Science
The Science of Happiness: 10 Traits of Happiness
First of all. This picture is pure happiness to me. This is me with two good friends, and we are laughing so hard about something! I love that picture. It’s one for the ages. We all used to work together, and boy did we laugh a lot when we did. What a great shot my friend’s husband captured when we were obviously finding something quite humorous.
The idea of “happiness” interested me for many years as I was always seeking to improve my own (Heck, aren’t we all?). But, as I sat down to begin 38 Hertz, I realized what made me happy might not make you happy, and so what does the science of happiness tell us and how do we get it? I’m not here as any sort of expert on happiness, but to create a journey to explore it.
Merriam-Webster Says happiness is this:
hap·pi·ness | \ ˈha-pē-nəs \
Essential Meaning of happiness is the state of being happy, happy meaning:
-feeling pleasure and enjoyment because of your life, situation, etc.
-showing or causing feelings of pleasure and enjoyment.
–pleased or glad about a particular situation, event, etc.
10 Traits of Happiness
- Being content with who you are.
- Having someone to share your life with.
- A state of mind.
- It comes from within.
- The absence of stress and anxiety.
- When you are at peace.
- When life feels right.
- Feeling like you matter.
- Feeling loved.
- A positive emotional state.
What the Experts Say About The Science of Happiness
Acacia Parks, Ph.D at Happify suggests that “Happiness is not feeling good all the time, being rich and being able to get whatever you want, refusing to see the negative events in the world, or reaching a final destination. Rather, it is a combination of how satisfied your are with your life and how you feel on a day-to-day basis.” Click on the image below to see the full poster all about happiness. It’s great! And so is the website!
June Silny at Happify says this about the science of happiness: Happy people are more successful in marriage, friendship, income, work performance, and health, they get sick less often and less severe when they do get sick, have more friends, donate to charity, are helpful and volunteer, navigate through life more easily, have a positive influence on others, engage in meaningful conversations, smile more, exercise more, are happy with what they have and not jealous, live longer, and are more productive.
At PositivePsychology.com, I was most interested in the discussions about happiness versus pleasure or happiness versus meaning. Happiness describes a more general state of being and is related to overall contentment while pleasure can simply be found in a moment, like eating a favorite food, buying something you want, or engaging in sexual activities, and are related to in-the-moment activities. They are pleasure-seeking activities. That’s not the equation to overall happiness, of course. In relation to meaning, the two are very different. Helping people in need may bring you meaning, but might not always bring happiness.
Is Happiness Feeling Content?
Some would say happiness means you are at least content in some way whether that be ambition fulfilled from work ethic or just being able to take care of yourself without worries about money or health or of that of the affairs of your loved ones. Others find happiness in physical satisfactions such as possessing material things or fame and success, There’s no perfect definition for happiness–we are all unique beings which means our definitions can vary greatly depending upon who we happen to be at any given moment suggesting that happiness can change even within our own selves.
Is Happiness Money?
A lot of people believe that money will bring them happiness, but wealthy individuals often find themselves feeling unsatisfied regardless of the mass of wealth they accumulate, often simply searching for more while those at lower socioeconomic levels experience the opposite effect, they may find happiness with less IF their basic needs are at least being met. See what Very Well Mind says about it.
The Happiest Country in the World….Again!
The World Happiness Report in conjunction with Gallup rates Finland as the happiest country in the world for the 6th straight year (2023). The US is #19, Afghanistan is the unhappiest place to live in the world. Gallup measures subjective well-being (SWB) and considers three main indications, life evaluation and negative and positive emotions. On the opposite end, the poll measures negative emotions asking if respondents experienced negative emotions emotions yesterday such as worry, sadness, or anger. See the annual reports here.
At Happiness International, founder Kenneth Benjamin defines happiness as this, “Happiness is when your life fulfills your needs.” This then begs the next question, “What are my needs?” We will all have different ones.
Psychology Today Happiness Test
This took me about 10 minutes and cost 4.95. I felt it was quite accurate based upon my own perception of myself. Take the test and see for yourself. The graphic above is a snapshot of the free analysis you get, then it costs 4.95 to get the full results. Also, it’s pretty fun. Take the test here!
Why Happy People do it Better – The Science of Happiness
Take the Happiness Course
If you’re looking to jump start your happiness habit (or even coach others to do so), or just want a quick refresher on what makes you happy, take this happiness course. It can be completed in a little over 5 hours. Whether you’re looking to improve your own happiness or help others find happiness, here is a course for you. Complete with video instructions and fun worksheets and activities. One of a series of courses by Joeel and Natalie Rivera that includes video lectures, worksheets, tips, tricks and information from a coach’s and client’s perspective. If the topic of happiness interests you, you might consider doing this for a living! Take the Happiness Course. I did!
On the Other Hand
Happiness is difficult to define. The reality may be elusive and psychologists who say that measuring happiness is impossible seem like very valid points considering there will always remain different perspectives from all over humanity when talking about these matters. According to the famous psychologist Hobart Mowry, it is impossible to measure how happy someone feels. His theory suggests that there are six different types of happiness: sensual or sexual pleasure; social acceptance and belonging with friends or family members (intimacy); and spiritual awareness .
Happiness can’t really be pinpointed by the things we do or how many dollars someone has in their bank account because happiness comes from within; there’s nothing outside us making us feel happy – only our own selves giving off signals of joyfulness (David M Gilbert 2006).
Conclusion
Ah, the elusive science of happiness. “Happiness is a state of mind,” according to Aristotle. But what does that mean? It means we can’t measure happiness like we would weight on the scale or height in feet and inches (unless you’re measuring your mood). We all have different views and perspectives on what makes us happy, so it’s up to each individual person to decide how they want their life to feel. Some people choose goals based off achieving physical milestones–like getting married, having children, owning a home–while others are more interested in making memories with friends or living an interesting lifestyle. So how do we measure happiness? I’ll leave this for you to decide on your own.
Resources
Happify.com
PositivePsychology.com
World Happiness Report
Happiness International
Psychology Happiness Test
YouTube: Why Happy People Do it Better
Very Well Mind on Money
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