Sample records for happiness scale shs

  1. Psychometric Evaluation of the Tagalog and German Subjective Happiness Scales and a Cross-Cultural Comparison

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Swami, Viren; Stieger, Stefan; Voracek, Martin; Dressler, Stefan G.; Eisma, Laura; Furnham, Adrian

    2009-01-01

    The Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) has recently been developed as a more complete measure for the assessment of molar subjective happiness. In the present study, we report on the translation and validation of German and Tagalog versions of the SHS and conduct an initial cross-cultural examination of subjective happiness. In Study 1, 960…

  2. Subjective Happiness of Lebanese College Youth in Lebanon: Factorial Structure and Invariance of the Arabic Subjective Happiness Scale

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moghnie, Lamia; Kazarian, Shahe S.

    2012-01-01

    The present study evaluated the subjective happiness of Lebanese college youth using a multi-item rather than a single-item subjective happiness measure. An Arabic translation of the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) was administered to 273 Lebanese college youth from state- and private-run higher institutions of learning, as was the Arabic Adult…

  3. Psychometric evaluation of the Chinese version of the Subjective Happiness Scale: evidence from the Hong Kong FAMILY Cohort.

    PubMed

    Nan, Hairong; Ni, Michael Y; Lee, Paul H; Tam, Wilson W S; Lam, Tai Hing; Leung, Gabriel M; McDowell, Ian

    2014-08-01

    With China's rapid economic growth in the past few decades, there is currently an emerging focus on happiness. Cross-cultural validity studies have indicated that the four-item Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) has high internal consistency and stable reliability. However, the psychometric characteristics of the SHS in broader Chinese community samples are unknown. We evaluated the factor structure and psychometric properties of the SHS in the Hong Kong general population. The Chinese SHS was derived using forward-backward translation. Of the Cantonese-speaking participants aged ≥15 years, 2,635 were randomly selected from the random sample component of the FAMILY Cohort, a territory-wide cohort study in Hong Kong. In addition to the SHS, a single-item overall happiness scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), the Family Adaptation, Partnership, Growth, Affection, Resolve (APGAR) scale, and the Medical Outcomes Study 12-item short-form version 2 (SF-12) mental and physical health scales were administered. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a single factor with high loadings for the four SHS items. Multiple group analyses indicated factor invariance across sex and age groups. Cronbach's alpha was 0.82, and 2-week test-retest reliability (n = 191) was 0.70. The SHS correlated significantly with single-item overall happiness (Spearman's rho [ρ] = 0.57), Family APGAR (ρ = 0.26), PHQ-9 (ρ = -0.34), and mental health-related quality of life (ρ = 0.40) but showed a lower correlation with physical health (ρ = 0.15). A regression model that included the PHQ-9 and Family APGAR scores explained 37% of the variance in SF-12 mental health scores; adding the SHS raised the variance explained to 41 %. Our results support the reliability and validity of the SHS as a relevant component in the measurement battery for mental well-being in a Chinese general population.

  4. Evaluation of the Life Satisfaction and Subjective Happiness Scales with Mexican American High School and College Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vela, Javier C.; Lerma, Eunice; Ikonomopoulos, James

    2017-01-01

    In the current study, we investigated the psychometric properties of two meaningful measures of subjective well-being among Mexican American high school and college students. Participants completed the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) or Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) as measures of subjective well-being. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)…

  5. Strengths use as a secret of happiness: Another dimension of visually impaired individuals' psychological state.

    PubMed

    Matsuguma, Shinichiro; Kawashima, Motoko; Negishi, Kazuno; Sano, Fumiya; Mimura, Masaru; Tsubota, Kazuo

    2018-01-01

    It is well recognized that visual impairments (VI) worsen individuals' mental condition. However, little is known about the positive aspects including subjective happiness, positive emotions, and strengths. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the positive aspects of persons with VI including their subjective happiness, positive emotions, and strengths use. Positive aspects of persons with VI were measured using the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS), the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience-Balance (SPANE-B), and the Strengths Use Scale (SUS). A cross-sectional analysis was utilized to examine personal information in a Tokyo sample (N = 44). We used a simple regression analysis and found significant relationships between the SHS or SPANE-B and SUS; on the contrary, VI-related variables were not correlated with them. A multiple regression analysis confirmed that SUS was a significant factor associated with both the SHS and SPANE-B. Strengths use might be a possible protective factor from the negative effects of VI.

  6. Relationship between the domains of the Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale, satisfaction with food-related life and happiness in university students.

    PubMed

    Schnettler, Berta; Orellana, Ligia; Lobos, Germán; Miranda, Horacio; Sepúlveda, José; Etchebarne, Soledad; Mora, Marcos; Adasme-Berríos, Cristian; Grunert, Klaus G

    2015-06-01

    To characterize types of university students based on satisfaction with life domains that affect eating habits, satisfaction with food-related life and subjective happiness. A questionnaire was applied to a nonrandom sample of 305 students of both genders in five universities in Chile. The questionnaire included the abbreviated Multidimensional Student's Life Satisfaction Scale (MSLSS), Satisfaction with Food-related Life Scale (SWFL) and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS). Eating habits, frequency of food consumption in and outside the place of residence, approximate height and weight and sociodemographic variables were measured. Using factor analysis, the five-domain structure of the MSLSS was confirmed with 26 of the 30 items of the abbreviated version: Family, Friends, Self, Environment and University. Using cluster analysis four types of students were distinguished that differ significantly in the MSLSS global and domain scores, SWFL and SHS scores, gender, ownership of a food allowance card funded by the Chilean government, importance attributed to food for well-being and socioeconomic status. Higher levels of life satisfaction and happiness are associated with greater satisfaction with food-related life. Other major life domains that affect students' subjective well-being are Family, Friends, University and Self. Greater satisfaction in some domains may counterbalance the lower satisfaction in others. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

  7. Enacted Sexual Stigma, Stigma Consciousness, and Subjective Happiness Scale Adaptation: A Two-Country Study.

    PubMed

    Strizzi, Jenna; Fernández-Agis, Inmaculada; Parrón-Carreño, Tesifon; Alarcón-Rodríguez, Raquel

    2016-01-01

    Violence against people due to their sexual orientation is a phenomenon that exists within a framework of sexual stigma and sexual prejudice that can result in enacted stigma. The present study primarily aimed to validate the Stigma Consciousness Questionnaire (SCQ) and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS; for lesbian, gay, and bisexual [LGB] populations) in the Spanish context by using samples from two countries (Spain [N = 157] and the United States [N = 83]). Also, to examine how the construct of stigma consciousness correlates with anti-LGBQ (anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer) hate crime victimization and violent incidents, as well as examine whether the former influences subjective happiness. The population from the United States reported higher stigma consciousness and received more anti-LGBQ threats and insults. Hate crime victimization was the same across the two samples and positively correlated with violent incidents in both samples. Subjective happiness was negatively correlated with SCQ, although its subscales it did not correlate with enacted stigma measures. © The Author(s) 2014.

  8. Happiness Scale Interval Study. Methodological Considerations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kalmijn, W. M.; Arends, L. R.; Veenhoven, R.

    2011-01-01

    The Happiness Scale Interval Study deals with survey questions on happiness, using verbal response options, such as "very happy" and "pretty happy". The aim is to estimate what degrees of happiness are denoted by such terms in different questions and languages. These degrees are expressed in numerical values on a continuous…

  9. 'My happiness is the refugee camp, my future Palestine': optimism, life satisfaction and perceived happiness in a group of Palestinian children.

    PubMed

    Veronese, Guido; Castiglioni, Marco; Tombolani, Marco; Said, Mahmud

    2012-09-01

    This study aimed to explore optimism, perceived happiness and life satisfaction in a group of Palestinian children living in urban districts, rural areas and a refugee camp in the West Bank, as well as in a city in Israel. Three self-report instruments were administered to a convenience sample of school-age children (n. 226; 8-12 years old): the Youth Life Orientation Test (YLOT), the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS) and the Face Scale (FS). The scores were analyzed using anovas and correlation tests (Pearson's r). Gender and age differences were explored. Optimism, life satisfaction and perceived happiness characterize the entire group of Palestinian children in general. Very little difference was found as a function of gender. Palestinian children seem to enjoy a satisfactory quality of life with regard to optimism, satisfaction and perceived happiness. We hypothesize that these factors may reinforce resilience and positive adjustment to trauma in children. The implications for clinical psychology are discussed. © 2011 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences © 2011 Nordic College of Caring Science.

  10. Development of the Sensory Hypersensitivity Scale (SHS): a self-report tool for assessing sensitivity to sensory stimuli

    PubMed Central

    Dixon, Eric A.; Benham, Grant; Sturgeon, John A.; Mackey, Sean; Johnson, Kevin A.; Younger, Jarred

    2016-01-01

    Sensory hypersensitivity is one manifestation of the central sensitization that may underlie conditions such as fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. We conducted five studies designed to develop and validate the Sensory Hypersensitive Scale (SHS); a 25-item self-report measure of sensory hypersensitivity. The SHS assesses both general sensitivity and modality-specific sensitivity (e.g. touch, taste, and hearing). 1202 participants (157 individuals with chronic pain) completed the SHS, which demonstrated an adequate overall internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) of 0.81, suggesting the tool can be used as a cross-modality assessment of sensitivity. SHS scores demonstrated only modest correlations (Pearson’s r) with depressive symptoms (0.19) and anxiety (0.28), suggesting a low level of overlap with psychiatric complaints. Overall SHS scores showed significant but relatively modest correlations (Pearson’s r) with three measures of sensory testing: cold pain tolerance (−0.34); heat pain tolerance (−0.285); heat pain threshold (−0.271). Women reported significantly higher scores on the SHS than did men, although gender-based differences were small. In a chronic pain sample, individuals with fibromyalgia syndrome demonstrated significantly higher SHS scores than did individuals with osteoarthritis or back pain. The SHS appears suitable as a screening measure for sensory hypersensitivity, though additional research is warranted to determine its suitability as a proxy for central sensitization. PMID:26873609

  11. Overstatement in happiness reporting with ordinal, bounded scale.

    PubMed

    Tanaka, Saori C; Yamada, Katsunori; Kitada, Ryo; Tanaka, Satoshi; Sugawara, Sho K; Ohtake, Fumio; Sadato, Norihiro

    2016-02-18

    There are various methods by which people can express subjective evaluations quantitatively. For example, happiness can be measured on a scale from 1 to 10, and has been suggested as a measure of economic policy. However, there is resistance to these types of measurement from economists, who often regard welfare to be a cardinal, unbounded quantity. It is unclear whether there are differences between subjective evaluation reported on ordinal, bounded scales and on cardinal, unbounded scales. To answer this question, we developed functional magnetic resonance imaging experimental tasks for reporting happiness from monetary gain and the perception of visual stimulus. Subjects tended to report higher values when they used ordinal scales instead of cardinal scales. There were differences in neural activation between ordinal and cardinal reporting scales. The posterior parietal area showed greater activation when subjects used an ordinal scale instead of a cardinal scale. Importantly, the striatum exhibited greater activation when asked to report happiness on an ordinal scale than when asked to report on a cardinal scale. The finding that ordinal (bounded) scales are associated with higher reported happiness and greater activation in the reward system shows that overstatement bias in happiness data must be considered.

  12. Translation and Validation of the Malay Subjective Happiness Scale

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Swami, Viren

    2008-01-01

    The Subjective Happiness Scale (Lyubomirsky and Lepper, "Social Indicators Research," 46, 137-155, 1999) is a brief measure for assessing subjective happiness. The reliability and validity of the Malay version of the Subjective Happiness Scale was investigated in a community sample of 290 Chinese and 227 Malays in Malaysia. Results…

  13. The influence of normative and subjective oral health status on schoolchildren's happiness.

    PubMed

    Tuchtenhagen, Simone; Bresolin, Carmela Rampazzo; Tomazoni, Fernanda; da Rosa, Guilherme Nascimento; Del Fabro, Joana Possamai; Mendes, Fausto Medeiros; Antunes, José Leopoldo Ferreira; Ardenghi, Thiago Machado

    2015-01-23

    Traditional methods to measure oral health based on clinical standards are limited because they do not consider psychosocial and functional aspects of oral health. It has been recommended that these measures need to be supplemented by data obtained from patients regarding their individual perceptions on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Happiness is a multidimensional construct comprising both emotional and cognitive domains, and has been defined as "the degree to which an individual judges the overall quality of his or her life as a whole favorably". It has been associated with several health outcomes, including oral health. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of oral health conditions, oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL), and socioeconomic factors on the subjective happiness of Brazilian adolescents. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2012 on a representative sample of 12-year-old schoolchildren in Santa Maria-RS, Brazil. The data were collected through dental examinations and structured interviews. The participants underwent an evaluation aimed at detecting dental caries, traumatic dental injuries, malocclusion, and gingival bleeding. They also completed the Brazilian versions of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire-short form (CPQ11-14-ISF: 16) and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS), which was our outcome variable. Socioeconomic conditions were evaluated through a questionnaire that was completed by the participants' parents. Poisson regression analysis was used to determine the association between the explanatory variables and the outcome. Moreover, a correlation analysis was performed to determine the relationship between the SHS scores and the overall and domain scores of the CPQ11-14-ISF: 16. A total of 1,134 children were evaluated. Unadjusted analyses showed that happiness was associated with socioeconomic indicators, the use of dental services, clinical status, and scores on the OHRQoL measure. After adjustment

  14. Is Valuing Happiness Associated With Lower Well-Being? A Factor-Level Analysis using the Valuing Happiness Scale

    PubMed Central

    Luhmann, Maike; Necka, Elizabeth A.; Schönbrodt, Felix D.; Hawkley, Louise C.

    2015-01-01

    Recent studies suggest that valuing happiness is negatively associated with well-being. Most of these studies used the Valuing Happiness Scale (Mauss, Tamir, et al., 2011). In the present paper, we examined the factor structure of this scale using data pooled from six independent samples (Ntotal = 938). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis showed that the Valuing Happiness Scale is not unidimensional and that only one of its three factors correlates negatively with various indicators of well-being, whereas non-significant or positive correlations were found for the other factors. These findings indicate that valuing happiness may not necessarily be bad for one’s well-being, and call for a better definition, theoretical foundation, and operationalization of this construct. PMID:26778865

  15. Association of malocclusion, happiness, and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in schoolchildren.

    PubMed

    da Rosa, Guilherme Nascimento; Del Fabro, Joana Possamai; Tomazoni, Fernanda; Tuchtenhagen, Simone; Alves, Luana Severo; Ardenghi, Thiago Machado

    2016-03-01

    The aim of this study was to assess the impact of malocclusion on children's oral health-related quality of life (COHRQoL) and self-reported happiness. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a representative sample of 12-year-old schoolchildren from Santa Maria, South Brazil. Four calibrated examiners carried out clinical exams to evaluate malocclusion [Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI)], dental caries (DMFT), and dental trauma (O'Brien classification, used in the Children's dental health survey in the UK, 1994). Participants answered the Brazilian versions of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11-14 ) and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS). Parents completed a structured questionnaire regarding socioeconomic status. Data analysis was conducted using multilevel Poisson regression models. A total of 1,134 adolescents (boys: 45.8 percent; girls: 54.1 percent) were enrolled in the study. The DAI overall score ranged from 13 to 63 (mean: 25.19, standard error: 0.19); 57.6 percent of the subjects had minor or no malocclusion and 24.4 percent had definite malocclusion. Severe malocclusion and handicapping malocclusion were found in 10.4 percent and 7.4 percent of the subjects, respectively. After adjustment, the severity of malocclusion was associated with high mean values of the CPQ11-14 overall score, and the emotional well-being and social well-being domains were the most affected. Lower levels of happiness were also associated with the severity of malocclusion: those with definite malocclusion presented lower scores on the SHS scale (Rate Ratio 0.97; 95 percent CI 0.94-0.99). Malocclusion had a negative impact on COHRQoL and happiness, mainly on the emotional and social domains. © 2015 American Association of Public Health Dentistry.

  16. The Pemberton Happiness Index

    PubMed Central

    Paiva, Bianca Sakamoto Ribeiro; de Camargos, Mayara Goulart; Demarzo, Marcelo Marcos Piva; Hervás, Gonzalo; Vázquez, Carmelo; Paiva, Carlos Eduardo

    2016-01-01

    Abstract The Pemberton Happiness Index (PHI) is a recently developed integrative measure of well-being that includes components of hedonic, eudaimonic, social, and experienced well-being. The PHI has been validated in several languages, but not in Portuguese. Our aim was to cross-culturally adapt the Universal Portuguese version of the PHI and to assess its psychometric properties in a sample of the Brazilian population using online surveys. An expert committee evaluated 2 versions of the PHI previously translated into Portuguese by the original authors using a standardized form for assessment of semantic/idiomatic, cultural, and conceptual equivalence. A pretesting was conducted employing cognitive debriefing methods. In sequence, the expert committee evaluated all the documents and reached a final Universal Portuguese PHI version. For the evaluation of the psychometric properties, the data were collected using online surveys in a cross-sectional study. The study population included healthcare professionals and users of the social network site Facebook from several Brazilian geographic areas. In addition to the PHI, participants completed the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Diener and Emmons’ Positive and Negative Experience Scale (PNES), Psychological Well-being Scale (PWS), and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS). Internal consistency, convergent validity, known-group validity, and test–retest reliability were evaluated. Satisfaction with the previous day was correlated with the 10 items assessing experienced well-being using the Cramer V test. Additionally, a cut-off value of PHI to identify a “happy individual” was defined using receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve methodology. Data from 1035 Brazilian participants were analyzed (health professionals = 180; Facebook users = 855). Regarding reliability results, the internal consistency (Cronbach alpha = 0.890 and 0.914) and test–retest (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.814) were

  17. OpenSHS: Open Smart Home Simulator.

    PubMed

    Alshammari, Nasser; Alshammari, Talal; Sedky, Mohamed; Champion, Justin; Bauer, Carolin

    2017-05-02

    This paper develops a new hybrid, open-source, cross-platform 3D smart home simulator, OpenSHS, for dataset generation. OpenSHS offers an opportunity for researchers in the field of the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning to test and evaluate their models. Following a hybrid approach, OpenSHS combines advantages from both interactive and model-based approaches. This approach reduces the time and efforts required to generate simulated smart home datasets. We have designed a replication algorithm for extending and expanding a dataset. A small sample dataset produced, by OpenSHS, can be extended without affecting the logical order of the events. The replication provides a solution for generating large representative smart home datasets. We have built an extensible library of smart devices that facilitates the simulation of current and future smart home environments. Our tool divides the dataset generation process into three distinct phases: first design: the researcher designs the initial virtual environment by building the home, importing smart devices and creating contexts; second, simulation: the participant simulates his/her context-specific events; and third, aggregation: the researcher applies the replication algorithm to generate the final dataset. We conducted a study to assess the ease of use of our tool on the System Usability Scale (SUS).

