Happiness is one of the most universal and fundamental human desires. Everyone wants to be happy and to avoid suffering. However, happiness is also one of the most elusive and complex phenomena to define and measure. What makes us happy ? How can we increase our happiness ? How can we cope with the challenges and difficulties that life throws at us?
These are some of the questions that have intrigued philosophers, poets, religious leaders, and ordinary people for centuries.
In recent decades, a new branch of psychology has emerged that attempts to answer these questions from a scientific perspective. This branch is called positive psychology, and it is the study of the positive aspects of human experience, such as happiness, well-being, optimism, resilience, gratitude, compassion, and meaning. Positive psychology aims to understand what makes life worth living and how we can enhance our happiness and well-being through evidence-based interventions and practices.
Here we’ll explore some of the main concepts and findings of positive psychology, such as the definition and measurement of happiness, the factors that influence our happiness, and the strategies that can help us boost our happiness. We’ll also discuss some of the applications and implications of positive psychology for individuals, groups, and societies.
What Is Happiness and How Can We Measure It ?
Happiness is a subjective and multidimensional construct that can be defined in different ways by different people and cultures. However, most psychologists agree that happiness involves two main components: hedonic well-being and eudaimonic well-being.
Hedonic well-being refers to the experience of pleasure and satisfaction in life. It is often measured by asking people how they feel about their life as a whole or about specific domains or activities in their life, such as work, health, relationships, leisure, etc. This is also known as subjective well-being or life satisfaction.
Eudaimonic well-being refers to the experience of meaning and purpose in life. It is often measured by asking people how they evaluate their life in terms of their goals, values, strengths, potentials, growth, etc. This is also known as psychological well-being or flourishing.
Both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being are important for happiness, but they are not necessarily correlated. For example, some people may have high levels of hedonic well-being but low levels of eudaimonic well-being, or vice versa. Some people may also have high levels of both or low levels of both. Therefore, happiness is not a simple or static state, but a dynamic and complex process that involves both feeling good and doing good in life.
What Factors Influence Our Happiness ?
Happiness is influenced by a variety of factors that can be classified into three categories: genetic factors, circumstantial factors, and intentional factors.
Genetic factors refer to the inherited traits that affect our personality, temperament, mood, emotions, etc. They account for about 50% of our happiness level. Some people are born with a higher or lower set point of happiness than others, which means that they tend to return to their baseline level of happiness after experiencing positive or negative events in life.
Circumstantial factors refer to the external conditions that affect our life situation, such as income, education, health, social relationships, environment, culture, etc. They account for about 10% of our happiness level. Some of these factors are more or less under our control, while others are not. Some of these factors have a lasting or diminishing impact on our happiness, depending on how we adapt to them.
Intentional factors refer to the internal choices and actions that affect our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, such as goals, values, attitudes, beliefs, habits, skills, etc. They account for about 40% of our happiness level. These factors are largely under our control and can be modified or enhanced through deliberate interventions and practices.
What Strategies Can Help Us Boost Our Happiness ?
Happiness is not a fixed or predetermined state, but a skill that can be learned and improved. There are many evidence-based strategies that can help us increase our happiness and well-being, based on the principles and findings of positive psychology. Some of these strategies are:
Practicing Gratitude : Gratitude is the appreciation of what we have and what we receive in life. It can help us focus on the positive aspects of our life and reduce negative emotions such as envy, resentment, or regret. It can also strengthen our social bonds and increase our generosity and altruism. We can practice gratitude by keeping a gratitude journal, writing thank-you notes, expressing gratitude to others verbally or non-verbally, or savoring the good moments in life.
Cultivating Optimism : Optimism is the expectation of positive outcomes and the belief in our ability to cope with challenges and difficulties. It can help us enhance our motivation, resilience, and performance. It can also protect us from stress, anxiety, and depression. We can cultivate optimism by reframing negative events or thoughts into positive ones, setting realistic and attainable goals, celebrating our achievements and progress, or seeking support from others when needed.
