The Pursuit of Happiness Aretology Arete - Excellence, Strength, Virtue Aretaic Ethics - Strength-Centred Ethics Emphasizes Virtues (Strengths) and Vices (Weaknesses) of Character Not What Should I Do? (both Deontology and Teleology) but What Kind of Person Should I Be? Aristotles Ethics B.C. The Nicomachean Ethics Two Kinds of Persons Continent: Do what is right, but not necessarily because they want to Temperate: Do what is right because they want to; the more holistic person The Goal of Human Existence Eudaimonia Flourishing, Happiness A Lifelong Pursuit, accomplished Rationally, through theoretical wisdom and contemplation Functionally, through practical wisdom and politics The Goal of Human Existence & Eudaimonia Aimed at the perfect happiness which is the perfect activity An excellence in any activity in accordance with the nature of that activity Thus, Human happiness is the activity of the soul in accordance with perfect virtue (excellence). (I.8; Pojman, 394). The Virtues Intellectual Virtues Wisdom, Understanding, Prudence Taught through instruction Moral Virtues Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance The result of habit Not natural or inborn but acquired through practice Habit or disposition of the soul (our fundamental character) which involves both feeling and action Those strengths of character that enable us to flourish (Hinman) The Virtues Defined / understood in terms of spheres of human experience Fear of important damages Courage Bodily appetites and their pleasures Moderation Distribution of limited resources Justice Attitude to slights and damages Mildness of Temper Adapted from Martha C. Nussbaum, Non-Relative Virtues The Doctrine of the Mean Proper position between two extremes Vice of excess Vice of deficiency Not an arithmetic median Relative to us and not the thing Not the same for all of us, or Any of us, at various occasions In this way, then, every knowledgeable person avoids excess and deficiency, but looks for the mean and chooses it (II.6) Pergamum : A New Hellenisti c City Cosmopolita n Culture Library at Alexandria (333 B.C.E.) Hellenic vs. Hellenistic Art Hellenistic Philosophers Cynics Diogenes ignore social conventions & avoid luxuries. citizens of the world. live a humble, simple life. Epicurians Epicurus avoid pain & seek pleasure. all excess leads to pain! politics should be avoided. Hellenistic Philosophers Stoics Zeno nature is the expansion of divine will. concept of natural law. get involved in politics, not for personal gain, but to perform virtuous acts for the good of all. true happiness is found in great achievements. The Problem of Pursuit John Stuart Mill, Autobiography The Paradox of Hedonismthe person who is constantly aiming at happiness tends to find it harder to achieve. The Problem of Predicting Daniel Gilbert, Stumbling on Happiness Jonathan Haidt, The Happiness Hypothesis To pursue happiness, we have to predict what will makes us happy, but were not very good at that. Why not? 1.HabituationWe get used to new things, so they make less of a difference than we think they will. 1.Set pointwe have an inborn happiness-level that doesnt change much, so we overestimate the impact of new circumstances. The Problem of Predicting 3.Present skews predictionsfor example: shopping on an empty stomach, comparing products in store. 4.Failure to understand emotional immune systemwere not aware of ways we will adapt to tragedy if it happens. (Lance Armstrong: cancer was the best thing that ever happened to me) 5.Failure to take into account the big pictureif you lose your spouse, it will not be the only thing going on in your life. 6.ETC. What Makes Us Happy? Some inner factors - Optimism How cultivating optimism is like plugging into the experience machine How being pessimistic is like being plugged into a negative experience machine Is it best to be realistic? Happiness articles per year (PsycINFO) Who Is Happy? 1.Young, middle-aged, or old? Percent Satisfied or Very Satisfied with Life as a Whole Age group Percent Marital Satisfaction and the Family Life Cycle British study Married without children Child- bearing Pre-school children, oldest 5 School children oldest 5-12 Teenagers oldest First child gone to last leaving home Empty nest to retirement Empty nest to death of first spouse Blood-Wolfe Locke- Wallace Rollins- Feldman Satisfaction Who Is Happy? 2. Women or men? Gender and Well-Being in Sixteen Nations Satisfied Very happy Males Females Percent Pooled data from 169,776 interviews. Selected Disorders, by Sex Data from M. Argyle, Depression SchizophreniaAlcoholismMalesFemales Percent Psychological disorders Well-Being and Being Well-Off A.The presumption that money buys happiness Would you be happier if you made more money? (Gallup Survey, July, 2006) Develop a meaningful philosophy of life Be very well off financially % Very important or essential B. Does Money Buy Happiness? 1.Are people happier if they live in rich countries? B. Does Money Buy Happiness? 2.Within a country, are the richest the happiest? Americans very happy (NORC, 2004) B. Does Money Buy Happiness? 