  18. OpenSHS: Open Smart Home Simulator

    PubMed Central

    Alshammari, Nasser; Alshammari, Talal; Sedky, Mohamed; Champion, Justin; Bauer, Carolin

    2017-01-01

    This paper develops a new hybrid, open-source, cross-platform 3D smart home simulator, OpenSHS, for dataset generation. OpenSHS offers an opportunity for researchers in the field of the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine learning to test and evaluate their models. Following a hybrid approach, OpenSHS combines advantages from both interactive and model-based approaches. This approach reduces the time and efforts required to generate simulated smart home datasets. We have designed a replication algorithm for extending and expanding a dataset. A small sample dataset produced, by OpenSHS, can be extended without affecting the logical order of the events. The replication provides a solution for generating large representative smart home datasets. We have built an extensible library of smart devices that facilitates the simulation of current and future smart home environments. Our tool divides the dataset generation process into three distinct phases: first design: the researcher designs the initial virtual environment by building the home, importing smart devices and creating contexts; second, simulation: the participant simulates his/her context-specific events; and third, aggregation: the researcher applies the replication algorithm to generate the final dataset. We conducted a study to assess the ease of use of our tool on the System Usability Scale (SUS). PMID:28468330

  19. Measuring Happiness: From Fluctuating Happiness to Authentic–Durable Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Dambrun, Michaël; Ricard, Matthieu; Després, Gérard; Drelon, Emilie; Gibelin, Eva; Gibelin, Marion; Loubeyre, Mélanie; Py, Delphine; Delpy, Aurore; Garibbo, Céline; Bray, Elise; Lac, Gérard; Michaux, Odile

    2012-01-01

    On the basis of the theoretical distinction between self-centeredness and selflessness (Dambrun and Ricard, 2011), the main goal of this research was to develop two new scales assessing distinct dimensions of happiness. By trying to maximize pleasures and to avoid displeasures, we propose that a self-centered functioning induces a fluctuating happiness in which phases of pleasure and displeasure alternate repeatedly (i.e., Fluctuating Happiness). In contrast, a selfless psychological functioning postulates the existence of a state of durable plenitude that is less dependent upon circumstances but rather is related to a person’s inner resources and abilities to deal with whatever comes his way in life (i.e., Authentic–Durable Happiness). Using various samples (n = 735), we developed a 10-item Scale measuring Subjective Fluctuating Happiness (SFHS) and a 13-item scale assessing Subjective Authentic–Durable Happiness (SA–DHS). Results indicated high internal consistencies, satisfactory test–retest validities, and adequate convergent and discriminant validities with various constructs including a biological marker of stress (salivary cortisol). Consistent with our theoretical framework, while self-enhancement values were related only to fluctuating happiness, self-transcendence values were related only to authentic–durable happiness. Support for the distinction between contentment and inner-peace, two related markers of authentic happiness, also was found. PMID:22347202

  20. Validating the Orientations to Happiness Scale in a Chinese Sample of University Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Guo-Hai

    2010-01-01

    This paper examined the reliability and validity of the Orientation to Happiness Scale with a sample of Chinese correspondents. Chinese translation of the Orientation to Happiness Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, Temporal Satisfaction with Life Scale, and General Life Satisfaction Scale, were administered to 671 Chinese university students…

  1. Combustion and structure formation in SHS processes under microgravity conditions: SHS plans for microgravity experiments

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Merzhanov, A. G.

    1995-01-01

    This paper outlines ISMAN suggestions for the joint NASA-RSA project 'Combustion and Structure formation in SHS Processes under Microgravity Conditions'. The basic ideas of this work naturally follow from our almost 30-year experience in the field of SHS. As a matter of fact, we have already obtained some results in the following two directions closely related to the microgravity problem. One is the studies on SHS processes in the field of centrifugal forces. These studies aimed at the intensification of gravity-sensitive SHS processes in multicomponent highly caloric systems forming melts at high overloads (up to 2000 g). In other words, these studies had the objectives that are inverse to those in the microgravity studies. The second group of results directly relates to the microgravity problem and the project under consideration. These experiments played the important role in establishing links between SHS and microgravity.

  2. Chinese Pediatrician Attitudes and Practices Regarding Child Exposure to Secondhand Smoke (SHS) and Clinical Efforts against SHS Exposure

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Kaiyong; Abdullah, Abu S.; Huo, Haiying; Liao, Jing; Yang, Li; Zhang, Zhiyong; Chen, Hailian; Nong, Guangmin; Winickoff, Jonathan P.

    2015-01-01

    Background: Secondhand Smoke (SHS) exposure is a leading cause of childhood illness and premature death. Pediatricians play an important role in helping parents to quit smoking and reducing children’s SHS exposure. This study examined Chinese pediatricians’ attitudes and practices regarding children’s exposure to SHS and clinical efforts against SHS exposure. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of pediatricians was conducted in thirteen conveniently selected hospitals in southern China, during September to December 2013. Five hundred and four pediatricians completed self-administered questionnaires with a response rate of 92%. χ2 tests were used to compare categorical variables differences between smokers and non-smokers and other categorical variables. Results: Pediatricians thought that the key barriers to encouraging parents to quit smoking were: lack of professional training (94%), lack of time (84%), resistance to discussions about smoking (77%). 94% of the pediatricians agreed that smoking in enclosed public places should be prohibited and more than 70% agreed that smoking should not be allowed in any indoor places and in cars. Most of the pediatricians thought that their current knowledge on helping people to quit smoking and SHS exposure reduction counseling was insufficient. Conclusions: Many Chinese pediatricians did not have adequate knowledge about smoking and SHS, and many lacked confidence about giving cessation or SHS exposure reduction counseling to smoking parents. Lack of professional training and time were the most important barriers to help parents quit smoking among the Chinese pediatricians. Intensified efforts are called for to provide the necessary professional training and increase pediatricians’ participation in the training. PMID:26006117

  3. Universal happiness? Cross-cultural measurement invariance of scales assessing positive mental health.

    PubMed

    Bieda, Angela; Hirschfeld, Gerrit; Schönfeld, Pia; Brailovskaia, Julia; Zhang, Xiao Chi; Margraf, Jürgen

    2017-04-01

    Research into positive aspects of the psyche is growing as psychologists learn more about the protective role of positive processes in the development and course of mental disorders, and about their substantial role in promoting mental health. With increasing globalization, there is strong interest in studies examining positive constructs across cultures. To obtain valid cross-cultural comparisons, measurement invariance for the scales assessing positive constructs has to be established. The current study aims to assess the cross-cultural measurement invariance of questionnaires for 6 positive constructs: Social Support (Fydrich, Sommer, Tydecks, & Brähler, 2009), Happiness (Subjective Happiness Scale; Lyubomirsky & Lepper, 1999), Life Satisfaction (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985), Positive Mental Health Scale (Lukat, Margraf, Lutz, van der Veld, & Becker, 2016), Optimism (revised Life Orientation Test [LOT-R]; Scheier, Carver, & Bridges, 1994) and Resilience (Schumacher, Leppert, Gunzelmann, Strauss, & Brähler, 2004). Participants included German (n = 4,453), Russian (n = 3,806), and Chinese (n = 12,524) university students. Confirmatory factor analyses and measurement invariance testing demonstrated at least partial strong measurement invariance for all scales except the LOT-R and Subjective Happiness Scale. The latent mean comparisons of the constructs indicated differences between national groups. Potential methodological and cultural explanations for the intergroup differences are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  4. A validation of well-being and happiness surveys for administration via the Internet.

    PubMed

    Howell, Ryan T; Rodzon, Katrina S; Kurai, Mark; Sanchez, Amy H

    2010-08-01

    Internet research is appealing because it is a cost- and time-efficient way to access a large number of participants; however, the validity of Internet research for important subjective well-being (SWB) surveys has not been adequately assessed. The goal of the present study was to validate the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS; Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS-X; Watson & Clark, 1994), and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS; Lyubomirsky & Lepper, 1999) for use on the Internet. This study compared the quality of data collected using paper-based (paper-and-pencil version in a lab setting), computer-based (Web-based version in a lab setting), and Internet (Web-based version on a computer of the participant's choosing) surveys for these three measures of SWB. The paper-based and computer-based experiment recruited two college student samples; the Internet experiments recruited a college student sample and an adult sample responding to ads on different social-networking Web sites. This study provides support for the reliability, validity, and generalizability of the Internet format of the SWLS, PANAS-X, and SHS. Across the three experiments, the results indicate that the computer-based and Internet surveys had means, standard deviations, reliabilities, and factor structures that were similar to those of the paper-based versions. The discussion examines the difficulty of higher attrition for the Internet version, the need to examine reverse-coded items in the future, and the possibility that unhappy individuals are more likely to participate in Internet surveys of SWB.

  5. The Pemberton Happiness Index: Validation of the Universal Portuguese version in a large Brazilian sample.

    PubMed

    Paiva, Bianca Sakamoto Ribeiro; de Camargos, Mayara Goulart; Demarzo, Marcelo Marcos Piva; Hervás, Gonzalo; Vázquez, Carmelo; Paiva, Carlos Eduardo

    2016-09-01

    The Pemberton Happiness Index (PHI) is a recently developed integrative measure of well-being that includes components of hedonic, eudaimonic, social, and experienced well-being. The PHI has been validated in several languages, but not in Portuguese. Our aim was to cross-culturally adapt the Universal Portuguese version of the PHI and to assess its psychometric properties in a sample of the Brazilian population using online surveys.An expert committee evaluated 2 versions of the PHI previously translated into Portuguese by the original authors using a standardized form for assessment of semantic/idiomatic, cultural, and conceptual equivalence. A pretesting was conducted employing cognitive debriefing methods. In sequence, the expert committee evaluated all the documents and reached a final Universal Portuguese PHI version. For the evaluation of the psychometric properties, the data were collected using online surveys in a cross-sectional study. The study population included healthcare professionals and users of the social network site Facebook from several Brazilian geographic areas. In addition to the PHI, participants completed the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Diener and Emmons' Positive and Negative Experience Scale (PNES), Psychological Well-being Scale (PWS), and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS). Internal consistency, convergent validity, known-group validity, and test-retest reliability were evaluated. Satisfaction with the previous day was correlated with the 10 items assessing experienced well-being using the Cramer V test. Additionally, a cut-off value of PHI to identify a "happy individual" was defined using receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve methodology.Data from 1035 Brazilian participants were analyzed (health professionals = 180; Facebook users = 855). Regarding reliability results, the internal consistency (Cronbach alpha = 0.890 and 0.914) and test-retest (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.814) were both considered

  6. Measuring happiness in large population

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wenas, Annabelle; Sjahputri, Smita; Takwin, Bagus; Primaldhi, Alfindra; Muhamad, Roby

    2016-01-01

    The ability to know emotional states for large number of people is important, for example, to ensure the effectiveness of public policies. In this study, we propose a measure of happiness that can be used in large scale population that is based on the analysis of Indonesian language lexicons. Here, we incorporate human assessment of Indonesian words, then quantify happiness on large-scale of texts gathered from twitter conversations. We used two psychological constructs to measure happiness: valence and arousal. We found that Indonesian words have tendency towards positive emotions. We also identified several happiness patterns during days of the week, hours of the day, and selected conversation topics.

  7. Secondhand smoke (SHS) exposures: workplace exposures, related perceptions of SHS risk, and reactions to smoking in catering workers in smoking and nonsmoking premises.

    PubMed

    Lu, Sandy Qiuying; Fielding, Richard; Hedley, Anthony J; Wong, Lai-Chin; Lai, Hak Kan; Wong, C M; Repace, James L; McGhee, Sarah M

    2011-05-01

    Smoke-free workplace legislation often exempts certain venues. Do smoking (exempted) and nonsmoking (nonexempted) catering premises' workers in Hong Kong report different perceptions of risk from and reactions to nearby smoking as well as actual exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS)? In a cross-sectional survey of 204 nonsmoking catering workers, those from 67 premises where smoking is allowed were compared with workers from 36 nonsmoking premises in Hong Kong on measures of perceptions of risk and behavioral responses to self-reported SHS exposure, plus independent exposure assessment using urinary cotinine. Self-reported workplace SHS exposure prevalence was 57% (95% CI = 49%-65%) in premises prohibiting and 100% (95% CI = 92%-100%) in premises permitting smoking (p < .001). Workers in smoking-permitted premises perceived workplace air quality as poorer (odds ratio [OR] = 9.3, 95% CI = 4.2-20.9) with higher associated risks (OR = 3.7, 95% CI = 1.6-8.6) than workers in smoking-prohibited premises. Workers in smoking-prohibited premises were more bothered by (OR = 0.2, 95% CI = 0.1-0.5) and took more protective action to avoid SHS (OR = 0.2, 95% CI = 0.1-0.4) than workers in smoking-permitted premises. Nonwork exposure was negatively associated with being always bothered by nearby smoking (OR = 0.3, 95% CI = 0.1-0.9), discouraging nearby smoking (OR = 0.5, 95% CI = 0.2-1.1), and discouraging home smoking (OR = 0.4, 95% CI = 0.2-0.9). Urinary cotinine levels were inversely related to workers' avoidance behavior but positively related to their perceived exposure-related risks. Different workplace smoking restrictions predicted actual SHS exposure, exposure-related risk perception, and protective behaviors. Workers from smoking-permitted premises perceived greater SHS exposure-related risks but were more tolerant of these than workers in smoking-prohibited premises. This tolerance might indirectly increase both work and nonwork exposures.

  8. Can Seeking Happiness Make People Happy? Paradoxical Effects of Valuing Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Mauss, Iris B.; Tamir, Maya; Anderson, Craig L.; Savino, Nicole S.

    2011-01-01

    Happiness is a key ingredient of well-being. It is thus reasonable to expect that valuing happiness will have beneficial outcomes. We argue that this may not always be the case. Instead, valuing happiness could be self-defeating because the more people value happiness, the more likely they will feel disappointed. This should apply particularly in positive situations, in which people have every reason to be happy. Two studies support this hypothesis. In Study 1, female participants who valued happiness more (vs. less) reported lower happiness when under conditions of low, but not high, life stress. In Study 2, compared to a control group, female participants who were experimentally induced to value happiness reacted less positively to a happy, but not a sad, emotion induction. This effect was mediated by participants’ disappointment at their own feelings. Paradoxically, therefore, valuing happiness may lead people to be less happy just when happiness is within reach. PMID:21517168

  9. Government and Happiness in 130 Nations: Good Governance Fosters Higher Level and More Equality of Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ott, J. C.

    2011-01-01

    There are substantial differences in happiness in nations. Average happiness on scale 0-10 ranges in 2006 from 3.24 in Togo to 8.00 in Denmark and the inequality of happiness, as measured by the standard deviation, ranges from 0.85 in Laos to 3.02 in the Dominican Republic. Much of these differences are due to quality of governance and in…

  10. Perspectives on the Happiness of Community-Dwelling Elderly in Korea

    PubMed Central

    Jeon, Sang Won; Lee, Jongha; Lim, JaeHyoung; Jeong, Hyun-Ghang; Park, Moon Ho; Ko, Young-Hoon; Pae, Chi-Un; Kim, Seung Hyun; Joe, Sook-Haeng; Steffens, David C.

    2016-01-01

    Objective A community survey was performed to investigate the factors and perspectives associated with happiness among the elderly in Korea (≥60 years). Methods Eight hundred volunteers selected from participants in the Ansan Geriatric study (AGE study) were enrolled, and 706 completed the survey. The Happiness Questionnaire (HQ), which asks four questions about happiness, was administered. To explore the relationship between happiness and depression, the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) also were administered. Results The participants' average level of happiness, determined using a 100-mm visual analogue scale (VAS) of the HQ, was 64.7±26.0. The happiest situations for most people were "getting together with family" (23.8%) and "living in peace with family members (well-being)" (13.2%). Frequent reasons for not being happy were "worsened health condition" (28.7% of the not-happy group), "economic problems of their own" (16.5%), and "economic problems of their children" (14.8%). The participants' choices regarding the essential conditions for happiness were "good health" (65.3%) and "being with family" (20.5%). The BDI and GDS scores were negatively related to the happiness score. A preliminary scale [Happy (Haeng-Bok, 幸福) aging scale] based on the HQ for measuring the happiness level of the Korean elderly was suggested for follow-up studies. Conclusion The most important factors determining the happiness of the community-dwelling elderly in Korea were good family relationships, economic stability, and good health. A higher depression score negatively impacted happiness among Korean elders. Further studies on the factors in their happiness are required. PMID:26766946

  11. SHS synthesis of Si-SiC composite powders using Mg and reactants from industrial waste

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chanadee, Tawat

    2017-11-01

    Si-SiC composite powders were synthesized by self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) using reactants of fly ash-based silica, sawdust-based activated carbon, and magnesium. Fly ash-based silica and sawdust-based activated carbon were prepared from coal mining fly ash and Para rubber-wood sawdust, respectively. The work investigated the effects of the synthesis atmosphere (air and Ar) on the phase and morphology of the SHS products. The SHS product was leached by a two-step acid leaching processes, to obtain the Si-SiC composite powder. The SHS product and SHS product after leaching were characterized by X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry. The results indicated that the SHS product synthesized in air consisted of Si, SiC, MgO, and intermediate phases (SiO2, Mg, Mg2SiO4, Mg2Si), whereas the SHS product synthesized in Ar consisted of Si, SiC, MgO and a little Mg2SiO4. The SiC content in the leached-SHS product was higher when Ar was used as the synthesis atmosphere. As well as affecting the purity, the synthesis atmospheres also affected the average crystalline sizes of the products. The crystalline size of the product synthesized in Ar was smaller than that of the product synthesized in air. All of the results showed that fly ash and sawdust could be effective waste-material reactants for the synthesis of Si-SiC composite powders.

  12. What Do Happy People Do?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Robinson, John P.; Martin, Steven

    2008-01-01

    Little attention in the quality-of-life literature has been paid to data on the daily activity patterns of happy and less happy people. Using ratings-scale information from time-diary studies, this article examines the hypothesis that people who describe themselves as happier engage in certain activities more than those who describe themselves as…

  13. Fibers innovative burning and reuse by Self-propagating High temperature Synthesis (SHS)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Caratto, Valentina; Belfortini, Claudio; Musi, Luigi; Gaggero, Laura; Ferretti, Maurizio

    2016-04-01

    The treatment of asbestos containing waste deriving from civil building and industrial applications is a social alert and an environmental problem. The project LIFE12 ENV/IT 000295 FIBERS "Fibers innovative burning and reuse by Self-propagating High temperature Synthesis (SHS)" has developed an innovative technique alternative to conventional high T processes. The University of Genoa has developed an apparatus and a technique for triggering the breakdown reaction of chrysotile by means of an alumino-thermic reaction in a process of combustion synthesis well known as Self-propagating High temperature Synthesis or SHS. This approach yielded interesting results and allowed the development of an efficient method for inerting natural asbestos fibers and man-made products carrying fibers at the scale of some grams [1]. The experiments were based on the couples Fe2O3/Mg by implementation of two prototype plants. The varying parameters were: 1) different Asbestos-Containing Waste (ACW) massive (Eternit, linoleum) and friable asbestos; 2) ACW abundance; 3) size of the pellet 4) under two triggering systems (induction by a W coil and oxyacetylene torch). The reactions were carried in two configurations: a) discontinuous, allowed us to obtain data for the development and fine-tuning of the reaction, b) continuous, was indispensable for the development and fine-tuning of the process parameters towards industrial scale up. After the combustive reaction all samples were characterized by SEM-EDS and XRPD analysis. All experiments demonstrated effective in destructing the fibrous habit of chrysotile, turning its composition to stubby olivine grains. We optimized the parameters to achieve complete conversion of the asbestos to mineral grains in all the cases. The efficiency of the SHS reaction in the discontinuous and continuous configurations was highlighted by the characterization of the post-combustion material under SEM-EDS and XRPD that verified the absence of fibers within

  14. [Study on the Spectral Characteristics of the Narrow-Band Filter in SHS].

