is stronger

focalism

impact bias that we tend to only focus on the event in question and not all the other evnets in our lives that wont have changed that much

psychological immune system

impact bias idea that we effortlessly and maybe unconsciously rationalize an event

• happens more with negative events- we have to fully understand teh scope of the event

empathy gaps

impact bias when we are overly influence by the “now” and current feelings which get projected onto the future

• happens more with “hot states” causing us to feel like the anger or heat of the moment emotion will never dissapate

1. helps keep things in perspective considering we know our brains do this (we know impact bias is going to likely be wrong, we know we may get used to an emotion)

2. makes us resilient because we know we can recover if we dont anticipate well or we have become used to a feeling

3. wanting good things isnt bad but we know we habituate to them

3 positives to having affective forecasting errors

affective forecasting errors

errors made by over or under predicting how an event will make us feel

• often causes anxiety and catastrophizing about the event

savouring

a way to manage positive experiences in ways that enhance them

• prevents hedonic adaptation initially

1. focus on specific but relevant details of the experience

2. take a mental or physical photograph or get a souvenir

3. plan the event for the future for anticipatory savouring

4. immerse yourself

5. share the pleasant events with other - with them or tell them later

5 ways to savour experiences

Hedonic Adaptation Prevents Model

model for savouring and gratitude that focuses on savouring what you have and not wanting more

• makes us grateful for an experience or object by recognizing what enrichment it gives

• helps us engage in new experiences without throwing away older ones

Harvard longitudinal Study on Happiness

the longest in depth longitudinal study focusing on the happiness levels of two groups of men (rich and poor from boston)

• had the men fill out questionnaires and interviews regularly all their lives

• now includes spouses and many relatives to get a larger range

the relationships must be nurtured for them to aid in health and happiness

what is the key to blending happiness and relationships

loneliness is subjective so if you feel lonely then you will have poor physical and psychological functioning (not if others perceive you to be lonely)

correlation between happiness and loneliness

if we make small investments in social fitness each day we can see overall happiness in well being as well as other relationships

how can investing in relationships help happiness

if we understand what makes people very happy then we can buffer unhappy people from psychopathology

• identify variables needed for happiness

what did Diener and Sleigman (2002) suggest about the importance of learning about very happy people

1. peer/informant reports of affect

2. global self reports of life satisfaction and affect

3. daily reports over 51 days

4. memory event recall balance (accurate recall of joyful and negative experiences in past year)

5. trait self description (whether you select happy descriptors)

6. interview suicide measure (thoughts of suicide ever)

categories that determine groupings into the happiness categories of Diener and Seligman (2002)

relationships

• they are more extroverted, spend less time alone and more time socializing

• relationships are not the SOLE factor but they are necessary for happiness

what was the main category of differences between the very happy group and others

1. perception of amount of money

2. number of positive and negative events

3. GPA

4. objective physical attractiveness

5. sleep time

6. watching TV

7. exercising

8. participating In religious activities

9. drug use

in what aspects did very happy people correlate with the average group (MEGA-STERD)

ranked 7-8 out of 10

• do experience negative moods but not very negative moods

what was the usual mood rating for very happy people

extraversion, low neuroticism, low levels of psychopathology

what personality traits are correlated with very high happiness

1. limited to college students

2. correlational study - not longitudinal

3. unclear whether it is rich social lives that cause happiness or we are happy because we have these social lives

4. does not account for societal factors and meeting basic needs

what were the draw backs of the Diener and Seligman (2002) Very Happy People study

capitalizing

sharing positive news with others

• shown to have a causal relation with positive affect

• unclear the extent of sharing needed and how it different with various relationships

1. if hearing positive experiences corresponds with positive emotions - journaled about sharing with a partner and positive affect scales which aided in life satisfaction (no time interactions and only correlational)

2. if reliving positive experiences through writing lead to positive affect (is it just sharing) - reliving has a slightly lower PANAS score (not sig)

3. if benefits are from social interaction or sharing specifically - neutral interaction was slightly lower score on single item happiness (not sig)

4. cumulative effects of sharing over 4 weeks - kept journals and either needed to share positive or neutral experiences or not share - PA, LS, vitality, and happiness rise with sharing gratefulness

5. how reaction of partner impacts positive emotion - importance of response style

what are the 5 studies done in Lambert et al (2012) Sharing Positive Experiences

1. active constructive - includes mention of task (active listening) and enthusiastic support (constructive)

2. active destructive - includes mention of task but tears down or devalues achievement

3. passive constructive - just mention of task no encouragement

4. passive destructive - mere mention of task with discouragement

4 types of response styles

receiving an active constructive response leads to more positive emotions

which response style leads to positive emotion

sharing good news provides opportunity for partners to show care in a low risk context so receiving an excited and engaged reaction suggests that there would be support in more high risk situations

• also creates a shared positive experience

why is active constructive responding so important

connecting with strangers can boost happiness levels and we often underestimate how happy these interactions will make us

what is an alternative to connecting and boosting happiness if you dont have a partner

by becoming more prosocial with strangers and benefiting from that unexpected happiness then we can buffer when closer relationships may be failing because it can spark a new want for connection within all relationships

how can stranger interaction aid in bad close relationships

people predict lower positive feelings for the conversation condition and higher feelings with the solitude condition pre-commute

post train ride there was more happiness reported in the conversation condition and less happiness with the solitude (underestimate happiness levels)

what do people predict vs. report about happiness during the solitude vs. conversation condition of speaking with strangers on the train

there is lower prediction. ofhappiness when predicting starting a conversation compared to predicting imagining. aconversation becaus ethe former is anxiety inducing

• skewed the results of the Schoeder et al study

what is the discrepancy in happiness report when asked to imagine a conversation with a stranger vs trying to start a conversation

1. underestimating others sociality - dont think people will be receptive

2. technology - headphones physically separating

what are the predicted barriers of less happiness from reluctancy to speak to strangers

gratitude

a state that requires a person to recognize that they have acquired a positive outcome that came from an external source and usually involves providing a means of thankfulness

1. relationships

2. physical health

3. well being

3 aspects of life that benefit from expressing gratitude

1. gratitude to - prompted by actions performed by oneself giving

2. gratitude for - appreciating positive aspects for ones life

2 types of gratitude

positive activity intervention

simple, self-administered cognitive and behavioural strategies that can increase subjective well-being by promoting positive feelings, positive thoughts, and positive behaviours

• gratitude is an example

replicability crisis and tampering- many gratitude studies cannot be replicated so the findings may be nullified or hypotheses may not be pre registered and altered to fit results

what is a major issue in current literature surrounding gratitude interventions

1. private gratitude - write. aletter, dont share

2. 1 to 1 gratitude - share via text

3. public gratitude - share via social media

4. control - track daily activities in journal

what are the 4 gratitude conditions measured in Walsh et al (2023)

1. gratitude scale

2. emotions - positive and negative

3. life satsisfaction

4. elevation

5. connectedness

6. support

7. lonliness

7 gratitude measures of Walsh et al 2023

1. those in the gratitude groups will experience more positive outcomes than the control

2. 1 to 1 gratitude groups experienced more connectedness and support but either lowered on other factors or saw no difference compared to other groups

what were the results of Walsh et al 2023 (gratitude)