3.Does the happiness of a people rise with their affluence? Personal income (in 2000 $) % Homes with Air Conditioning Percent Personal income (in 2000 $) Very happy (%) Teens from affluent families suffer elevated rates of Anxiety Depression Substance use Eating disorders (related to achievement pressures and isolation from adults, suggests one analysis) Chinas households, 1994 and 2004 (Gallup nationwide surveys) Chinese satisfaction, 1994 and 2004 (How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the way things are going in your life today?) From WSJ, 5/24/07 The Traits of Happy People Ive always been happy, but lately Ive turned it up a notch or two. The Traits of Happy People A.Self-esteem: Happy people like themselves My happiness is tied to how I feel about myself. ~ Michelle Obama, Oprah Magazine, 4/2009 Self-serving bias The Traits of Happy People B.Personal control: Happy people believe they choose their destinies C.Optimism: Happy people are hope-filled D.Extraversion: Happy people are outgoing Social Support A.Close relationships and health B.Close relationships and happiness Percent Very Happy among Married and Never Married Americans (NORC surveys, ) Married Never married % Very Happy (NORC: N = 27,600, ) Faith and Happiness Freud: Religion as sickness Freud: Religion as sickness Hitchens: religion does not make its adherents happy C. S. Lewis: Joy is the serious business of heaven C. S. Lewis: Joy is the serious business of heaven r = -.52, across 152 countries Life Today (0 = worst possible to 10 = best possible) Gallup World Survey, Denmark Togo USA All humanity Uganda Ethiopia S. Crabtree & B. Pelham, Religion Provides Emotional Boost to Worlds Poor,3/06/2009www.gallup.com % Very Happy and Religious Attendance (n=47,909, NORC, ) Ed Diener observations on Gallup data (personal communication, 1/16/2009) Across nations Across nations Negative correlation between national religiosity and life satisfaction Controlling for income (which is lower in highly religious countries) the correlation disappears Across individuals within any country: religious people have higher life satisfaction in most every nation Across individuals within any country: religious people have higher life satisfaction in most every nation Ecological fallacy The inference that what is true of group members in general is true of a particular individual who is a member of that group. The Cambridge Dictionary of Psychology, 2009 West coast South OR WA HI CA KY MS GA TN SC AR AL LA The more secular west coast states are healthier places Religious Attendance and Smoking Rate (n=16,2276, NORC, ) Smoking rate Active religious faith predicts nonsmoking Crime rates Religious Attendance and Arrest Rate (n=10,535, NORC, ) Arrest rate (picked up & charged) Active religious faith predicts low arrest rate A Day in the Life of a Flourisher Lahnna Catalino and Barbara Fredrickson (UNC) Question: Do depressed, nonflourishing, and flourishing community adults spend their time differently? (SPSP poster, 2009, based on day reconstruction method reports) What Faith Offers 1. Where two or three are gathered (social support) 2. Impulse control (self-control and self- regulation) 3. Something worth living and dying for (meaning and purpose) 4. The good news (ultimate acceptance) 5. Losing/finding ones life (a focus beyond self) 6. Hope (terror management) How to Feel Better 1.Realize: enduring happiness doesnt come from making it 2.Savor the moment 3.Take control of your time 4.Act happy 5.Seek work and leisure that engage your skills 6.Join the movement movement 7.Get REST 8. Give priority to close relationships 9. Count your blessingskeep a gratitude journal 10. Take care of the soul Therapeutic lifestyle change (Stephen Ilardi, University of Kansas) Aerobic exercise Adequate sleep Light exposure Social connections Anti-rumination Nutritional supplements greatly reduced depression Psychologist Daniel Kahnemann on the Gallup World Poll and the future application of happiness research For further information... davidmyers.org What Faith Offers 1.Where two or three are gathered (social support) 2.Impulse control (self-control and self-regulation) Michael McCullough on religion, self-control, and human flourishing (Psychological Bulletin 1/09) Crime Teen sex & pregnancy Drug abuse, smoking Exercise Longevity Marital satisfaction School success Religiousness Michael McCullough on religion, self-control, and human flourishing (Psychological Bulletin 1/09) Crime Teen sex & pregnancy Drug abuse, smoking Exercise Longevity Marital satisfaction School success Self-control Religion What Faith Offers 1.Where two or three are gathered (social support) 2.Impulse control (self-control and self-regulation) 3.Something worth living and dying for (meaning and purpose) 4.The good news (ultimate acceptance) 5.Losing/finding ones life (a focus beyond self) Advice to Graduates Wear sunscreen Bike to work Stay in touch Manage your time Think critically Eat mostly plants Act like a happy person Invest in close relationships Prioritize the spiritual over the material Exercise Give your body the sleep it wants Highly relig = relig is important in daily life + attend service in last week Less relig = all others END