    PubMed

    Luo, Hai-yan; Shi, Hai-liang; Li, Zhi-wei; Li, Shuang; Xiong, Wei; Hong, Jin

    2015-04-01

    The spectral response of spatial heterodyne spectroscopy (SHS) is determined by the spectrum property of narrow-band filter. As discussed in previous studies, the symmetric heterodyned interferogram of high frequency waves modulated by SHS and lack of sample lead to spectral confusion, which is associated with the true and ghost spectra. Because of the deviation from theoretical index of narrow-band filter in the process of coating, the boarded spectral response and middle wave shift are presented, and conditions in the theoretical Littrow wavelength made the effective wavelength range of SHS reduced. According to the measured curve of filter, a new wavenumber of zero spatial frequency can be reset by tunable laser, and it is easy for SHS to improve the spectral aliasing distortion. The results show that it is utilized to the maximum extent of the effective bandwidth by adjusting the grating angle of rotation to change the Littrow wavelength of the basic frequency, and the spectral region increased to 14.9 nm from original 12.9 nm.

  15. XRD, SEM and infrared study into the intercalation of sodium hexadecyl sulfate (SHS) into hydrocalumite.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Ping; Wang, Tianqi; Zhang, Longlong; Wu, Daishe; Frost, Ray L

    2015-12-05

    Hydrocalumite (CaAl-LDH-Cl) interacted with a natural anionic surfactant, sodium hexadecyl sulfate (SHS), was performed using an intercalation method. To understand the intercalation behavior and characterize the resulting products, powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), scan electron microscopy (SEM) and mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy combined with near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy technique were used. The XRD analysis indicated that SHS was intercalated into CaAl-LDH-Cl successfully, resulting in an expansion of the interlayer (from 0.78 nm to 2.74 nm). The bands of C-H stretching vibrations of SHS were observed in the near-infrared spectra, which indicated that the resulting products were indeed CaAl-LDH-SHS. In addition, the bands of water stretching vibrations and OH groups shifted to higher wavenumbers when SHS was intercalated into CaAl-LDH-Cl interlayer space. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Psychological Vulnerability and Subjective Happiness: The Mediating Role of Hopelessness.

    PubMed

    Satici, Seydi Ahmet; Uysal, Recep

    2017-04-01

    The current study examined the mediating role of hopelessness on the relationship between psychological vulnerability and subjective happiness. It was anticipated that hopelessness may act as a mediator in the relationship between psychological vulnerability and subjective happiness. Two hundred sixty-nine (150 women and 119 men) university students completed the Psychological Vulnerability Scale, the Subjective Happiness Scale and the Beck Hopelessness Scale. Data have been collected in the 2013-2014 academic year. The present study was designed as a cross-sectional study. Correlational results indicated that psychological vulnerability and hopelessness were significantly negatively associated with subjective happiness. Results using structural equation modelling showed that hopelessness fully mediated the relationship between psychological vulnerability and subjective happiness. Implications for future research and limitations of the present study are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  17. Happiness and neurological diseases.

    PubMed

    Barak, Yoram; Achiron, Anat

    2009-04-01

    addition, specific interventions to increase happiness developed by PoP clinicians have demonstrated efficacy and validity. Several measurement scales now exist that reliably measure happiness as a long-term state, rather than as a fluctuating condition resulting from prevailing mood. These enable the use of happiness as an end point in clinical trials. As happiness becomes increasingly accepted as an important consideration in neurological disease, it is likely to be monitored more extensively, with measures to raise happiness levels being taken as an effective means of improving patient outcomes.

  18. A collective theory of happiness: words related to the word "happiness" in Swedish online newspapers.

    PubMed

    Garcia, Danilo; Sikström, Sverker

    2013-06-01

    It may be suggested that the representation of happiness in online media is collective in nature because it is a picture of happiness communicated by relatively few individuals to the masses. The present study is based on articles published in Swedish daily online newspapers in 2010; the data corpus comprises 1.5 million words. We investigated which words were most (un)common in articles containing the word "happiness" as compared with articles not containing this word. The results show that words related to people (by use of all relevant pronouns: you/me and us/them); important others (e.g., grandmother, mother); the Swedish royal wedding (e.g., Prince Daniel, Princess Victoria); and the FIFA World Cup (e.g., Zlatan, Argentina, Drogba) were highly recurrent in articles containing the word happiness. In contrast, words related to objects, such as money (e.g., millions, billions), bestselling gadgets (e.g., iPad, iPhone), and companies (e.g., Google, Windows), were predictive of contexts not recurrent with the word happiness. The results presented here are in accordance with findings in the happiness literature showing that relationships, not material things, are what make people happy. We suggest that our findings mirror a collective theory of happiness, that is, a shared picture or agreement, among members of a community, concerning what makes people happy. The fact that this representation is made public on such a large scale makes it collective in nature.

  19. Dogmatism and Happiness

    PubMed Central

    MALMIR, Maryam; KHANAHMADI, Mohammad; FARHUD, Dariush

    2017-01-01

    Background: Happiness is a drive and constructive force of life. A person feels wellbeing under different effective factors. Religious dogmatism that has an influence on the entire world is one of the depreciatory factors of happiness or wellbeing. The current study decided to analyze the relation between dogmatism and wellbeing, and according to a model, answer the following question: how does religious dogmatism decrease wellbeing? Methods: This study is a correlation research. Population of study includes all people with 30–50 yr old who live in Tehran, Iran, in 2015. Among all, 180 subjects were selected as in access sample. The Oxford happiness questionnaire and Rokeach dogmatism scale were used. Data were analyzed by Pearson correlation test. Results: There is a significant negative correlation between dogmatism and happiness (α=0.05). Conclusion: Dogmatism is one of the factors that have a negative effect on wellbeing. Religious dogmatism is the most dangerous factor against wellbeing. Dogmatic individuals have an inflexible cognitive system that emerges as a stable personality trait and decreases their adjustment with environment. Affective well-being and cognitive wellbeing are affected by individual adjustment. Therefore, in dogmatic individuals with low adjustment, the decrease of affective well-being and cognitive wellbeing is inevitable. This process will result in decrease of happiness and increase of aggression. PMID:28435818

  20. Recent Contributions of Air- and Biomarkers to the Control of Secondhand Smoke (SHS): A Review

    PubMed Central

    Prignot, Jacques J.

    2011-01-01

    Since the publication of the US Surgeon General Reports in 1996 and 2006 and the report of the California Environmental Protection Agency in 1999, many reports have appeared on the contribution of air and biomarkers to different facets of the secondhand smoke (SHS) issue, which are the targets of this review. These recent studies have allowed earlier epidemiological surveys to be biologically validated, and their plausibility demonstrated, quantified the levels of exposure to SHS before the bans in various environments, showed the deficiencies of mechanical control methods and of partial bans and the frequently correct implementation of the efficient total bans. More stringent regulation remains necessary in the public domain (workplaces, hospitality venues, transport sector, etc.) in many countries. Personal voluntary protection efforts against SHS are also needed in the private domain (homes, private cars). The effects of SHS on the cardiovascular, respiratory and neuropsychic systems, on pregnancy and fertility, on cancers and on SHS genotoxicity are confirmed through experimental human studies and through the relationship between markers and prevalence of disease or of markers of disease risk. PMID:21556172

  1. TV watching, soap opera and happiness.

    PubMed

    Lu, L; Argyle, M

    1993-09-01

    One hundred and fourteen subjects reported the amount of time they spent watching television in general, and soap opera in particular. They also completed scales measuring happiness and other personality variables, such as extraversion and cooperativeness. In the multiple regression analysis, having controlled for the demographic variables, watching TV was related to unhappiness, whereas watching soap opera was related to happiness. Discriminant analysis showed that females, higher happiness and extraversion distinguished regular soap watchers (who nevertheless watched little TV in general) from irregular soap watchers (who nevertheless watched a lot of TV in general).

  2. Secondhand smoke exposure (SHS) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Chinese never smokers in Hong Kong

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Jing; Wang, Man-Ping; Wang, Xin; Viswanath, Kasisomayajula; Lam, Tai-Hing; Chan, Sophia S

    2015-01-01

    Objective The evidence on the effect of secondhand smoke (SHS) on Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) is limited. We examined the relation between SHS and HRQoL among Chinese in Hong Kong. Methods Adult never smokers from a probability sample of three cross-sectional waves (2010, 2012, 2013) of The Hong Kong Family and Health Information Trends Survey who completed the Cantonese-version of Short-Form 12 Health Survey Questionnaire (SF12v2) were included in the data analysis conducted in 2014. Models were used to examine associations of SHS with SF12 domains and summary scores of Physical (PCS12) and Mental Component (MCS12) with subgroups analysis by SHS locations. Results After adjustments, SHS was associated with lower scores on all SF12 domains except physical functioning. PCS12 (regress coefficient=−0.76, 95% CI −1.34 to −0.17) and MCS12 (regress coefficient=−1.35, 95% CI −2.06 to −0.64) were lower in those with SHS exposure than those non-exposed. Those exposed to SHS in outdoor public places had lower scores on most SF12 domains and PSC12 and MCS12. SHS exposure in one's home and workplace was associated with lower scores on role physical, body pain and role emotional while SHS exposure in friends’ homes was additionally associated with lower social functioning and mental health scores. Lower MCS12 was associated with SHS exposure at all locations except one's home. Conclusions Our study showed that SHS exposure, particularly in outdoor public places, was associated with decreased HRQoL. It can provide new evidence for stronger smoke-free policies on public places and promoting smoke-free homes. PMID:26338682

  3. Secondhand smoke exposure (SHS) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in Chinese never smokers in Hong Kong.

    PubMed

    Chen, Jing; Wang, Man-Ping; Wang, Xin; Viswanath, Kasisomayajula; Lam, Tai-Hing; Chan, Sophia S

    2015-09-02

    The evidence on the effect of secondhand smoke (SHS) on Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) is limited. We examined the relation between SHS and HRQoL among Chinese in Hong Kong. Adult never smokers from a probability sample of three cross-sectional waves (2010, 2012, 2013) of The Hong Kong Family and Health Information Trends Survey who completed the Cantonese-version of Short-Form 12 Health Survey Questionnaire (SF12v2) were included in the data analysis conducted in 2014. Models were used to examine associations of SHS with SF12 domains and summary scores of Physical (PCS12) and Mental Component (MCS12) with subgroups analysis by SHS locations. After adjustments, SHS was associated with lower scores on all SF12 domains except physical functioning. PCS12 (regress coefficient=-0.76, 95% CI -1.34 to -0.17) and MCS12 (regress coefficient=-1.35, 95% CI -2.06 to -0.64) were lower in those with SHS exposure than those non-exposed. Those exposed to SHS in outdoor public places had lower scores on most SF12 domains and PSC12 and MCS12. SHS exposure in one's home and workplace was associated with lower scores on role physical, body pain and role emotional while SHS exposure in friends' homes was additionally associated with lower social functioning and mental health scores. Lower MCS12 was associated with SHS exposure at all locations except one's home. Our study showed that SHS exposure, particularly in outdoor public places, was associated with decreased HRQoL. It can provide new evidence for stronger smoke-free policies on public places and promoting smoke-free homes. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

  4. Perceived parental behaviour, self-esteem and happiness.

    PubMed

    Furnham, A; Cheng, H

    2000-10-01

    This study set out to determine to what extent recalled parental rearing styles (authoritarian, authoritativeness, permissiveness), personality (extraversion, neuroticism, psychoticism, lie), and self-esteem predicted self-rated happiness in a normal, nonclinical, population of young people in their late teens and early 20s. Each participant completed a few questionnaires: the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (revised), the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, the Parental Authority Questionnaire and the Oxford Happiness Inventory. It was predicted that sex, extraversion, neuroticism, self-esteem and both maternal and paternal authoritativeness would be significant predictors of happiness. Regressional and path analysis showed self-esteem to be the most dominant and powerful predictor of happiness. The effect of sex on happiness was moderated by neuroticism, which related to self-esteem, which directly influenced happiness. Stability, extraversion and maternal authoritativeness were significant predictors of self-esteem accounting for one-third of the variance. The results are considered in terms of the distinct literature on the relation between personality and happiness and on the relation between parental styles and self-esteem. Self-esteem was both a direct and a moderator variable for young people's self-reported happiness. Extraversion had both direct and indirect predictive power of happiness, whereas neuroticism predicted happiness mediating through self-esteem. Maternal authoritativeness was the only direct predictor of happiness when paternal and maternal rearing styles were examined together, suggesting that a reasonable discipline exercised by mothers towards their children was particularly beneficial in enhancing the offsprings' self-esteem.

  5. Relation Between Physicians' Work Lives and Happiness.

    PubMed

    Eckleberry-Hunt, Jodie; Kirkpatrick, Heather; Taku, Kanako; Hunt, Ronald; Vasappa, Rashmi

    2016-04-01

    Although we know much about work-related physician burnout and the subsequent negative effects, we do not fully understand work-related physician wellness. Likewise, the relation of wellness and burnout to physician happiness is unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine how physician burnout and wellness contribute to happiness. We sampled 2000 full-time physician members of the American Academy of Family Physicians. Respondents completed a demographics questionnaire, questions about workload, the Physician Wellness Inventory, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. We performed a hierarchical regression analysis with the burnout and wellness subscales as predictor variables and physician happiness as the outcome variable. Our response rate was 22%. Career purpose, personal accomplishment, and perception of workload manageability had significant positive correlations with physician happiness. Distress had a significant negative correlation with physician happiness. A sense of career meaning and accomplishment, along with a lack of distress, are important factors in determining physician happiness. The number of hours a physician works is not related to happiness, but the perceived ability to manage workload was significantly related to happiness. Wellness-promotion efforts could focus on assisting physicians with skills to manage the workload by eliminating unnecessary tasks or sharing workload among team members, improving feelings of work accomplishment, improving career satisfaction and meaning, and managing distress related to patient care.

  6. Religiosity, health and happiness: significant relations in adolescents from Qatar.

    PubMed

    Abdel-Khalek, Ahmed M

    2014-11-01

    Several studies have revealed positive associations between religiosity, health and happiness. However, the vast majority of these studies were carried out on native English-speaking participants. The objective of this study was to estimate the relations between religiosity, health and happiness among a sample (N = 372) of Qatari adolescents (M age = 15.2). The students responded to five self-rating scales to assess religiosity, mental health, physical health, happiness and satisfaction with life. Boys obtained a higher mean score on mental health than did their female counterparts. All the correlations between the rating scales were significant and positive. Principal component analysis disclosed one component and labelled 'Religiosity, health and happiness' in both sexes. The multiple stepwise regression indicated that the predictors of religiosity were the self-ratings of satisfaction with life and happiness in boys, whereas the predictors among girls were satisfaction with life and physical health. On the basis of the responses of the present sample, it was concluded that those who consider themselves as religious were more happy, satisfied with their life and healthy. © The Author(s) 2013.

  7. Mediating effect of Facebook addiction on the relationship between subjective vitality and subjective happiness.

    PubMed

    Uysal, Recep; Satici, Seydi Ahmet; Akin, Ahmet

    2013-12-01

    This study examined the mediating effects of Facebook addiction on the relationship between subjective vitality and subjective happiness. 297 university students (157 women, 140 men; M age = 20.1 yr., SD = 1.3) were administered the Facebook Addiction Scale, the Subjective Vitality Scale, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that Facebook addiction partially mediated the relationship between subjective vitality and subjective happiness.

  8. Two RNAs or DNAs May Artificially Fuse Together at a Short Homologous Sequence (SHS) during Reverse Transcription or Polymerase Chain Reactions, and Thus Reporting an SHS-Containing Chimeric RNA Requires Extra Caution

    PubMed Central

    Xie, Bingkun; Yang, Wei; Ouyang, Yongchang; Chen, Lichan; Jiang, Hesheng; Liao, Yuying; Liao, D. Joshua

    2016-01-01

    Tens of thousands of chimeric RNAs have been reported. Most of them contain a short homologous sequence (SHS) at the joining site of the two partner genes but are not associated with a fusion gene. We hypothesize that many of these chimeras may be technical artifacts derived from SHS-caused mis-priming in reverse transcription (RT) or polymerase chain reactions (PCR). We cloned six chimeric complementary DNAs (cDNAs) formed by human mitochondrial (mt) 16S rRNA sequences at an SHS, which were similar to several expression sequence tags (ESTs).These chimeras, which could not be detected with cDNA protection assay, were likely formed because some regions of the 16S rRNA are reversely complementary to another region to form an SHS, which allows the downstream sequence to loop back and anneal at the SHS to prime the synthesis of its complementary strand, yielding a palindromic sequence that can form a hairpin-like structure.We identified a 16S rRNA that ended at the 4th nucleotide(nt) of the mt-tRNA-leu was dominant and thus should be the wild type. We also cloned a mouse Bcl2-Nek9 chimeric cDNA that contained a 5-nt unmatchable sequence between the two partners, contained two copies of the reverse primer in the same direction but did not contain the forward primer, making it unclear how this Bcl2-Nek9 was formed and amplified. Moreover, a cDNA was amplified because one primer has 4 nts matched to the template, suggesting that there may be many more artificial cDNAs than we have realized, because the nuclear and mt genomes have many more 4-nt than 5-nt or longer homologues. Altogether, the chimeric cDNAs we cloned are good examples suggesting that many cDNAs may be artifacts due to SHS-caused mis-priming and thus greater caution should be taken when new sequence is obtained from a technique involving DNA polymerization. PMID:27148738

  9. Contextual correlates of happiness in European adults.

    PubMed

    Hart, Eva Anna Christina; Lakerveld, Jeroen; McKee, Martin; Oppert, Jean-Michel; Rutter, Harry; Charreire, Hélène; Veenhoven, Ruut; Bárdos, Helga; Compernolle, Sofie; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Brug, Johannes; Mackenbach, Joreintje Dingena

    2018-01-01

    We aimed to examine the associations of both objectively assessed and perceived physical and social neighborhood characteristics with happiness in European adults. In addition, we aimed to study how these associations differed among subgroups. Participants (N = 6037) of the cross-sectional SPOTLIGHT survey reported on their level of happiness using a 5-point Likert scale, and on perceived physical and social environmental neighborhood characteristics. Objective physical environmental characteristics were assessed using a Google Street View-based neighborhood audit. Associations of 14 physical and social environmental characteristics with happiness were analyzed using multivariable multinomial regression analyses with clustered standard errors. Living in neighborhoods with higher levels of aesthetics and more water and green space was associated with being very happy. Individuals who perceived their neighborhood to be safer, more functional and more aesthetic were more likely to be very happy. The associations of functionality and aesthetics with happiness were strongest in the Ghent region (Belgium), the Randstad (the Netherlands) and Greater London (United Kingdom). Perceived absence of air pollution was only associated with higher levels of happiness in more highly educated participants. Individuals with a larger social network, more social cohesion and who trusted their neighbors were more likely to be very happy. The association between social networks and happiness was somewhat stronger in men than in women. In general, the associations between environmental characteristics and happiness had similar directions and sizes across socio-economic and socio-demographic subgroups. This European study provided evidence that both objectively assessed and perceived physical and social characteristics of the neighborhood environment are associated with the happiness of its residents.

