What We Want More Than Happiness A lecture on Subjective Well-Being and JDM Ann Marie Roepke JDM...
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What We Want More Than Happiness A lecture on Subjective Well-Being and JDM Ann Marie Roepke JDM 10.17.11
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Transcript of What We Want More Than Happiness A lecture on Subjective Well-Being and JDM Ann Marie Roepke JDM...
What We Want More Than HappinessA lecture on Subjective Well-Being and JDM
Ann Marie RoepkeJDM
10.17.11
happiness
everyone wants “happiness” but everyone doesn’t agree
on what “happiness” is.
two reasons to avoid the word “happiness”
1. vague &idiosyncratic
2. annoying
“how happy are you?”
life satisfaction
affective(emotions)
+ cognitive
(satisfaction with life in general, and specific domains)
“in most ways, my life is close to my ideal.”
• current mood• extraversion
is there more to life thancheerful sociability?
a wider lens
when we only look at “subjective well-being” or life satisfaction, we over-
emphasize being cheerful, at the expense of other things that make life worth living.
Subjective well-being
Psychological well-being
(flourishing)
Subjective well-being
Psychological well-being
(flourishing)
what else should be considered part of well-
being?
positive emotions
engagement
meaningrelationships
accomplishment
Seligman’s PERMA model
“I am now the most miserable man living. If what I feel were equally distributed to
the whole human family, there would not be one cheerful face on earth.”
food for thought:if I tell you I’m flourishing, on
what grounds (if any) could you argue that I’m not?
thought experiment:what do we want more than
happiness?
Imagine that for the first time in three years, your parents (or close relatives) have arranged for a special family gathering that will happen the day after Thanksgiving, with everyone also invited to
Thanksgiving dinner. You face two options. Would you choose to go to the family gathering if getting there required a $500 round trip plane ticket for flights that were 5 hours each way?
Option 1: Go to the gathering, which requires a $500 plane ticket.Option 2: Miss the gathering, save the money.
Between these two options, taking all things together, which do you think would give you a happier life as a whole?
Option 1 Option 2
definitely probably possibly possibly probably definitely happier happier happier happier happier happier
If you were limited to these two options, which do you think you would choose?
Option 1 Option 2
definitely probably possibly possibly probably definitely choose choose choose choose choose choose
• People show “reversals” on some items• These are systematic. We are willing to trade
off happiness for certain things:– Purpose– Control– Status– Family happiness
Benjamin et al., 2010
utility ≠ happiness
WELL-BEING AND JDM
1. the trouble with the pursuit of happiness (and the prediction of happiness)
2. depressive realism3. collective well-being and public policy
1. the trouble with the pursuit of happiness (and the prediction of happiness)
2. depressive realism3. collective well-being and public policy
attribute 1 attribute 2 attribute 3
option 1 3 8 5
option 2 4 9 3
option 3 7 2 6
weight: .50 .20 .30
if we are as bad at predicting utility as we are at predicting happiness/
satisfaction, we’ve got a problem.
*if we are thinking about our utility as happiness instead of strictly as goal attainment, we’ve got a problem.
two questions
winning the lottery;losing your health
hedonic treadmill
the set point theory
Everything is amazing and nobody is happy
2:00-5:30 ([4:39-:44])
1. the trouble with the pursuit of happiness (and the prediction of happiness)
2. depressive realism3. collective well-being and public policy
sadder but wiser?
alloy & abramson (1979):depressed people correctly perceive their
lack of control over outcomes (a light), while non-depressed people maintain an
illusion of control.
but in a more recent study, truly depressed people overestimate the
likelihood of bad things happening in their lives.
(Strunk, Lopez, & DeRubeis, 2001)
1. the trouble with the pursuit of happiness (and the prediction of happiness)
2. depressive realism3. collective well-being and public policy
UK to measure well being
• What are some arguments for and against measuring the fluctuations in WB associated with policy changes?
• Would it matter which type of well-being you measured – the single dial (subjective WB) or dashboard (psychological WB)? Why?
• Is it only important to measure net levels of WB, or should you also look at its distribution?