Engaging in Flow : Flow is the state of being fully immersed and absorbed in an activity that challenges our skills and abilities. It can help us experience joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment in life. It can also improve our creativity, productivity, and learning. We can engage in flow by finding and pursuing our passions and interests, choosing activities that match our skill level and challenge us slightly, eliminating distractions and focusing on the task at hand, or seeking feedback and improvement.
Developing Strengths : Strengths are the positive qualities and characteristics that we possess and express in various domains of life. They can help us achieve our goals, overcome obstacles, and contribute to society. They can also increase our confidence, self-esteem, and happiness. We can develop our strengths by identifying them using various tools or assessments, applying them in different situations or contexts, enhancing them through training or practice, or sharing them with others.
Fostering Relationships : Relationships are the connections and interactions that we have with other people who matter to us. They can provide us with love, support, companionship and happiness. They can also buffer us from stress, loneliness, and depression. We can foster our relationships by spending quality time with our loved ones, expressing our affection and appreciation, listening and communicating effectively, resolving conflicts constructively, or supporting and helping each other.
Seeking Meaning : Meaning is the sense of purpose and significance that we derive from our life and actions. It can help us cope with adversity, find direction and motivation, and contribute to a greater cause. It can also enhance our well-being and happiness. We can seek meaning by discovering and pursuing our values and passions, setting and achieving meaningful goals, reflecting on our life story and legacy, or engaging in altruism and spirituality.
The Applications and Implications of Positive Psychology :
Positive psychology has many applications and implications for individuals, groups, and societies. Some of these are:
● For Individuals : Positive psychology can help us improve our personal well-being and happiness by providing us with scientific knowledge, tools, and strategies that we can use in our daily lives. It can also help us overcome or prevent mental health problems such as stress, anxiety, depression, or burnout. It can also help us enhance our physical health by promoting healthy behaviors such as exercise, nutrition, sleep, or relaxation.
● For Groups : Positive psychology can help us improve our interpersonal well-being and happiness by fostering positive relationships with our family, friends, colleagues, neighbors, or community members. It can also help us improve our group performance and collaboration by enhancing our communication, cooperation, creativity, innovation, or leadership skills. It can also help us create positive cultures and climates in our organizations, institutions, or workplaces that support well-being and happiness for all.
● For Societies : Positive psychology can help us improve our social well-being and happiness by promoting social justice and equity for all people regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, or sexual orientation. It can also help us address global challenges such as poverty, hunger, violence, war, or climate change by inspiring us to act with compassion, empathy, altruism, or solidarity. It can also help us create positive societies that value well-being and happiness as a common goal and a human right.
Conclusion
Happiness is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon that involves both feeling good and doing good in life. Positive psychology is a scientific discipline that studies the positive aspects of human experience and how we can enhance them. Positive psychology provides us with a comprehensive and evidence-based framework to understand what makes us happy and how we can increase our happiness and well-being. Positive psychology also has many applications and implications for individuals, groups, and societies that can benefit from its insights and interventions.
Positive psychology is not a panacea or a magic formula that can guarantee happiness for everyone. Happiness is not a destination or a final state that we can reach or achieve. Happiness is a journey or a process that we can pursue or cultivate throughout our lives. Happiness is also not a selfish or individualistic pursuit that we can enjoy alone or at the expense of others. Happiness is a shared or collective pursuit that we can enjoy together or for the sake of others.
Positive psychology invites us to explore the science of happiness and to apply it in our lives. It challenges us to ask ourselves: What makes me happy ? How can I make myself happier ? How can I make others happier? How can I make the world happier ?
Positive psychology encourages us to be proactive and intentional about our happiness and well-being. It empowers us to take charge of our happiness and well-being by making positive choices and actions that align with our values and goals. It inspires us to seek happiness not only for ourselves but also for others.
Positive psychology is the science of happiness that can improve our well-being and make life worth living.
By: Md. Saeed Iqbal
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