  10. Contextual correlates of happiness in European adults

    PubMed Central

    Hart, Eva Anna Christina; Lakerveld, Jeroen; McKee, Martin; Oppert, Jean-Michel; Rutter, Harry; Charreire, Hélène; Veenhoven, Ruut; Bárdos, Helga; Compernolle, Sofie; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Brug, Johannes

    2018-01-01

    Objectives We aimed to examine the associations of both objectively assessed and perceived physical and social neighborhood characteristics with happiness in European adults. In addition, we aimed to study how these associations differed among subgroups. Methods Participants (N = 6037) of the cross-sectional SPOTLIGHT survey reported on their level of happiness using a 5-point Likert scale, and on perceived physical and social environmental neighborhood characteristics. Objective physical environmental characteristics were assessed using a Google Street View-based neighborhood audit. Associations of 14 physical and social environmental characteristics with happiness were analyzed using multivariable multinomial regression analyses with clustered standard errors. Results Living in neighborhoods with higher levels of aesthetics and more water and green space was associated with being very happy. Individuals who perceived their neighborhood to be safer, more functional and more aesthetic were more likely to be very happy. The associations of functionality and aesthetics with happiness were strongest in the Ghent region (Belgium), the Randstad (the Netherlands) and Greater London (United Kingdom). Perceived absence of air pollution was only associated with higher levels of happiness in more highly educated participants. Individuals with a larger social network, more social cohesion and who trusted their neighbors were more likely to be very happy. The association between social networks and happiness was somewhat stronger in men than in women. In general, the associations between environmental characteristics and happiness had similar directions and sizes across socio-economic and socio-demographic subgroups. Conclusions This European study provided evidence that both objectively assessed and perceived physical and social characteristics of the neighborhood environment are associated with the happiness of its residents. PMID:29364899

  11. Compassion, Mindfulness, and the Happiness of Healthcare Workers.

    PubMed

    Benzo, Roberto P; Kirsch, Janae L; Nelson, Carlie

    Decreased well-being of healthcare workers expressed as stress and decreased job satisfaction influences patient safety, patient satisfaction, and cost containment. Self-compassion has garnered recent attention due to its positive association with well-being and happiness. Discovering novel pathways to increase the well-being of healthcare workers is essential. This study sought to explore the influence of self-compassion on employee happiness in healthcare professionals. A total of 400 participants (mean age = 45 ± 14, 65% female) healthcare workers at a large teaching hospital were randomly asked to complete questionnaires assessing their levels of happiness and self-compassion, life conditions, and habits. Participants completed the Happiness Scale and Self-Compassion Scales, the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire as well as variables associated with well-being: relationship status, the number of hours spent exercising a week, attendance at a wellness facility, and engagement in a regular spiritual practice. Self-compassion was significantly and independently associated with perceived happiness explaining 39% of its variance after adjusting for age, marital status, gender, time spent exercising, and attendance to an exercise facility. Two specific subdomains of self-compassion from the instrument used, coping with isolation and mindfulness, accounted for 95% of the self-compassion effect on happiness. Self-compassion is meaningfully and independently associated with happiness and well-being in healthcare professionals. Our results may have practical implications by providing specific self-compassion components to be targeted in future programs aimed at enhancing well-being in healthcare professionals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. False memory and the associative network of happiness.

    PubMed

    Koo, Minkyung; Oishi, Shigehiro

    2009-02-01

    This research examines the relationship between individuals' levels of life satisfaction and their associative networks of happiness. Study 1 measured European Americans' degree of false memory of happiness using the Deese-Roediger-McDermott paradigm. Scores on the Satisfaction With Life Scale predicted the likelihood of false memory of happiness but not of other lure words such as sleep . In Study 2, European American participants completed an association-judgment task in which they judged the extent to which happiness and each of 15 positive emotion terms were associated with each other. Consistent with Study 1's findings, chronically satisfied individuals exhibited stronger associations between happiness and other positive emotion terms than did unsatisfied individuals. However, Koreans and Asian Americans did not exhibit such a pattern regarding their chronic level of life satisfaction (Study 3). In combination, results suggest that there are important individual and cultural differences in the cognitive structure and associative network of happiness.

  13. Correlates of exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) at home among non-smoking adults in Bangladesh: findings from the ITC Bangladesh survey.

    PubMed

    Abdullah, Abu S; Driezen, Pete; Sansone, Genevieve; Nargis, Nigar; Hussain, Ghulam Akm; Quah, Anne Ck; Fong, Geoffrey T

    2014-07-16

    Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a serious global public health problem. Understanding the correlates of SHS exposure could guide the development of evidence based SHS exposure reduction interventions. The purpose of this study is to describe the pattern of and factors associated with SHS exposure among non-smoking adults in Bangladesh. Data come from adult non-smokers who participated in the second wave (2010) of the International Tobacco Control Policy (ITC) Evaluation Bangladesh Survey conducted in all six administrative divisions of Bangladesh. A structured questionnaire gathered information on participants' demographic characteristics, pattern of SHS exposure, SHS knowledge, and attitudes towards tobacco control. Exposure to SHS at home was defined as non-smokers who lived with at least one smoker in their household and who reported having no home smoking ban. The data were analyzed using chi-square tests and logistic regression procedures. The SHS exposure rate at home among the participants (N=2813) was 43%. Several sociodemographic and attitudinal factors were associated with SHS exposure. Logistic regression analyses identified eight predictors of SHS exposure: being female (OR=2.35), being aged 15-24 (OR=2.17), being recruited from Dhaka slums (OR=5.19) or non-tribal/non-border areas outside Dhaka (OR=2.19) or tribal/border area (OR=4.36), having lower education (1-8 years: OR=2.45; illiterate: OR=3.00, having higher monthly household income (5000 to <10,000 Taka: OR=2.34; 10,000 Taka or more: OR=2.28), having a father who smoked in the past or currently smokes (OR=2.09), having lower concern about the harms of tobacco on children (unconcerned OR=3.99; moderate concern OR=2.26), and not knowing the fact that SHS causes lung cancer in non-smokers (OR=2.04). Almost half of non-smoking Bangladeshi adults are exposed to SHS at home. The findings suggest the need for comprehensive tobacco control measures that would improve public understanding about

  14. 170. Credit SHS. Northern California Power Company substation, Bully Hill ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    170. Credit SHS. Northern California Power Company substation, Bully Hill Mine area. Note lack of vegetation, caused by nearby copper smelting works. - Battle Creek Hydroelectric System, Battle Creek & Tributaries, Red Bluff, Tehama County, CA

  15. Dermatologists happiness and satisfaction

    PubMed

    Fierro-Arias, Leonel; Simón-Díaz, Pilar; Ponce-Olivera, Rosa María; Arenas-Guzmán, Roberto

    2018-01-01

    To assess the level of happiness and satisfaction in the life and medical practice of dermatologists in Mexico. A descriptive study (online survey) was conducted focused on practicing dermatologists in our country. Questions included demographic characteristics, the Pemberton happiness index (with local validation) and questions that assessed the degree of personal satisfaction. Descriptive statistics were used to obtain the central tendency and dispersion. Measures of central tendency and dispersion were performed; to compare categorical variables, contingency tables for chi-square test were used and when comparing quantitative variables with normal distribution, Student’s t t-test was used. 219 surveys were included, 72.6% female and 27.4% male, with an average age of 45.6 and an average of 16 years of medical practice. Most of them (64.8%) graduate from Mexico City; 93% were very satisfied with the specialty and 98.6% of them would choose the same once again, the most important reason is to encompass medical and surgical areas. The level of happiness by using the Pemberton scale was “high” (mode: 9.11; standard deviation: 1.73). This first study in Latin America on this subject in dermatologists showed high levels of satisfaction and happiness in both professional and personal areas. Copyright: © 2018 SecretarÍa de Salud

  16. Happiness and related factors in pregnant women.

    PubMed

    Jayasvasti, Kanthika; Kanchanatawan, Buranee

    2005-09-01

    Pregnancy is a crisis in the human life cycle as an important turning point in aspects of anatomical, physiological and psychosocial changes. An unhappy pregnanus could influence the fetal growth and development and sense of maternal competence as well as bonding with the fetus which profoundly affect the nurture of the infant after delivery. The authors'purposes were to study happiness and related factors in pregnant women having antenatal care at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital. Four hundred and thirty-eight pregnant women from the antenatal clinic at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital were randomly selected to complete a set of questionnaires that consisted of personal information, pregnant information, The Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ), The Maudsley Personality Inventory (MPI) and The Marital Satisfaction Scale (MSS). Prevalence of happiness level was classified by descriptive analysis. Unpaired t-test, ANOVA and Pearson's Product Moment Correlation analyzed related factors to happiness in pregnant woman. Also Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis was used to define predictive factors for happiness in pregnant women. The sample had a high level of happiness of 57.3%. Significant related factors to happiness were age between 31-35 years, high education level, high individual and family income, having saving deposition, no drug abuse, improved marital relationship, no conflict with relatives, extrovert and stable personality types and no concerns about post-partum body image. Four predictive factors for happiness in pregnant women were extrovert personality, stable personality, high family income and improved marital relationship. Level of happiness in pregnant women could be predicted by type of personality, family income and marital relationship.

  17. Correlates of exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) at home among non-smoking adults in Bangladesh: findings from the ITC Bangladesh survey

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a serious global public health problem. Understanding the correlates of SHS exposure could guide the development of evidence based SHS exposure reduction interventions. The purpose of this study is to describe the pattern of and factors associated with SHS exposure among non-smoking adults in Bangladesh. Methods Data come from adult non-smokers who participated in the second wave (2010) of the International Tobacco Control Policy (ITC) Evaluation Bangladesh Survey conducted in all six administrative divisions of Bangladesh. A structured questionnaire gathered information on participants’ demographic characteristics, pattern of SHS exposure, SHS knowledge, and attitudes towards tobacco control. Exposure to SHS at home was defined as non-smokers who lived with at least one smoker in their household and who reported having no home smoking ban. The data were analyzed using chi-square tests and logistic regression procedures. Results The SHS exposure rate at home among the participants (N = 2813) was 43%. Several sociodemographic and attitudinal factors were associated with SHS exposure. Logistic regression analyses identified eight predictors of SHS exposure: being female (OR = 2.35), being aged 15–24 (OR = 2.17), being recruited from Dhaka slums (OR = 5.19) or non-tribal/non-border areas outside Dhaka (OR = 2.19) or tribal/border area (OR = 4.36), having lower education (1–8 years: OR = 2.45; illiterate: OR = 3.00, having higher monthly household income (5000 to <10,000 Taka: OR = 2.34; 10,000 Taka or more: OR = 2.28), having a father who smoked in the past or currently smokes (OR = 2.09), having lower concern about the harms of tobacco on children (unconcerned OR = 3.99; moderate concern OR = 2.26), and not knowing the fact that SHS causes lung cancer in non-smokers (OR = 2.04). Conclusions Almost half of non-smoking Bangladeshi adults are exposed to SHS at

  18. Measures of Inequality: Application to Happiness in Nations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kalmijn, W. M.; Arends, L. R.

    2010-01-01

    What is a good measure for happiness inequality? In the context of this question, we have developed an approach in which individual happiness values in a sample are considered as elements of a set and inequality as a binary relation on that set. The total number of inequality relations, each weighed by the distance on the scale of measurement…

  19. Happiness, Work Engagement, and Perception of Organizational Support of Student Affairs Professionals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hempfling, Michele Sheets

    2015-01-01

    Little research has been conducted on the work engagement, subjective happiness, or perceived organizational support of student affairs professionals. In this study, 299 professionals in the American College Personnel Association were surveyed utilizing the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, the Subjective Happiness Scale, and the Survey of Perceived…

  20. Family Smoking, Exposure to Secondhand Smoke at Home and Family Unhappiness in Children

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Jian Jiu; Ho, Sai Yin; Au, Wing Man; Wang, Man Ping; Lam, Tai Hing

    2015-01-01

    Tobacco use adversely affects many aspects of well-being and is disliked by non-smokers. However, its association with family happiness is unknown. We investigated the associations of family unhappiness with smoking in family members and secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure at home in Hong Kong children. In a school-based survey in 2012–2013, 1238 primary school students (mean age 8.5 years, standard deviation 0.9; 42.6% boys) reported family smoking, SHS exposure at home and whether their families had any unpleasant experience caused by smoking or SHS in the past 30 days (tobacco-related unpleasant experience), and rated the overall level of happiness in their families (family unhappiness). Multivariable logistic regression was used to study the associations of tobacco-related unpleasant experience and family unhappiness with family smoking and SHS exposure at home. Tobacco-related unpleasant experience and family unhappiness were reported by 27.5% and 16.5% of students. Unpleasant experience was more strongly associated with family smoking than SHS exposure at home. Family unhappiness was associated with both family smoking (odds ratio 2.37; 95% confidence interval 1.51–3.71) and SHS exposure at home (1.82; 1.39–2.40). These results suggest a previously neglected possible impact of tobacco use on family happiness. PMID:26580642

  1. Spiritual Health Scale 2011: Defining and Measuring 4th Dimension of Health

    PubMed Central

    Dhar, Neera; Chaturvedi, SK; Nandan, Deoki

    2011-01-01

    In the midst of physical comforts provided by the unprecedented developments in all spheres of life, the humanity is at cross roads and looking at something beyond these means. Spirituality has now been identified globally as an important aspect for providing answers to many questions related to health and happiness. The World Health Organization is also keen at looking beyond physical, mental and social dimensions of the health, and the member countries are actively exploring the 4th Dimension of the health i.e. the spiritual health and its impact on the overall health and happiness of an individual. National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (NIHFW), realized this need and initiated a research study in this direction. In this study, an effort was made to define this 4th Dimension of health from a common worldly person's perspective and measure it. 3 Domains, 6 Constructs and 27 Determinants of spiritual health were identified through a scientific process. A statistically reliable and valid Spiritual Health Scale (SHS 2011) containing 114 items has been developed. Construct validity and test- retest reliability has been established for urban educated adult population. The scale is first of its kind in the world to measure the spiritual health of a common worldly person, which is devoid of religious and cultural bias. Its items have universal applicability. PMID:22279257

  2. Compassion, Mindfulness and the Happiness of Health Care Workers

    PubMed Central

    Benzo, Roberto P.; Kirsch, Janae L.; Nelson, Carlie

    2017-01-01

    Context Decreased well-being of health care workers expressed as stress and decreased job satisfaction influences patient safety and satisfaction and cost containment. Self-compassion has garnered recent attention due to its positive association with wellbeing and happiness. Discovering novel pathways to increase the well-being of health care workers is essential. Objective This study sought to explore the influence of self-compassion on employee happiness in health care professionals. Design, Setting & Participants 400 participants (mean age 45 ± 14, 65% female) health care workers at a large teaching hospital were randomly asked to complete questionnaires assessing their levels of happiness and self-compassion, life conditions and habits. Measures Participants completed the Happiness Scale and Self-Compassion Scales, the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire as well as variables associated with wellbeing: relationship status, the number of hours spent exercising a week, attendance at a wellness facility and engagement in a regular spiritual practice. Results Self-compassion was significantly and independently associated with perceived happiness explaining 39% of its variance after adjusting for age, marital status, gender, time spent exercising and attendance to an exercise facility. Two specific subdomains of self-compassion from the instrument used, coping with isolation and mindfulness, accounted for 95% of the self-compassion effect on happiness. Conclusion Self-compassion is meaningfully and independently associated with happiness and well-being in health care professionals. Our results may have practical implications by providing specific self-compassion components to be targeted in future programs aimed at enhancing wellbeing in health care professionals. PMID:28420563

  3. Experimental investigation on AC unit integrated with sensible heat storage (SHS)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aziz, N. A.; Amin, N. A. M.; Majid, M. S. A.; Hussin, A.; Zhubir, S.

    2017-10-01

    The growth in population and economy has increases the energy demand and raises the concerns over the sustainable energy source. Towards the sustainable development, energy efficiency in buildings has become a prime objective. In this paper, the integration of thermal energy storage was studied. This paper presents an experimental investigation on the performance of an air conditioning unit integrated with sensible heat storage (SHS) system. The results were compared to the conventional AC systems in the terms of average electricity usage, indoor temperature and the relative humidity inside the experimented room (cabin container). Results show that the integration of water tank as an SHS reduces the electricity usage by 5%, while the integration of well-insulated water tank saves up to 8% of the electricity consumption.

  4. Implication of alcohol consumption on aggregate wellbeing.

    PubMed

    Parackal, Mathew; Parackal, Sherly

    2017-07-01

    The effects of drinking alcohol extend beyond the individuals concerned to the wider community. While there is recognition of such a global implication, currently no study has quantified the impact of alcohol consumption on aggregate wellbeing. This study aims to address this gap and attempts to investigate the impact of various levels of alcohol consumption on aggregate happiness. The study was carried out on a random selection of participants ( n = 1,817) drawn from the 3Di consumer panel, comprising over 170,000 New Zealanders aged 18 and above. Using a subjective happiness scale (SHS) in conjunction with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), investigation was carried out to find whether drinking behaviour affected aggregate happiness. SHS and AUDIT scores were negatively correlated and the strength of the correlation increased with the intensity of problematic drinking. Regression analysis showed that the beta coefficient was positive for the low-risk (.074) and negative for the high-risk (-.081) category, suggesting approaches to intervene with the growing problem of alcohol consumption in modern societies. Measurements of happiness can explain the global implication of alcohol in wellbeing terms. The findings of this study indicated that low-risk drinkers affected aggregate happiness positively, whereas high-risk drinkers affected aggregate happiness negatively. While the latter observation is not new, the former raises the need to promote moderation in drinking alcohol for the common good of everyone.

  5. Don't worry, be happy: cross-sectional associations between physical activity and happiness in 15 European countries.

    PubMed

    Richards, Justin; Jiang, Xiaoxiao; Kelly, Paul; Chau, Josephine; Bauman, Adrian; Ding, Ding

    2015-01-31

    Mental health disorders are major contributors to the global burden of disease and their inverse relationship with physical activity is widely accepted. However, research on the association between physical activity and positive mental health outcomes is limited. Happiness is an example of a positive construct of mental health that may be promoted by physical activity and could increase resilience to emotional perturbations. The aim of this study is to use a large multi-country dataset to assess the association of happiness with physical activity volume and its specificity to intensity and/or activity domain. We analysed Eurobarometer 2002 data from 15 countries (n = 11,637). This comprised one question assessing self-reported happiness on a six point scale (dichotomised: happy/unhappy) and physical activity data collected using the IPAQ-short (i.e. walking, moderate, vigorous) and four domain specific items (i.e. domestic, leisure, transport, vocation). Logistic regression was used to examine the association between happiness and physical activity volume adjusted for sex, age, country, general health, relationship status, employment and education. Analyses of intensity and domain specificity were assessed by logistic regression adjusted for the same covariates and physical activity volume. When compared to inactive people, there was a positive dose-response association between physical activity volume and happiness (highly active: OR = 1.52 [1.28-1.80]; sufficiently active: OR = 1.29 [1.11-1.49]; insufficiently active: OR = 1.20 [1.03-1.39]). There were small positive associations with happiness for walking (OR = 1.02 [1.00-1.03]) and vigorous-intensity physical activity (OR = 1.03 [1.01-1.05). Moderate-intensity physical activity was not associated with happiness (OR = 1.01 [0.99-1.03]). The strongest domain specific associations with happiness were found for "a lot" of domestic (OR = 1.42 [1.20-1.68]) and "some" vocational (OR = 1.33 [1.08-1.64]) physical

  6. Religion and Happiness: A Study Among University Students in Turkey.

    PubMed

    Francis, Leslie J; Ok, Üzeyir; Robbins, Mandy

    2017-08-01

    This study tests the hypothesis that higher levels of positive religious affect are associated with higher levels of personal happiness among a sample of 348 students studying at a state university in Turkey who completed the Ok Religious Attitude Scale (Islam), the Oxford Happiness Inventory, and the short-form Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised. The data reported a small but statistically significant association between religiosity and happiness after taking sex and individual differences in personality into account.

  7. Parent-child discrepancies in the assessment of children's and adolescents' happiness.

    PubMed

    López-Pérez, Belén; Wilson, Ellie L

    2015-11-01

    In this study, we assessed parent-child agreement in the perception of children's general happiness or well-being in typically developing children (10- and 11-year-olds, n = 172) and adolescents (15- and 16-year-olds, n = 185). Despite parent and child reporters providing internally consistent responses in the General Happiness single-item scale and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire-Short Form, their perceptions about children's and adolescents' general happiness did not correlate. Parents of 10- and 11-year-olds significantly overestimated children's happiness, supporting previous literature on the parents' positivity bias effect. However, parents of 15- and 16-year-olds showed the reverse pattern by underestimating adolescents' happiness. Furthermore, parents' self-reported happiness or well-being (reported 6 months later) significantly correlated with their estimations of children's and adolescents' happiness. Therefore, these results suggest a potential parents' "egocentric bias" when estimating their children's happiness. These findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and applied implications for research into child-parent relationships. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Prosocial behavior leads to happiness in a small-scale rural society.

    PubMed

    Aknin, Lara B; Broesch, Tanya; Hamlin, J Kiley; Van de Vondervoort, Julia W

    2015-08-01

    Humans are extraordinarily prosocial, and research conducted primarily in North America indicates that giving to others is emotionally rewarding. To examine whether the hedonic benefits of giving represent a universal feature of human behavior, we extended upon previous cross-cultural examinations by investigating whether inhabitants of a small-scale, rural, and isolated village in Vanuatu, where villagers have little influence from urban, Western culture, survive on subsistence farming without electricity, and have minimal formal education, report or display emotional rewards from engaging in prosocial (vs. personally beneficial) behavior. In Study 1, adults were randomly assigned to purchase candy for either themselves or others and then reported their positive affect. Consistent with previous research, adults purchasing goods for others reported greater positive emotion than adults receiving resources for themselves. In Study 2, 2- to 5-year-old children received candy and were subsequently asked to engage in costly giving (sharing their own candy with a puppet) and non-costly giving (sharing the experimenter's candy with a puppet). Emotional expressions were video-recorded during the experiment and later coded for happiness. Consistent with previous research conducted in Canada, children displayed more happiness when giving treats away than when receiving treats themselves. Moreover, the emotional rewards of giving were largest when children engaged in costly (vs. non-costly) giving. Taken together, these findings indicate that the emotional rewards of giving are detectable in people living in diverse societies and support the possibility that the hedonic benefits of generosity are universal. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  9. Be Happy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bragdon, Julie

    2013-01-01

    The author has been thinking a lot about happiness lately. This started in earnest when she watched researcher Shawn Achor's 7-minute TEDX talk, entitled "The Happy Secret to Better Work," with parents and staff. Afterward, she was compelled to buy his book to learn more. "The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That…

  10. Happiness and Identities.

    PubMed

    Stets, Jan E; Trettevik, Ryan

    2016-07-01

    Previous sociological research has focused on macro forces that are associated with overall happiness with one's life, but it has neglected an analysis of happiness in immediate situations and the micro forces that may shape it. In this study, we examine social structural as well as individual factors that may influence happiness in situations that are morally challenging. Data are examined from an experiment in which satisfying self-interests may involve cheating to get ahead. The results reveal that while distal, structural factors influence happiness for those who do not cheat, proximal, individual factors influence happiness for those who cheat. We discuss how both macro and micro forces may shape happiness in situations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Do the physiotherapy results make us happy in a case with ‘happy puppet’ (Angelman) syndrome?

    PubMed Central

    Kara, Ozgun Kaya; Mutlu, Akmer; Gunel, Mintaze Kerem; Haliloglu, Goknur

    2010-01-01

    This study aimed to investigate the benefits of physiotherapy programme in a patient with Angelman syndrome (AS) during a follow-up of 3 years. Assessments included: disability level with gross motor function classification systems, gross motor function with gross motor function measurement (GMFM), balance with Berg Balance Scale, motor performance with gross motor performance measurement (GMPM) and tonus assessment with Modified Ashworth Scale. Physiotherapy programme was performed during 36 months, 3 days per week by physical therapist according to Neurodevelopmental Treatment approach. During the 36 months, GMFM increased from 11.46% to 70.82% and GMPM increased from 1.25% to 70.25%. This case report is the first study about the effectiveness of physiotherapy with medium-term follow-up in a child with AS. Physiotherapy results make us happy in this particular patient with ‘happy puppet’ syndrome. PMID:22802472

  12. The Mediating and Moderating Role of Subjective Happiness in the Relationship between Vengeance and Forgiveness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uysal, Recep; Satici, Seydi Ahmet

    2014-01-01

    The primary goal of the current study was to investigate the mediator and moderator effects of subjective happiness on the relationship between forgiveness and vengeance in Turkish university students. A questionnaire containing the Turkish version of Vengeance Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale, and Forgiveness Scale were completed by 298…

  13. Factor structure of the happiness-increasing strategies scales (H-ISS): activities and coping strategies in relation to positive and negative affect.

    PubMed

    Al Nima, Ali; Garcia, Danilo

    2015-01-01

    Background. Previous research (Tkach & Lyubomirsky, 2006) shows that there are eight general happiness-increasing strategies: social affiliation, partying, mental control, goal pursuit, passive leisure, active leisure, religion, and direct attempts. The present study investigates the factor structure of the happiness-increasing strategies scales (H-ISS) and their relationship to positive and negative affect. Method. The present study used participants' (N = 1,050 and age mean = 34.21 sd = 12.73) responses to the H-ISS in structural equation modeling analyses. Affect was measured using the Positive Affect Negative Affect Schedule. Results. After small modifications we obtained a good model that contains the original eight factors/scales. Moreover, we found that women tend to use social affiliation, mental control, passive leisure, religion, and direct attempts more than men, while men preferred to engage in partying and clubbing more than women. The H-ISS explained significantly the variance of positive affect (R (2) = .41) and the variance of negative affect (R (2) = .27). Conclusions. Our study is an addition to previous research showing that the factor structure of the happiness-increasing strategies is valid and reliable. However, due to the model fitting issues that arise in the present study, we give some suggestions for improving the instrument.

  14. Inhibition of the receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) protects from secondhand smoke (SHS)-induced intrauterine growth restriction IUGR in mice.

    PubMed

    Lewis, Joshua B; Mejia, Camilo; Jordan, Clinton; Monson, Troy D; Bodine, Jared S; Dunaway, Todd M; Egbert, Kaleb M; Lewis, Adam L; Wright, Tanner J; Ogden, K Connor; Broberg, Dallin S; Hall, Parker D; Nelson, Shawn M; Hirschi, Kelsey M; Reynolds, Paul R; Arroyo, Juan A

    2017-12-01

    Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is a disease affecting 10% of all pregnancies. IUGR is associated with maternal, fetal, or placental abnormalities. Studies investigating the effects of secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure and IUGR are limited. The receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) is a pro-inflammatory transmembrane receptor increased by SHS in the placenta. We tested the hypothesis that inhibition of RAGE during SHS exposure protects from smoke-induced IUGR. C57BL/6 mice were exposed to SHS or SHS + semi-synthetic glycosaminoglycan ethers (SAGEs) known to inhibit RAGE signaling. Trophoblast cells were treated with cigarette smoke extract (CSE) with or without SAGEs in order to address the effects of RAGE inhibition during trophoblast invasion in vitro. SHS-treated mice demonstrated a significant reduction in fetal weight (7.35-fold, P ≤ 0.0001) and placental weight (1.13-fold, P ≤ 0.0001) compared with controls. Mice co-treated with SHS and SAGEs were protected from SHS-induced fetal weights decreases. SHS treatment of C57BL/6 mice activated placental extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) (3.0-fold, P ≤ 0.05), JNK (2.4-fold, P ≤ 0.05) and p38 (2.1-fold, P ≤ 0.05) and the expression of inflammatory mediators including TNF-α (1.34-fold, P ≤ 0.05) and IL-1β (1.03-fold, P ≤ 0.05). SHS-mediated activation of these molecules was reduced to basal levels when SAGE was co-administered. Invasion of trophoblast cells decreased 92% (P < 0.002) when treated with CSE and CSE-mediated invasion was completely reversed by SAGEs. We conclude that RAGE inhibition protects against fetal weight loss during SHS-induced IUGR. These studies provide insight into tobacco-mediated IUGR development and clarify avenues that may be helpful in the alleviation of placental complications.

  15. Testing the Link Between Empathy and Lay Theories of Happiness.

    PubMed

    Tullett, Alexa M; Plaks, Jason E

    2016-09-20

    Happiness is a topic that ignites both considerable interest and considerable disagreement. Thus far, however, there has been little attempt to characterize people's lay theories about happiness or explore their consequences. We examined whether individual differences in lay theories of happiness would predict empathy. In Studies 1a and 1b, we validated the Lay Theories of Happiness Scale (LTHS), which includes three dimensions: flexibility, controllability, and locus. In Study 2, higher dispositional empathy was predicted by the belief that happiness is flexible, controllable, and internal. In Studies 3 and 4, higher empathy toward a specific target was predicted by the belief that happiness is flexible, uncontrollable, and external In conjunction, Studies 2, 3, and 4 provide evidence that trait and state empathy are separable and can have opposing relationships with people's lay theories. Overall, these findings highlight generalized beliefs that may guide empathic reactions to the unhappiness of others. © 2016 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

  16. Exploring constructs of well-being, happiness and quality of life.

    PubMed

    Medvedev, Oleg N; Landhuis, C Erik

    2018-01-01

    Existing definitions of happiness, subjective well-being, and quality of life suggest conceptual overlap between these constructs. This study explored the relationship between these well-being constructs by applying widely used measures with satisfactory psychometric properties. University students ( n = 180) completed widely used well-being measures including the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ), the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale. We analyzed the data using correlation, regression, and exploratory factor analysis. All included well-being measures demonstrated high loadings on the global well-being construct that explains about 80% of the variance in the OHQ, the psychological domain of Quality of Life and subjective well-being. The results show high positive correlations between happiness, psychological and health domains of quality of life, life satisfaction, and positive affect. Social and environmental domains of quality of life were poor predictors of happiness and subjective well-being after controlling for psychological quality of life. Together, these data provide support for a global well-being dimension and interchangeable use of terms happiness, subjective well-being, and psychological quality of life with the current sample and measures. Further investigation with larger heterogeneous samples and other well-being measures is warranted.

  17. Exploring constructs of well-being, happiness and quality of life

    PubMed Central

    Landhuis, C. Erik

    2018-01-01

    Background Existing definitions of happiness, subjective well-being, and quality of life suggest conceptual overlap between these constructs. This study explored the relationship between these well-being constructs by applying widely used measures with satisfactory psychometric properties. Materials and Methods University students (n = 180) completed widely used well-being measures including the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ), the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale. We analyzed the data using correlation, regression, and exploratory factor analysis. Results All included well-being measures demonstrated high loadings on the global well-being construct that explains about 80% of the variance in the OHQ, the psychological domain of Quality of Life and subjective well-being. The results show high positive correlations between happiness, psychological and health domains of quality of life, life satisfaction, and positive affect. Social and environmental domains of quality of life were poor predictors of happiness and subjective well-being after controlling for psychological quality of life. Conclusion Together, these data provide support for a global well-being dimension and interchangeable use of terms happiness, subjective well-being, and psychological quality of life with the current sample and measures. Further investigation with larger heterogeneous samples and other well-being measures is warranted. PMID:29876148

  18. DESPERATELY SEEKING HAPPINESS: VALUING HAPPINESS IS ASSOCIATED WITH SYMPTOMS AND DIAGNOSIS OF DEPRESSION.

    PubMed

    Ford, Brett Q; Shallcross, Amanda J; Mauss, Iris B; Floerke, Victoria A; Gruber, June

    Culture shapes the emotions people feel and want to feel. In Western cultures, happiness is an emotion that many people want to feel. Although experiencing happiness is associated with increased well-being and psychological health, recent evidence suggests wanting to feel happy to an extreme degree, or, highly valuing happiness, leads to decreased well-being. To examine whether these effects of valuing happiness might extend to clinical outcomes, we examined the hypothesis that depression is associated with highly valuing happiness. To do so, we examined the relationship between valuing happiness and depression in two U.S. samples. As hypothesized, valuing happiness was associated with increased depressive symptoms in a community sample with remitted major depressive disorder (MDD), even when controlling for social desirability and neuroticism (Study 1). Furthermore, valuing happiness was elevated in a remitted MDD sample (vs. healthy controls), even when controlling for current depressive symptoms, general affect valuation, and extreme goal pursuit (Study 2). Taken together, these findings suggest that the culturally-pervasive value placed on attaining happiness can represent a risk factor for symptoms and a diagnosis of depression. More broadly, they indicate that a cultural approach can meaningfully extend our understanding of clinical phenomena.

  19. Interaction Effects of Happiness and Physical Activity on Smoking Initiation.

    PubMed

    Torchyan, Armen A; BinSaeed, Abdulaziz A; Aleid, Yazeed S; Nagshbandi, Ahmed A; Almousa, Fahad; Papikyan, Satenik L; Gosadi, Ibrahim M

    2016-11-01

    Our aim was to assess the potential relationships among happiness, physical activity, and smoking initiation among undergraduate medical students in Saudi Arabia. We performed a cross-sectional study of randomly selected first- to fifth-year undergraduate medical students. Smoking initiation was defined as "ever trying smoking a cigarette, waterpipe, cigar/cigarillo, or other type of tobacco, even one or 2 puffs." The short scale Oxford Happiness Questionnaire was used to assess each student's happiness. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed. Of the 406 students surveyed (208 boys, 198 girls), 86 (21.1%) had initiated smoking. We found an interaction between physical activity (PA) and happiness on smoking initiation (p-interaction = .012). Among boys with low levels of PA, lower levels of happiness were associated with a greater likelihood of smoking initiation (OR = 5.8, 95%CI = 1.9 - 17.5). Also, high levels of PA increased the chance of smoking initiation among male students with high levels of happiness (OR = 5.6, 95%CI = 2.1 - 14.5). Our results suggest that young men with low levels of happiness and low levels of PA, as well as high levels of PA and high levels of happiness, may be targeted as a priority population in tobacco control intervention programs.

  20. Economic Migration and Happiness: Comparing Immigrants' and Natives' Happiness Gains from Income

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bartram, David

    2011-01-01

    Research on happiness casts doubt on the notion that increases in income generally bring greater happiness. This finding can be taken to imply that economic migration might fail to result in increased happiness for the migrants: migration as a means of increasing one's income might be no more effective in raising happiness than other means of…

  1. What Is Happy Death? From the Perspective of Happiness Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2018-01-01

    This paper is to review what is happy death from the perspective of happiness education. To discuss this study logically, four research questions are addressed. First, what is the concept of human death? Second, what are life and death from the Eastern and the Western religious viewpoints? Third, what is happy death in terms of happiness…

  2. DESPERATELY SEEKING HAPPINESS: VALUING HAPPINESS IS ASSOCIATED WITH SYMPTOMS AND DIAGNOSIS OF DEPRESSION

    PubMed Central

    Ford, Brett Q.; Shallcross, Amanda J.; Mauss, Iris B.; Floerke, Victoria A.; Gruber, June

    2015-01-01

    Culture shapes the emotions people feel and want to feel. In Western cultures, happiness is an emotion that many people want to feel. Although experiencing happiness is associated with increased well-being and psychological health, recent evidence suggests wanting to feel happy to an extreme degree, or, highly valuing happiness, leads to decreased well-being. To examine whether these effects of valuing happiness might extend to clinical outcomes, we examined the hypothesis that depression is associated with highly valuing happiness. To do so, we examined the relationship between valuing happiness and depression in two U.S. samples. As hypothesized, valuing happiness was associated with increased depressive symptoms in a community sample with remitted major depressive disorder (MDD), even when controlling for social desirability and neuroticism (Study 1). Furthermore, valuing happiness was elevated in a remitted MDD sample (vs. healthy controls), even when controlling for current depressive symptoms, general affect valuation, and extreme goal pursuit (Study 2). Taken together, these findings suggest that the culturally-pervasive value placed on attaining happiness can represent a risk factor for symptoms and a diagnosis of depression. More broadly, they indicate that a cultural approach can meaningfully extend our understanding of clinical phenomena. PMID:25678736

  3. Psychotic-like experiences and happiness in the English general population.

    PubMed

    Koyanagi, Ai

    2017-11-01

    Psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) have been associated with a variety of adverse outcomes but how they affect happiness in individuals with PLE is unknown. Thus, the aim of the study was to assess the association between PLEs and happiness, and the factors that may influence this association. Nationally representative data from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey including adults aged ≥ 16 years was analyzed. The Psychosis Screening Questionnaire was used to assess past 12-month PLE. Individuals who endorsed at least one of the following were considered to have any PLE: thought control, paranoia, strange experiences, auditory hallucinations. Happiness (3-point scale) was assessed with a validated question with higher scores indicating lower levels of happiness. The association between PLE and happiness was assessed by multivariable ordinal logistic regression. Mediation analysis was also performed. Among the 7363 individuals included in the analysis, the prevalence of any PLE increased with decreasing levels of happiness [very happy (2.3%), fairly happy (5.4%), not too happy (14.9%)]. This was also shown in the multivariable analysis adjusted for sociodemographic factors and stressful life events (from very happy to not too happy: OR = 2.41; 95%CI = 1.86-3.12). Mediation analysis showed that anxiety disorders explained the largest proportion of the association (38.8%) followed by depressive episode (28.5%), insomnia (21.9%), disability (16.5%), pain (12.5%), social support (10.0%), and physical health conditions (6.0%). The cross-sectional design limits causal inference. Interventions to identify and address conditions that may have a negative impact on happiness in individuals with PLE may be important to improve their well-being. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. The Contribution of Marital Happiness to Global Happiness.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Glenn, Norval D.; Weaver, Charles N.

    1981-01-01

    Data from six U.S. national surveys compared the estimated contributions to global happiness and marital happiness and satisfaction with each of seven aspects of life, ranging from work to friendships. Findings indicated that Americans depend very heavily on their marriages for their psychological well-being. (Author)

  5. Happiness and Sustainability Together at Last! Sustainable Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    O'Brien, Catherine

    2013-01-01

    Sustainable happiness is "happiness that contributes to individual, community and/or global well-being without exploiting other people, the environment or future generations" (O'Brien, 2010a, n.p.). It underscores the interrelationship between human flourishing and ecological resilience. At the national and international levels,…

  6. Psychometric integrity of the Chinese Happiness Inventory among retired older people in Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Chiang, Hui-Hsun; Lin, Lin; Lee, Tony Szu-Hsien

    2016-07-01

    Happiness is an important indicator of mental and physical health. It has been emphasized as one kind of well-being, and its definition varies from culture to culture. The main objective of the present study was to examine the psychometric integrity and dimensions of the Chinese Happiness Inventory (CHI) in relation to scores on Ryff's Psychological Well-Being Scale among retired older people in Taiwan. A cross-sectional study was carried out at social service centers in Taipei, Taiwan. Retired adults gave informed consent from September to November 2010, and completed a package of structured questionnaires measuring happiness and psychological well-being. Internal consistency, the factor structure of the CHI and criterion validity were assessed. Results from an exploratory factor analysis showed a three-factor solution for the CHI. These factors were named Positive Affect, Life Satisfaction and Interpersonal Relationships. Internal consistency coefficients were 0.95 (Positive Affect), 0.91 (Life Satisfaction), 0.85 (Interpersonal Relationships) and 0.97 (total scale). The results of a canonical correlation analysis showed the presence of a strong relationship between CHI and Ryff's Psychological Well-Being Scale (r = 0.69), and that two canonical variates could be derived from the relationship between them. The results show that the CHI is a three-dimensional scale with high reliability and validity. The construct of happiness emphasizes relationships in relation to others and environment rather than autonomy in this sample. Although the components of happiness might be similar for Positive Affect and Life Satisfaction, their weights for Interpersonal Relationships should be considered when measuring happiness in different cultures. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2016; 16: 865-872. © 2015 Japan Geriatrics Society.

  7. Relationship Between Religious Belief and Happiness: A Systematic Literature Review.

    PubMed

    Rizvi, Mohd Ahsan Kabir; Hossain, Mohammad Zakir

    2017-10-01

    Happiness is a feeling that is desired by every human being. To achieve happiness, human try various routes like, to gain financial superiority, fame, entertainment, assets and so on. But on the contrary, religiosity is claimed to be a technique to attain purpose in life, mental health, physical well-being and internal peace, which ultimately leads to happiness in life. This study analyses the studies conducted in last two decades toward understanding the relationship between religiousness and happiness. These studies have been organised in terms of the religions, geographic locations, scales and significance. The study shows that the claim has proven to be true by a vast majority of the surveys irrespective of religion, gender, nationality or race. Although Muslims seems to be the happiest, it requires further verification.

  8. Happiness and depression in adolescence after maternal smoking during pregnancy: birth cohort study.

    PubMed

    Menezes, Ana Maria Baptista; Murray, Joseph; László, Mitzi; Wehrmeister, Fernando C; Hallal, Pedro C; Gonçalves, Helen; Assunção, Maria Cecilia F; Menezes, Carolina Baptista; Barros, Fernando C

    2013-01-01

    Prenatal cigarette smoke exposure may have adverse psychological effects on offspring. The objective was to assess the association between parental smoking during pregnancy and offspring happiness at age 18, as well as depression. Participants were part of a birth cohort study in Pelotas, Brazil (5,249 participants). Happiness was measured by the Subjective Happiness Scale, a Likert-like scale with four questions generating a score from 1 to 7, with ≥ 6 indicating "happiness". Depression was measured using the Mini International Psychiatric Interview. About one third of mothers reported having smoked during pregnancy and 4.6% reported smoking 20 or more cigarettes a day. The prevalence of happiness was 32.2% (95% CI 30.8; 33.7), depression 6.8% (95% CI 6.1; 7.6), and simultaneous happiness and depression less than 1%. The prevalence of offspring happiness decreased as smoking in pregnancy increased, even after control for confounding variables, showing an OR = 0.79 [95% CI 0.55; 1.13]. The opposite happened to depression; the prevalence of offspring depression increased as smoking in pregnancy increased (<20 cigarettes/day OR = 1.38 [95% CI 1.03; 1.84] and ≥ 20 cigarettes/day OR = 2.11[95% CI 1.31; 3.40]. Smoking by the partner was associated with decreased offspring happiness after adjustment for confounders, but did no show association with offspring depression. Offspring were less likely to be happy and more likely to be depressed if their mother smoked during pregnancy, and less likely to be happy if their father smoked during mother's pregnancy. Although we can not affirm that this is a "causal pathway", public policies to reduce smoking in pregnancy could improve the health of the offspring in the short and long term.

  9. The academic rewards of socially-oriented happiness: Interdependent happiness promotes academic engagement.

    PubMed

    Datu, Jesus Alfonso D; King, Ronnel B; Valdez, Jana Patricia M

    2017-04-01

    Interdependent happiness has been found to be positively associated with optimal psychological outcomes in collectivist cultures. However, the association between interdependent happiness and key academic outcomes has remained unexplored. The current study examined the association of interdependent happiness with key academic outcomes such as autonomous motivation, engagement, and achievement using both cross-sectional (Study 1) and longitudinal (Study 2) approaches. Study 1 revealed that interdependent happiness positively predicted academic engagement (partly) via autonomous motivation. Study 2 showed that prior interdependent happiness positively predicted subsequent academic engagement even after controlling for autoregressor effects. In addition, reciprocal associations among the key variables were found. Taken together, results of the two studies suggest that interdependent happiness plays an adaptive role in the academic context especially in a collectivist cultural setting. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. Copyright © 2016 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. [Effect of family cohesion, subjective happiness and other factors on death anxiety in Korean elders].

    PubMed

    Jo, Kae Hwa; Song, Byung Sook

    2012-10-01

    The purposes of this study were to explore the effects of family cohesion and subjective happiness on death anxiety of Korean elders and to identify other factors contributing to death anxiety. The participants were 280 elders who lived in P metropolitan city. Data were collected between November 5, 2011 and January 12, 2012 using the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire (SPMSQ), Family Cohesion Evaluation Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale, and Fear of Death Scale (FODS). Data were analyzed using the SPSS/WIN 19.0 program. Family cohesion, marital status, religious activity, perceived health status, and subjective happiness were included in the factors affecting death anxiety of Korean elders. These variables explained 50.1% of death anxiety. The results of the study indicate that these variables should be considered in developing nursing intervention programs to decrease death anxiety and increase family cohesion and subjective happiness for life integration in Korean elders.

  11. True happiness: The role of morality in the folk concept of happiness.

    PubMed

    Phillips, Jonathan; De Freitas, Julian; Mott, Christian; Gruber, June; Knobe, Joshua

    2017-02-01

    Recent scientific research has settled on a purely descriptive definition of happiness that is focused solely on agents' psychological states (high positive affect, low negative affect, high life satisfaction). In contrast to this understanding, recent research has suggested that the ordinary concept of happiness is also sensitive to the moral value of agents' lives. Five studies systematically investigate and explain the impact of morality on ordinary assessments of happiness. Study 1 demonstrates that moral judgments influence assessments of happiness not only for untrained participants, but also for academic researchers and even in those who study happiness specifically. Studies 2 and 3 then respectively ask whether this effect may be explained by general motivational biases or beliefs in a just world. In both cases, we find evidence against these explanations. Study 4 shows that the impact of moral judgments cannot be explained by changes in the perception of descriptive psychological states. Finally, Study 5 compares the impact of moral and nonmoral value, and provides evidence that unlike nonmoral value, moral value is part of the criteria that govern the ordinary concept of happiness. Taken together, these studies provide a specific explanation of how and why the ordinary concept of happiness deviates from the definition used by researchers studying happiness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  12. Simple and Multivariate Relationships Between Spiritual Intelligence with General Health and Happiness.

    PubMed

    Amirian, Mohammad-Elyas; Fazilat-Pour, Masoud

    2016-08-01

    The present study examined simple and multivariate relationships of spiritual intelligence with general health and happiness. The employed method was descriptive and correlational. King's Spiritual Quotient scales, GHQ-28 and Oxford Happiness Inventory, are filled out by a sample consisted of 384 students, which were selected using stratified random sampling from the students of Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman. Data are subjected to descriptive and inferential statistics including correlations and multivariate regressions. Bivariate correlations support positive and significant predictive value of spiritual intelligence toward general health and happiness. Further analysis showed that among the Spiritual Intelligence' subscales, Existential Critical Thinking Predicted General Health and Happiness, reversely. In addition, happiness was positively predicted by generation of personal meaning and transcendental awareness. The findings are discussed in line with the previous studies and the relevant theoretical background.

  13. Factors associated with happiness in the elderly persons living in the community.

    PubMed

    Luchesi, Bruna Moretti; de Oliveira, Nathalia Alves; de Morais, Daiene; de Paula Pessoa, Rebeca Mendes; Pavarini, Sofia Cristina I; Chagas, Marcos Hortes N

    2018-01-01

    The aim of the present study was to evaluate factors associated with happiness in a sample of Brazilian older adults. A study was conducted with 263 elderly people in the area of coverage of a family health unit located in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The Subjective Happiness Scale was used to measure happiness, the final score of which determined one of three outcomes: not happy, intermediate, and happy. Disability, sociodemographic characteristics, and psychological, cognitive, and physical factors were considered for the multinomial logistic regression analysis. Statistically significant differences were found among the three groups regarding satisfaction with life, disability, social phobia, anxiety, depression, and frailty (p≤0.05). In the multinomial regression analysis, being "not happy" was significantly associated with satisfaction with life (RRR: 0.53), depression (RRR: 1.46), social phobia (RRR: 1.24), and age (RRR: 1.06). The present findings indicate that psychological factors and age influence the levels of happiness in older adults living in the community. Furthermore, better screening, diagnosis, and treatment of mental health disorders could increase the feeling of happiness among older adults. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Explaining happiness

    PubMed Central

    Easterlin, Richard A.

    2003-01-01

    What do social survey data tell us about the determinants of happiness? First, that the psychologists' setpoint model is questionable. Life events in the nonpecuniary domain, such as marriage, divorce, and serious disability, have a lasting effect on happiness, and do not simply deflect the average person temporarily above or below a setpoint given by genetics and personality. Second, mainstream economists' inference that in the pecuniary domain “more is better,” based on revealed preference theory, is problematic. An increase in income, and thus in the goods at one's disposal, does not bring with it a lasting increase in happiness because of the negative effect on utility of hedonic adaptation and social comparison. A better theory of happiness builds on the evidence that adaptation and social comparison affect utility less in the nonpecuniary than pecuniary domains. Because individuals fail to anticipate the extent to which adaptation and social comparison undermine expected utility in the pecuniary domain, they allocate an excessive amount of time to pecuniary goals, and shortchange nonpecuniary ends such as family life and health, reducing their happiness. There is need to devise policies that will yield better-informed individual preferences, and thereby increase individual and societal well-being. PMID:12958207

  15. Does positivity mediate the relation of extraversion and neuroticism with subjective happiness?

    PubMed

    Lauriola, Marco; Iani, Luca

    2015-01-01

    Recent theories suggest an important role of neuroticism, extraversion, attitudes, and global positive orientations as predictors of subjective happiness. We examined whether positivity mediates the hypothesized relations in a community sample of 504 adults between the ages of 20 and 60 years old (females = 50%). A model with significant paths from neuroticism to subjective happiness, from extraversion and neuroticism to positivity, and from positivity to subjective happiness fitted the data (Satorra-Bentler scaled chi-square (38) = 105.91; Comparative Fit Index = .96; Non-Normed Fit Index = .95; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation = .060; 90% confidence interval = .046, .073). The percentage of subjective happiness variance accounted for by personality traits was only about 48%, whereas adding positivity as a mediating factor increased the explained amount of subjective happiness to 78%. The mediation model was invariant by age and gender. The results show that the effect of extraversion on happiness was fully mediated by positivity, whereas the effect of neuroticism was only partially mediated. Implications for happiness studies are also discussed.

  16. Does Positivity Mediate the Relation of Extraversion and Neuroticism with Subjective Happiness?

    PubMed Central

    Lauriola, Marco; Iani, Luca

    2015-01-01

    Recent theories suggest an important role of neuroticism, extraversion, attitudes, and global positive orientations as predictors of subjective happiness. We examined whether positivity mediates the hypothesized relations in a community sample of 504 adults between the ages of 20 and 60 years old (females = 50%). A model with significant paths from neuroticism to subjective happiness, from extraversion and neuroticism to positivity, and from positivity to subjective happiness fitted the data (Satorra–Bentler scaled chi-square (38) = 105.91; Comparative Fit Index = .96; Non-Normed Fit Index = .95; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation = .060; 90% confidence interval = .046, .073). The percentage of subjective happiness variance accounted for by personality traits was only about 48%, whereas adding positivity as a mediating factor increased the explained amount of subjective happiness to 78%. The mediation model was invariant by age and gender. The results show that the effect of extraversion on happiness was fully mediated by positivity, whereas the effect of neuroticism was only partially mediated. Implications for happiness studies are also discussed. PMID:25781887

  17. Happiness on the street: Overall happiness among homeless people in Madrid (Spain).

    PubMed

    Panadero, Sonia; Guillén, Ana Isabel; Vázquez, José Juan

    2015-07-01

    This article tests a hypothesized model of overall happiness among homeless people in Spain. The research was conducted based on a representative sample of homeless people in Madrid (n = 235), all adults, who had spent the night before the interview in a shelter for homeless people, on the street or in other places not initially designed for sleeping, or who were in supervised accommodation for homeless people at the time of the interview. Information was gathered using a structured interview. The results obtained show that around half of the homeless people in Madrid said that they were happy. A positive meta-stereotype and a better perceived general health were associated with a higher overall happiness, while feelings of loneliness were associated with a lower overall happiness. Happiness also showed a significant effect on future expectations. Disabilities and handicaps had a significant effect on perceived general health, which was in turn associated with overall happiness among homeless people. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  18. Effects of H2S/HS- on Stress Corrosion Cracking Behavior of X100 Pipeline Steel Under Simulated Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria Metabolite Conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Q.; Li, Z.; Liu, Z. Y.; Li, X. G.; Wang, S. Q.

    2017-04-01

    The effect of H2S/HS-, which simulates the main metabolites of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB), on the electrochemical and stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behaviors of X100 steel was investigated in a near-neutral solution. The results showed that different H2S/HS- contents mainly affected the cathodic process of X100 electrochemical corrosion. As the concentration of H2S/HS- increased, the corrosion potential was shifted negatively, the corrosion current density was considerably increased, and the corrosion rate was linearly increased. Different rust layers with shifting structures were formed under different conditions and had different effects on electrochemical behaviors. However, sulfide mainly promoted local corrosion processes. With the synergistic effects of stress and H2S/HS-, SCC susceptibility was considerably enhanced. The accelerated process of hydrogen evolution by sulfide was crucial in enhancing SCC processes. In brief, the trace H2S/HS- generated by SRB metabolites played a positive role in promoting SCC.

  19. Psychometric Reanalysis of Happiness, Temperament, and Spirituality Scales with Children in Faith-Based Elementary Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cleveland, Richard E.

    2014-01-01

    This dissertation performed an investigation of the psychometric properties of six instruments used in the 2012 Happiness Project research study. The project revisited the 2010 study conducted by Holder, Coleman, and Wallace. Holder et al. (2010) investigated the relationships among variables relating to student happiness and spirituality while…

  20. Development and preliminary testing of the Schizophrenia Hope Scale, a brief scale to measure hope in people with schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Choe, Kwisoon

    2014-06-01

    Hope has received attention as a central component of recovery from mental illness; however, most instruments measuring hope were developed outside the mental health field. To measure the effects of mental health programs on hope in people with schizophrenia, a specialized scale is needed. This study examined the psychometric properties of the newly developed 9-item Schizophrenia Hope Scale (SHS-9) designed to measure hope in individuals with schizophrenia. A descriptive survey design. Participants were recruited from three psychiatric hospitals and two community mental health centers in South Korea. A total of 347 individuals over age 18 with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizoaffective, or schizophrenia spectrum disorders (competent to provide written informed consent) participated in this study; 149 (94 men, 55 women) completed a preliminary scale consisting of 40 revised items, and 198 (110 men, 88 women) completed the second scale of 17 items. Scale items were first selected from extensive literature reviews and a qualitative study on hope in people with schizophrenia; the validity and reliability of a preliminary scale was then evaluated by an expert panel and exploratory factor analysis. The remaining 9 items forming the Schizophrenia Hope Scale (SHS-9) were evaluated through confirmatory factor analysis. The SHS-9 demonstrates promising psychometric integrity. The internal consistency alpha coefficient was 0.92 with a score range of 0-18 and a mean total score of 12.06 (SD=4.96), with higher scores indicating higher levels of hope. Convergent validity was established by correlating the SHS-9 to the State-Trait Hope Inventory, r=0.61 (p<0.01). Divergent validity with the Beck Hopelessness Scale was also established, r=-0.55 (p<0.01). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis resulted in a 1-factor solution, with the essential meaning of hope accounting for 61.77% of the total item variance. As hope has been shown to facilitate recovery from mental

  1. Happiness of Asian Americans.

    PubMed

    Weaver, Charles N

    2003-12-01

    Past surveys found a positive relation between job satisfaction and socioeconomic status, with Asian Americans scoring low and African Americans and Euro-Americans scoring higher. As job satisfaction is a component of happiness, the question arises whether this relationship holds for happiness in general. Responses of a sample of 499 Asian Americans, 24,432 Euro-Americans, and 2,828 African Americans were analyzed. For both sexes, Asian Americans rated happiness significantly higher than African Americans. The rated happiness of Asian American and Euro-American men was not significantly different, but Asian-American women rated happiness significantly lower than Euro-American women. Mean differences were less than one point.

  2. The Effect of Quality of School Life on Sense of Happiness: A Study on University Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gökler, Riza; Gürgan, Ugur; Tastan, Nuray

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between quality of school life and happiness among university students. For this purpose, 326 students from five different faculties in Çankiri Karatekin University participated in the study. Participants filled in the "scale for quality of school life" and "scale for Oxford happiness-Compact…

  3. Personality, Humor Styles and Happiness: Happy People Have Positive Humor Styles

    PubMed Central

    Ford, Thomas E.; Lappi, Shaun K.; Holden, Christopher J.

    2016-01-01

    The present study examined the relationships between four personality traits, humor styles, and happiness. Replicating previous research, happiness was positively correlated with four personality traits: extraversion, locus of control, self-esteem, and optimism. Further, happiness positively related to self-enhancing and affiliative humor styles; it related negatively to self-defeating and aggressive humor styles. Thus, happy people habitually engage in positive uses of humor and avoid engaging in negative uses of humor in daily life. We also found support for our hypothesis. People high in extraversion, locus of control, self-esteem, and optimism are happier because they engage in positive humor in daily life. PMID:27547251

  4. Emotional Intelligence and Depressive Symptoms as Predictors of Happiness Among Adolescents.

    PubMed

    Abdollahi, Abbas; Abu Talib, Mansor; Motalebi, Seyedeh Ameneh

    2015-12-01

    Given that happiness is an important construct to enable adolescents to cope better with difficulties and stress of life, it is necessary to advance our knowledge about the possible etiology of happiness in adolescents. The present study sought to investigate the relationships of emotional intelligence, depressive symptoms, and happiness in a sample of male students in Tehran, Iran. This cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of high school students in Tehran in 2012. The participants comprised of 188 male students (aged 16 to 19 years old) selected by multi-stage cluster sampling method. For gathering the data, the students filled out assessing emotions scale, Beck depression inventory-II, and Oxford happiness inventory. Data analysis was carried out using descriptive and analytical statistics in statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) software. The findings showed that a significant positive association existed between high ability of emotional intelligence and happiness (P < 0.01). Conversely, the low ability of emotional intelligence was associated with unhappiness (P < 0.01), there was a positive association between non-depression symptoms and happiness (P < 0.05), and severe depressive symptoms were positively associated with unhappiness (P < 0.01). High ability of emotional intelligence (P < 0.01) and non-depression symptoms (P < 0.05) were the strongest predictors of happiness. These findings reinforced the importance of emotional intelligence as a facilitating factor for happiness in adolescences. In addition, the findings suggested that depression symptoms may be harmful for happiness in adolescents.

  5. Adult Playfulness, Humor Styles, and Subjective Happiness.

    PubMed

    Yue, Xiao D; Leung, Chun-Lok; Hiranandani, Neelam A

    2016-12-01

    Playfulness has been referred to as a disposition that involves reframing a situation to amuse others and to make the situation more stimulating and enjoyable. It may serve to shift one's perspective when dealing with environmental threats. Despite all the benefits of playfulness towards psychological well-being, it remains a largely understudied subject in psychology, particularly in Chinese societies. Hence, this study examined the association between adult playfulness, humor styles, and subjective happiness among a sample of 166 university students in Hong Kong and 159 students in Guangzhou, who completed a self-administered questionnaire, including the Short Measure for Adult Playfulness, the Chinese Humor Styles Questionnaire, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. Results showed that adult playfulness was positively correlated with affiliative humor, self-enhancing humor, and subjective happiness in both Hong Kong and Guangzhou samples. By its implication, highly playful Chinese students preferred using affiliative and self-enhancing humor to amuse themselves and others. © The Author(s) 2016.

  6. Associations between subjective happiness and dry eye disease: a new perspective from the Osaka study.

    PubMed

    Kawashima, Motoko; Uchino, Miki; Yokoi, Norihiko; Uchino, Yuichi; Dogru, Murat; Komuro, Aoi; Sonomura, Yukiko; Kato, Hiroaki; Kinoshita, Shigeru; Mimura, Masaru; Tsubota, Kazuo

    2015-01-01

    Dry eye disease has become an important health problem. A lack of concordance between self-reported symptoms and the outcome of dry eye examinations has raised questions about dry eye disease. To explore the association between subjective happiness and objective and subjective symptoms of dry eye disease. The study adopted a cross-sectional design. All the employees of a company in Osaka, Japan. 672 Japanese office workers using Visual Display Terminals (age range: 26-64 years). The dry eye measurement tools included the Schirmer test, conjunctivocorneal staining, the tear film break-up time, as well as the administration of a dry eye symptoms questionnaire. Happiness was measured by the Subjective Happiness Scale. Dry eye examination parameters, dry eye symptoms questionnaires, and the Subjective Happiness Scale score. Of the 672 workers, 561 (83.5%) completed the questionnaires and examinations. The mean Subjective Happiness Scale score was 4.91 (SD = 1.01). This score was inversely correlated with the dry eye symptom score (r = -0.188, p < 0.001), but was not associated with objective findings which include conjunctivocorneal staining, low Schirmer test score, or low tear film break-up time. The level of subjective happiness was the lowest in the group without objective results, but reported subjective symptoms of dry eyes (p < 0.05). There is evidence of the relationship between subjective happiness and self-reported symptoms of dry eyes. Findings of this study revealed a new perspective on dry eye disease, including the potential for innovative treatments of a specific population with dry eye disease.

  7. Does Happiness Promote Career Success?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Boehm, Julia K.; Lyubomirsky, Sonja

    2008-01-01

    Past research has demonstrated a relationship between happiness and workplace success. For example, compared with their less happy peers, happy people earn more money, display superior performance, and perform more helpful acts. Researchers have often assumed that an employee is happy and satisfied because he or she is successful. In this article,…

  8. Hardiness as a mediator between perceived stress and happiness in nurses.

    PubMed

    Abdollahi, A; Abu Talib, M; Yaacob, S N; Ismail, Z

    2014-01-01

    The relevance of the study of happiness and stress in nurses has been emphasized. In this sense, the intelligent use of hardiness is enable nurses to cope better with stress and contribute to being happier. This study aimed to examine the relationship among hardiness, perceived stress, and happiness in nurses. Moreover, we examined the mediator role of hardiness on the relationship between perceived stress and happiness in nurses. Our study revealed that hardi-attitude nurses evaluate situations as less stressful which results in a higher happiness. This study showed hardiness as being a protective factor against perceived stress and a facilitating factor for happiness in nurses. The findings could be important in training future nurses so that hardiness can be imparted, thereby giving them the ability to control their stress. Nursing is a stressful occupation with high levels of stress within the health professions. Given that hardiness is an important construct to enable nurses to cope better with stress and contribute to being happier; therefore, it is necessary we advance our knowledge about the aetiology of happiness, especially the role of hardiness in decreasing stress levels and increasing happiness. The present study sought to investigate the role of hardiness as a mediator between perceived stress and happiness. The participants, comprising 252 nurses from six private hospitals in Tehran, completed the Personal Views Survey, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Oxford Happiness Inventory. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to analyse the data and answer the research hypotheses. As expected, hardiness partially mediated between perceived stress and happiness among nurses, and nurses with low levels of perceived stress were more likely to report greater hardiness and happiness. In addition, nurses with high levels of hardiness were more likely to report happiness. This study showed hardiness as being a protective factor against perceived stress and

  9. Happiness in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elwick, Alex; Cannizzaro, Sara

    2017-01-01

    This paper investigates the higher education literature surrounding happiness and related notions: satisfaction, despair, flourishing and well-being. It finds that there is a real dearth of literature relating to profound happiness in higher education: much of the literature using the terms happiness and satisfaction interchangeably as if one were…

  10. Health impacts of exposure to second hand smoke (SHS) amongst a highly exposed workforce: survey of London casino workers

    PubMed Central

    Pilkington, Paul A; Gray, Selena; Gilmore, Anna B

    2007-01-01

    Background Casino workers are exposed to high levels of secondhand smoke (SHS) at work, yet remain at risk of being excluded from smoke-free legislation around the world. If the prime motivation for smoke-free legislation is the protection of workers, then a workforce experiencing ill-health associated with SHS exposure should not be excluded from legislation. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of respiratory and sensory irritation symptoms among a sample of casino workers, to identify any association between the reporting of symptoms and exposure to SHS at work, and to compare the prevalence of symptoms with that in other workers exposed to SHS. Methods A postal questionnaire survey of 1568 casino workers in London. Using multivariate analysis we identified predictors of respiratory and sensory irritation symptoms. Results 559 workers responded to the questionnaire (response of 36%). 91% of casino workers reported the presence of one or more sensory irritation symptoms in the previous four weeks, while the figure was 84% for respiratory symptoms. The presence of one or more sensory irritation symptoms was most strongly associated with reporting the highest exposure to SHS at work (OR 3.26; 1.72, 6.16). This was also true for reporting the presence of one or more respiratory irritation symptoms (OR 2.24; 1.34, 3.74). Prevalence of irritation symptoms in the casino workers was in general appreciably higher than that reported in studies of bar workers. Conclusion Our research supports the need for comprehensive smoke-free legislation around the world, covering all indoor workplaces including casinos. PMID:17888155

  11. Health impacts of exposure to second hand smoke (SHS) amongst a highly exposed workforce: survey of London casino workers.

    PubMed

    Pilkington, Paul A; Gray, Selena; Gilmore, Anna B

    2007-09-21

    Casino workers are exposed to high levels of secondhand smoke (SHS) at work, yet remain at risk of being excluded from smoke-free legislation around the world. If the prime motivation for smoke-free legislation is the protection of workers, then a workforce experiencing ill-health associated with SHS exposure should not be excluded from legislation. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of respiratory and sensory irritation symptoms among a sample of casino workers, to identify any association between the reporting of symptoms and exposure to SHS at work, and to compare the prevalence of symptoms with that in other workers exposed to SHS. A postal questionnaire survey of 1568 casino workers in London. Using multivariate analysis we identified predictors of respiratory and sensory irritation symptoms. 559 workers responded to the questionnaire (response of 36%). 91% of casino workers reported the presence of one or more sensory irritation symptoms in the previous four weeks, while the figure was 84% for respiratory symptoms. The presence of one or more sensory irritation symptoms was most strongly associated with reporting the highest exposure to SHS at work (OR 3.26; 1.72, 6.16). This was also true for reporting the presence of one or more respiratory irritation symptoms (OR 2.24; 1.34, 3.74). Prevalence of irritation symptoms in the casino workers was in general appreciably higher than that reported in studies of bar workers. Our research supports the need for comprehensive smoke-free legislation around the world, covering all indoor workplaces including casinos.

  12. Relations among religiosity, health, happiness, and anxiety for Kuwaiti adolescents.

    PubMed

    Baroun, Khader A

    2006-12-01

    The present study investigated correlations among religiosity, health, happiness, and anxiety for 941 Kuwaiti adolescents. A convenience sample of male (n=408) and female (n=533) students (M age = 16.5, SD = 1.2 yr.) was randomly selected from secondary school students of different districts of the State of Kuwait. The Intrinsic Religious Motivation scale, the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale, and six self-rating scales assessing religiosity, strength of religious belief, physical health, mental health, happiness, and life satisfaction were applied to assess correlations among Kuwaiti adolescents. Analysis showed boys had significantly higher mean scores than girls on all measures except anxiety, on which girls scored significantly higher than boys. There also were significant and positive correlations among the variables, except for anxiety, which was significant and negative.

  13. Associations between Subjective Happiness and Dry Eye Disease: A New Perspective from the Osaka Study

    PubMed Central

    Kawashima, Motoko; Uchino, Miki; Yokoi, Norihiko; Uchino, Yuichi; Dogru, Murat; Komuro, Aoi; Sonomura, Yukiko; Kato, Hiroaki; Kinoshita, Shigeru; Mimura, Masaru; Tsubota, Kazuo

    2015-01-01

    Importance Dry eye disease has become an important health problem. A lack of concordance between self-reported symptoms and the outcome of dry eye examinations has raised questions about dry eye disease. Objective To explore the association between subjective happiness and objective and subjective symptoms of dry eye disease. Design The study adopted a cross-sectional design. Setting All the employees of a company in Osaka, Japan. Participants 672 Japanese office workers using Visual Display Terminals (age range: 26–64 years). Methods The dry eye measurement tools included the Schirmer test, conjunctivocorneal staining, the tear film break-up time, as well as the administration of a dry eye symptoms questionnaire. Happiness was measured by the Subjective Happiness Scale. Main Outcome Measures Dry eye examination parameters, dry eye symptoms questionnaires, and the Subjective Happiness Scale score. Results Of the 672 workers, 561 (83.5%) completed the questionnaires and examinations. The mean Subjective Happiness Scale score was 4.91 (SD = 1.01). This score was inversely correlated with the dry eye symptom score (r = -0.188, p < 0.001), but was not associated with objective findings which include conjunctivocorneal staining, low Schirmer test score, or low tear film break-up time. The level of subjective happiness was the lowest in the group without objective results, but reported subjective symptoms of dry eyes (p < 0.05). Conclusions and Relevance There is evidence of the relationship between subjective happiness and self-reported symptoms of dry eyes. Findings of this study revealed a new perspective on dry eye disease, including the potential for innovative treatments of a specific population with dry eye disease. PMID:25830665

  14. A cross-sectional study of secondhand smoke exposure and respiratory symptoms in non-current smokers in the U.S. trucking industry: SHS exposure and respiratory symptoms.

    PubMed

    Laden, Francine; Chiu, Yueh-Hsiu; Garshick, Eric; Hammond, S Katharine; Hart, Jaime E

    2013-02-01

    Previous studies have suggested associations of adult exposures to secondhand smoke (SHS) with respiratory symptoms, but no study has focused on blue-collar industrial environments. We assessed the association between SHS and respiratory symptoms in 1,562 non-current smoking U.S. trucking industry workers. Information on SHS exposure and respiratory health was obtained by questionnaire. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to assess the associations of recent and lifetime exposures to SHS with chronic phlegm, chronic cough, and any wheeze, defined by American Thoracic Society criteria. In analyses adjusted for age, gender, race, childhood SHS exposure, former smoking, pack-years of smoking and years since quitting, body mass index, job title, region of the country, and urban residence, recent exposures to SHS were associated with all three respiratory symptoms (odds ratio (OR) = 1.46; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.00-2.13) for chronic cough, 1.55 (95% CI = 1.08-2.21) for chronic phlegm, and 1.76 (95% CI = 1.41-2.21) for any wheeze). Workplace exposure was the most important recent exposure. Childhood exposure to SHS was also associated with all three symptoms, but only statistically significantly for chronic phlegm (OR = 1.84; 95% CI = 1.24-2.75). Additional years of living with a smoker were associated with an increased risk, but there was no evidence of a dose-response, except for chronic phlegm. In this group of trucking industry workers, childhood and recent exposures to SHS were related to respiratory symptoms.

  15. A cross-sectional study of secondhand smoke exposure and respiratory symptoms in non-current smokers in the U.S. trucking industry: SHS exposure and respiratory symptoms

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Previous studies have suggested associations of adult exposures to secondhand smoke (SHS) with respiratory symptoms, but no study has focused on blue-collar industrial environments. We assessed the association between SHS and respiratory symptoms in 1,562 non-current smoking U.S. trucking industry workers. Methods Information on SHS exposure and respiratory health was obtained by questionnaire. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to assess the associations of recent and lifetime exposures to SHS with chronic phlegm, chronic cough, and any wheeze, defined by American Thoracic Society criteria. Results In analyses adjusted for age, gender, race, childhood SHS exposure, former smoking, pack-years of smoking and years since quitting, body mass index, job title, region of the country, and urban residence, recent exposures to SHS were associated with all three respiratory symptoms (odds ratio (OR) = 1.46; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.00-2.13) for chronic cough, 1.55 (95% CI = 1.08-2.21) for chronic phlegm, and 1.76 (95% CI = 1.41-2.21) for any wheeze). Workplace exposure was the most important recent exposure. Childhood exposure to SHS was also associated with all three symptoms, but only statistically significantly for chronic phlegm (OR = 1.84; 95% CI = 1.24-2.75). Additional years of living with a smoker were associated with an increased risk, but there was no evidence of a dose–response, except for chronic phlegm. Conclusions In this group of trucking industry workers, childhood and recent exposures to SHS were related to respiratory symptoms. PMID:23368999

  16. Association between age, distress, and orientations to happiness in individuals with disabilities.

    PubMed

    Terrill, Alexandra L; Müller, Rachel; Jensen, Mark P; Molton, Ivan R; Ipsen, Catherine; Ravesloot, Craig

    2015-02-01

    To determine how age and distress are associated in individuals with disabilities, and how happiness and its components (meaning, pleasure, and engagement) mediate or moderate this relationship. These were cross-sectional analyses of survey data from 508 community-dwelling adults with a variety of self-reported health conditions and functional disabilities. Measures included the Orientations to Happiness Questionnaire and items from the Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance System. Greater distress was associated with lower global happiness in both mediation and moderation models. The mediation model showed that middle-aged participants (age: 45-64) scored lowest in global happiness, and the effect of age on distress was partially mediated by happiness. None of the happiness components mediated the relationship of age on distress. The moderation model showed a significant interaction effect for age and global happiness on distress, where younger participants low on happiness were significantly more distressed. Of the three happiness components, only meaning was significantly associated with distress. There was a significant interaction between age and meaning, where participants who were younger and scored low on the meaning scale reported significantly higher distress. Findings from this study lay groundwork for the development of clinical interventions to address distress in individuals with functional disabilities. Middle-aged and younger people with disabilities may be particularly affected by lower levels of happiness and might benefit from psychological interventions that focus on increasing overall well-being and providing meaning and purpose in life. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

  17. Happiness and Sexual Minority Status

    PubMed Central

    Thomeer, Mieke Beth; Reczek, Corinne

    2017-01-01

    We used logistic regression on nationally representative data (General Social Survey, N = 10,668 and N = 6,680) to examine how sexual minority status related to happiness. We considered two central dimensions of sexual minority status—sexual behavior and sexual identity. We distinguished between same-sex, both-sex, and different-sex oriented participants. Because individuals transition between sexual behavior categories over the life course (e.g., from both-sex partners to only same-sex partners) and changes in sexual minority status have theoretical associations with well-being, we also tested the effects of transitions on happiness. Results showed that identifying as bisexual, gay, or lesbian, having both male and female partners since age 18, or transitioning to only different-sex partners was negatively related to happiness. Those with only same-sex partners since age 18 or in the past five years had similar levels of happiness as those with only different-sex partners since age 18. Additional tests showed that the majority of these happiness differences became non-significant when economic and social resources were included, indicating that the lower happiness was a product of structural and societal forces. Our findings clearly and robustly underscored the importance of taking a multi-faceted approach to understanding sexuality and well-being, demonstrating that not all sexual minority groups experience disadvantaged happiness. Our study calls for more attention to positive aspects of well-being such as happiness in examinations of sexual minorities and suggests that positive psychology and other happiness subfields should consider the role of sexual minority status in shaping happiness. PMID:27102605

  18. Happiness and Sexual Minority Status.

    PubMed

    Thomeer, Mieke Beth; Reczek, Corinne

    2016-10-01

    We used logistic regression on nationally representative data (General Social Survey, N = 10,668 and N = 6680) to examine how sexual minority status related to happiness. We considered two central dimensions of sexual minority status-sexual behavior and sexual identity. We distinguished between same-sex, both-sex, and different-sex-oriented participants. Because individuals transition between sexual behavior categories over the life course (e.g., from both-sex partners to only same-sex partners) and changes in sexual minority status have theoretical associations with well-being, we also tested the associations of transitions with happiness. Results showed that identifying as bisexual, gay, or lesbian, having both male and female partners since age 18, or transitioning to only different-sex partners was negatively related to happiness. Those with only same-sex partners since age 18 or in the past 5 years had similar levels of happiness as those with only different-sex partners since age 18. Additional tests showed that the majority of these happiness differences became non-significant when economic and social resources were included, indicating that the lower happiness was a product of structural and societal forces. Our findings clearly and robustly underscored the importance of taking a multi-faceted approach to understanding sexuality and well-being, demonstrating that not all sexual minority groups experience disadvantaged happiness. Our study calls for more attention to positive aspects of well-being such as happiness in examinations of sexual minorities and suggests that positive psychology and other happiness subfields should consider the role of sexual minority status in shaping happiness.

  19. The effects of material and experiential discretionary purchases on consumer happiness: moderators and mediators.

    PubMed

    Thomas, Rebecca; Millar, Murray

    2013-01-01

    Experiential purchases are differentiated from material purchases in terms of objective; experiential purchases serve the purpose of acquiring a life experience, while material purchases serve the purpose of acquiring an object. Research has demonstrated that experiential purchases are associated with more happiness than material purchases. The current study investigated two explanations for this relationship that focused on the how the purchase influenced the self and how the purchase influenced interpersonal relationships. In addition, the study explored whether social economic status would influence the strength of the relationship between the type of purchase and happiness. Participants were required to recall either a recent experiential or material purchase and rate their happiness with the purchase. Then participants completed scales designed to measure the purchase's impact on the self and interpersonal relationships. Last, participants completed a scale to measure social economic status. It was found that Impacts on the Self mediated the relationship between purchase type and happiness and Socioeconomic Status moderated the relationship.

  20. Happiness: origins, forms, and technical relevance.

    PubMed

    Akhtar, Salman

    2010-09-01

    By critically reviewing Freud's views on happiness, and also those of Helene Deutsch, Bertram Lewin, Melanie Klein, and Heinz Kohut, the author evolves a complex and multilayered perspective on the phenomenon. He categorizes happiness into four related and occasionally overlapping varieties: pleasure-based happiness (elation), assertion-based happiness (joy), merger-based happiness (ecstasy), and fulfillment-based happiness (contentment). After entering some caveats and drawing from his clinical experience, the author then demonstrates the relevance of these ideas to the conduct of psychotherapy and psychoanalysis.

  1. A sniff of happiness.

    PubMed

    de Groot, Jasper H B; Smeets, Monique A M; Rowson, Matt J; Bulsing, Patricia J; Blonk, Cor G; Wilkinson, Joy E; Semin, Gün R

    2015-06-01

    It is well known that feelings of happiness transfer between individuals through mimicry induced by vision and hearing. The evidence is inconclusive, however, as to whether happiness can be communicated through the sense of smell via chemosignals. As chemosignals are a known medium for transferring negative emotions from a sender to a receiver, we examined whether chemosignals are also involved in the transmission of positive emotions. Positive emotions are important for overall well-being and yet relatively neglected in research on chemosignaling, arguably because of the stronger survival benefits linked with negative emotions. We observed that exposure to body odor collected from senders of chemosignals in a happy state induced a facial expression and perceptual-processing style indicative of happiness in the receivers of those signals. Our findings suggest that not only negative affect but also a positive state (happiness) can be transferred by means of odors. © The Author(s) 2015.

  2. Happiness Matters: Towards a Pedagogy of Happiness and Well-Being

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Scoffham, Stephen; Barnes, Jonathan

    2011-01-01

    The role of the emotions in learning has long been acknowledged but is often overlooked. This article considers the impact one particular emotion, happiness, has on learning and the school curriculum. Recent reports have drawn attention to the importance of happiness (or the lack of it) by highlighting concerns about childhood well-being. At the…

  3. Culture and Happiness.

    PubMed

    Ye, Dezhu; Ng, Yew-Kwang; Lian, Yujun

    Culture is an important factor affecting happiness. This paper examines the predictive power of cultural factors on the cross-country differences in happiness and explores how different dimensions of cultural indices differ in their effects on happiness. Our empirical results show that the global leadership and organizational behavior effectiveness nine culture indices are all significantly related with happiness. Out of these nine indices, power distance (PDI) and gender egalitarianism (GEI) play the most important and stable role in determining subjective well-being (SWB). We further examine the relative importance of the various variables in contributing to the R-squared of the regression. The results show that PDI is the most important, accounting for 50 % of the contributions to R-squared of all variables, or equalling the combined contributions of income, population density and four other traditional variables. The contribution of GEI is 37.1 %, also well surpassing other variables. Our results remain robust even taking account of the different data for culture and SWB.

  4. Does solar activity affect human happiness?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kristoufek, Ladislav

    2018-03-01

    We investigate the direct influence of solar activity (represented by sunspot numbers) on human happiness (represented by the Twitter-based Happiness Index). We construct four models controlling for various statistical and dynamic effects of the analyzed series. The final model gives promising results. First, there is a statistically significant negative influence of solar activity on happiness which holds even after controlling for the other factors. Second, the final model, which is still rather simple, explains around 75% of variance of the Happiness Index. Third, our control variables contribute significantly as well: happiness is higher in no sunspots days, happiness is strongly persistent, there are strong intra-week cycles and happiness peaks during holidays. Our results strongly contribute to the topical literature and they provide evidence of unique utility of the online data.

  5. [Influence of active commuting on happiness, well-being, psychological distress and body shape in adolescents].

    PubMed

    Ruiz-Ariza, Alberto; de la Torre-Cruz, Manuel J; Redecillas-Peiró, María T; Martínez-López, Emilio J

    2015-01-01

    To analyse the association between active commuting to secondary school and indicators of psychological health in a sample of 1012 adolescents. Active commuting was assessed through a questionnaire, subjective happiness with the Subjective Happiness Scale, well-being and psychological distress with the General Well-Being Scale, and body shape was assessed using the short version of the Body Shape Questionnaire. Adolescents who spent more than 15 minutes per day actively commuting to secondary school had higher levels of subjective happiness (p=0.032) and psychological well-being (p=0.021) and lower levels of psychological distress (p=0.021) than adolescents who spent 15 minutes or less per day. There were no differences in body shape between less and more active adolescents (p >0.05). Active commuting to secondary school for more of 15 minutes per day is recommended because it is associated with higher levels of happiness and well-being in adolescents. Copyright © 2015 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  6. What Makes Koreans Happy?: Exploration on the Structure of Happy Life among Korean Adults

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kim, Myoung So; Kim, Hye Won; Cha, Kyeong Ho; Lim, Jeeyoung

    2007-01-01

    The current study explored the perceptions of Korean people about what can make them happy and constructed a comprehensive measurement of happiness of Korean. A total of 61 Korean adults participated in Focused Group Interview (FGI), where they were asked three questions (e.g., What makes you happy? What could make you happier than now? In…

  7. Marital happiness and sleep disturbances in a multi-ethnic sample of middle-aged women.

    PubMed

    Troxel, Wendy M; Buysse, Daniel J; Hall, Martica; Matthews, Karen A

    2009-01-01

    Previous research suggests that divorced individuals, particularly women, have higher rates of sleep disturbances as compared to married individuals. Among the married, however, little is known about the association between relationship quality and sleep. The present study examined the association between marital happiness and self-reported sleep disturbances in a sample of midlife women drawn from the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN), a multi-site, multi-ethnic, community-based study (N = 2,148). Marital happiness was measured using a single item from the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, and sleep disturbance was assessed using 4 items from the Women's Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale (WHIIRS). After controlling for relevant covariates, maritally happy women reported fewer sleep disturbances, with the association evident among Caucasian women and to a lesser extent among African American women.

  8. Concepts of Chinese Folk Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ip, Po Keung

    2011-01-01

    Discourses on Chinese folk happiness are often based on anecdotal narratives or qualitative analysis. Two traditional concepts of happiness popular in Chinese culture are introduced. The paper constructs a concept of Chinese folk happiness on basis of the findings of a scientific survey on the Taiwanese people regarding their concepts of…

  9. The promotion of happiness.

    PubMed

    Klamut, Marian Kazimierz

    2002-01-01

    The human mind is capable of creating an internal world--the psychic sphere--including the phenomena characteristic of human nature, such as selfconsciousness, conscious experiences, conceptual thinking, symbolic language, dreams, art, creation of culture, sense of values, interest in the distant past and care about the distant future. According to the exceptionally concordant opinions of the sages and scholars of the East and the West it is just within this internal world that human happiness dwells. Happiness is a state of the spirit which consists in: internal peace, satisfaction with one's life, the joy of life, benevolence and cordiality towards oneself and towards others; sensitivity to the beauty of nature, culture and art; harmonious co-existence with the surroundings. The achievement and experiencing of the states of thus understood happiness depend mainly on ourselves and, similarly to the project of health promotion, require knowledge, willingness and possibilities. Happiness Promotion denotes the commendation and popularizing of a certain definite way of thinking and acting--showing the road which leads to the frequent experiencing of happy moments.

  10. Are Special Education Students Happy?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uusitalo-Malmivaara, Lotta; Kankaanpaa, Paula; Makinen, Tuula; Raeluoto, Tiina; Rauttu, Karoliina; Tarhala, Veera; Lehto, Juhani E.

    2012-01-01

    This study compared the subjective and school-related happiness of 75 11- to 16-year-old special education students to 77 age- and gender-matched mainstream students using two quantitative measures. Additionally, the respondents chose from a list of 12 putative happy makers what they felt increased their happiness. Ten special education students…

  11. I am so happy 'cause my friend is happy for me: capitalization, friendship, and happiness among U.S. and Turkish college students.

    PubMed

    Demir, Melikşah; Doğan, Aysun; Procsal, Amanda D

    2013-01-01

    Friends usually share positive events in their lives with each other. Referred to as capitalization, this process promotes individual happiness when the discloser perceives that the responses display genuine support. Yet, the specific mechanisms explaining why capitalization is associated with happiness are not known. The present study addresses this empirical issue by testing a mediational model positing that friendship quality would mediate the relationship between capitalization and happiness among U.S. and Turkish college students. Although the psychosocial well-being of the U.S. participants was significantly higher than Turkish participants, the proposed model was supported in both groups. This suggests that part of the reason capitalization is associated with happiness is because of friendship experiences. The authors also provide suggestions for future research.

  12. Personality and the perception of health and happiness.

    PubMed

    Cloninger, C Robert; Zohar, Ada H

    2011-01-01

    Health is a state of physical, mental, and social well-being. Personality traits measure individual differences in adaptive functioning and mental health, but little is known about how well personality accounts for health's affective aspects (i.e., "happiness") and its non-affective aspects (i.e., "wellness") in the general population. 1102 volunteer representatives of the Sharon area of Israel completed the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (PSS), and the subjective health assessment of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Multidimensional personality profiles were used to evaluate the linear and non-linear effects of interactions among dimensions on different aspects of well-being. Self-directedness was strongly associated with all aspects of well-being regardless of interactions with other dimensions. Cooperativeness was strongly associated with perceived social support, and weakly with other aspects of well-being, particularly when Self-directedness was low. Self-transcendence was strongly associated with positive emotions when the influence of the other character dimensions was taken into account. Personality explained nearly half the variance in happiness and more than one-third of the variance in wellness. Our data are cross-sectional and self-reported, so they are subject to personal perceptual bias. The emotional, social, and physical aspects of well-being are interdependent, but specific configurations of TCI Self-directedness, Cooperativeness, and Self-transcendence influence them differentially. Interactions among different combinations of character traits have strong effects on the perception of both wellness and happiness. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. Marital Happiness and Sleep Disturbances in a Multi-Ethnic Sample of Middle-Aged Women

    PubMed Central

    Troxel, Wendy M.; Buysse, Daniel J.; Hall, Martica; Matthews, Karen A.

    2009-01-01

    Previous research suggests that divorced individuals, particularly women, have higher rates of sleep disturbances as compared to married individuals. Among the married, however, little is known about the association between relationship quality and sleep. The present study examined the association between marital happiness and self-reported sleep disturbances in a sample of midlife women drawn from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN), a multi-site, multi-ethnic, community-based study (N=2,148). Marital happiness was measured using a single-item from the Dyadic Adjustment Scale and sleep disturbance was assessed using 4-items from the Women’s Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale (WHIIRS). After controlling for relevant covariates, maritally happy women reported fewer sleep disturbances, with the association evident among Caucasian women and to a lesser extent among African American women. PMID:19116797

  14. Short health scale: A valid measure of health-related quality of life in Korean-speaking patients with inflammatory bowel disease.

    PubMed

    Park, Soo-Kyung; Ko, Bong Min; Goong, Hyeon Jeong; Seo, Jeong Yeon; Lee, Sang Hyuk; Baek, Hae Lim; Lee, Moon Sung; Park, Dong Il

    2017-05-21

    To evaluate the short health scale (SHS), a new, simple, four-part visual analogue scale questionnaire that is designed to assess the impact of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL), in Korean-speaking patients with IBD. The SHS was completed by 256 patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Individual SHS items were correlated with inflammatory bowel disease questionnaire (IBDQ) dimensions and with disease activity to assess validity. Test-retest reliability, responsiveness and patient or disease characteristics with probable association with high SHS scores were analyzed. Of 256 patients with IBD, 139 (54.3%) had UC and 117 (45.7%) had CD. The correlation coefficients between SHS questions about "symptom burden", "activities of daily living", and "disease-related worry" and their corresponding dimensions in the IBDQ ranged from 0.62 to 0.71, compared with correlation coefficients ranging from -0.45 to -0.61 for their non-corresponding dimensions. There was a stepwise increase in SHS scores, with increasing disease activity in both CD and UC (all P values < 0.001). Reliability was confirmed with test-retest correlations ranging from 0.68 to 0.90 (all P values < 0.001). Responsiveness was confirmed with the patients who remained in remission. Their SHS scores remained unchanged, except for the SHS dimension "disease-related worry". In the multivariate analysis, female sex was associated with worse "general well-being" (OR = 2.28, 95%CI: 1.02-5.08) along with worse disease activity. The SHS is a valid and reliable measure of HRQOL in Korean-speaking patients with IBD.

  15. The Nature of Happiness.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Maslow, Abraham H.

    1991-01-01

    Presents previously unpublished paper written by Abraham Maslow in November 1964. Maslow discusses the concept of happiness, suggesting that happiness is a lot more complicated than its standard, hedonistic definition as merely the absence of pain. (Author/ABL)

  16. Smoke-free policies and non-smokers' reactions to SHS exposure in small and medium enterprises.

    PubMed

    Sivri, Calliopi; Lazuras, Lambros; Rodafinos, Angelos; Eiser, John Richard

    2013-12-01

    Non-smoker employees can significantly improve the existing smoke-free policies in the workplace by asserting their right for smoke-free air and confronting smoker colleagues. The aim of the study was to assess the psychological and social drivers of non-smokers' readiness to assert their right for smoke-free air in the workplace. Twenty-six small-and-medium enterprises (SME) with diverse background were randomly selected, and 284 employees agreed to participate in the study. Our study focused on the responses of 85 non-smokers (M age = 34 years, SD = 7.98, 84.2% worked in indoor offices). A cross-sectional design was used and participants completed a structured anonymous questionnaire assessing background and demographic characteristics, and psychosocial predictors of assertiveness intentions. Although more than half of non-smokers reported they were often/almost always bothered by exposure to SHS, roughly one third of them reported having asked their colleagues not to smoke at work. Regression analysis showed that the effects of distal predictors (i.e. annoyance due to SHS exposure) were mediated by past behaviour, attitudes (protection motivation beliefs), social norms, and self-efficacy. Health beliefs related to SHS exposure, and concerns about workplace health and job performance, social norms and self-efficacy can increase the assertiveness of non-smokers in workplace settings. Related campaigns should focus on communicating normative messages and self-efficacy training to empower non-smoker employees to act assertively towards protecting their smoke-free rights.

  17. The history of happiness.

    PubMed

    Stearns, Peter N

    2012-01-01

    In the 18th century, the Enlightenment ushered in the notion that happiness was the attainment of a worthy life. Since then the pursuit of happiness has spread to every aspect of behavior, from religion and politics to work and parenting. Today the happiness imperative creates pressures that, paradoxically, can make us miserable. Sadness is often mistaken for a pathology. Understanding the cultural commitment to good cheer as an artifact of modern history, not as an inherent feature of the human condition, opens new opportunities for understanding key facets of our social and personal experience.

  18. Happiness: before and after the kids.

    PubMed

    Myrskylä, Mikko; Margolis, Rachel

    2014-10-01

    Understanding how having children influences parents' subjective well-being ("happiness") has great potential to explain fertility behavior. We study parental happiness trajectories before and after the birth of a child, using large British and German longitudinal data sets. We account for unobserved parental characteristics using fixed-effects models and study how sociodemographic factors modify the parental happiness trajectories. Consistent with existing work, we find that happiness increases in the years around the birth of a first child and then decreases to before-child levels. Moreover, happiness increases before birth, suggesting that the trajectories may capture not only the effect of the birth but also the broader process of childbearing, which may include partnership formation and quality. Sociodemographic factors strongly modify this pattern. Those who have children at older ages or who have more education have a particularly positive happiness response to a first birth; and although having the first two children increases happiness, having a third child does not. The results, which are similar in Britain and Germany, suggest that having up to two children increases happiness, and mostly for those who have postponed childbearing. This pattern is consistent with the fertility behavior that emerged during the second demographic transition and provides new insights into low and late fertility.

  19. The structural neural substrate of subjective happiness

    PubMed Central

    Sato, Wataru; Kochiyama, Takanori; Uono, Shota; Kubota, Yasutaka; Sawada, Reiko; Yoshimura, Sayaka; Toichi, Motomi

    2015-01-01

    Happiness is a subjective experience that is an ultimate goal for humans. Psychological studies have shown that subjective happiness can be measured reliably and consists of emotional and cognitive components. However, the neural substrates of subjective happiness remain unclear. To investigate this issue, we used structural magnetic resonance imaging and questionnaires that assessed subjective happiness, the intensity of positive and negative emotional experiences, and purpose in life. We found a positive relationship between the subjective happiness score and gray matter volume in the right precuneus. Moreover, the same region showed an association with the combined positive and negative emotional intensity and purpose in life scores. Our findings suggest that the precuneus mediates subjective happiness by integrating the emotional and cognitive components of happiness. PMID:26586449

  20. The structural neural substrate of subjective happiness.

    PubMed

    Sato, Wataru; Kochiyama, Takanori; Uono, Shota; Kubota, Yasutaka; Sawada, Reiko; Yoshimura, Sayaka; Toichi, Motomi

    2015-11-20

    Happiness is a subjective experience that is an ultimate goal for humans. Psychological studies have shown that subjective happiness can be measured reliably and consists of emotional and cognitive components. However, the neural substrates of subjective happiness remain unclear. To investigate this issue, we used structural magnetic resonance imaging and questionnaires that assessed subjective happiness, the intensity of positive and negative emotional experiences, and purpose in life. We found a positive relationship between the subjective happiness score and gray matter volume in the right precuneus. Moreover, the same region showed an association with the combined positive and negative emotional intensity and purpose in life scores. Our findings suggest that the precuneus mediates subjective happiness by integrating the emotional and cognitive components of happiness.

  1. Child Wellness and Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rettew, David C.

    2009-01-01

    Wellness and happiness should be considered in the clinical treatment of child and adolescent psychiatry, in addition with thinking about illness. Meanwhile, various studies on child and adolescent psychiatry,which includes an article from the "Journal of Happiness Studies," are discussed.

  2. Inner happiness among Thai elderly.

    PubMed

    Gray, Rossarin Soottipong; Rukumnuaykit, Pungpond; Kittisuksathit, Sirinan; Thongthai, Varachai

    2008-09-01

    This study, based on data collected in 2005 from Chai Nat province, examines the level of happiness of the Thai elderly population and its relationship to various external and internal factors. It was found that mean happiness was slightly above a feeling of "neutral." According to multiple regression analyses, external factors including economic hardship, living arrangements, functional ability, perceived social environment, and consumerism significantly influence the level of happiness. The strongest predictor of happiness is, however, the internal factor-that is, a feeling of relative poverty when compared to their neighbors. Controlling for demographic and all external factors, the respondents who do not feel poor show the highest level of happiness compared to those who feel as poor as or poorer than their neighbors. This is self-interpreted as a feeling of contentment with what one has, which has been influenced by Thai culture, which is pervaded by Buddhism.

  3. The relationship between happiness and intelligent quotient: the contribution of socio-economic and clinical factors.

    PubMed

    Ali, A; Ambler, G; Strydom, A; Rai, D; Cooper, C; McManus, S; Weich, S; Meltzer, H; Dein, S; Hassiotis, A

    2013-06-01

    Happiness and higher intelligent quotient (IQ) are independently related to positive health outcomes. However, there are inconsistent reports about the relationship between IQ and happiness. The aim was to examine the association between IQ and happiness and whether it is mediated by social and clinical factors. Method The authors analysed data from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey in England. The participants were adults aged 16 years or over, living in private households in 2007. Data from 6870 participants were included in the study. Happiness was measured using a validated question on a three-point scale. Verbal IQ was estimated using the National Adult Reading Test and both categorical and continuous IQ was analysed. Happiness is significantly associated with IQ. Those in the lowest IQ range (70-99) reported the lowest levels of happiness compared with the highest IQ group (120-129). Mediation analysis using the continuous IQ variable found dependency in activities of daily living, income, health and neurotic symptoms were strong mediators of the relationship, as they reduced the association between happiness and IQ by 50%. Those with lower IQ are less happy than those with higher IQ. Interventions that target modifiable variables such as income (e.g. through enhancing education and employment opportunities) and neurotic symptoms (e.g. through better detection of mental health problems) may improve levels of happiness in the lower IQ groups.

  4. Anxious or Depressed and Still Happy?

    PubMed Central

    Spinhoven, Philip; Elzinga, Bernet M.; Giltay, Erik; Penninx, Brenda W. J. H.

    2015-01-01

    This study aimed to examine cross-sectionally to what extent persons with higher symptom levels or a current or past emotional disorder report to be less happy than controls and to assess prospectively whether time-lagged measurements of extraversion and neuroticism predict future happiness independent of time-lagged measurements of emotional disorders or symptom severity. A sample of 2142 adults aged 18–65, consisting of healthy controls and persons with current or past emotional disorder according to DSM-IV criteria completed self-ratings for happiness and emotional well-being and symptom severity. Lagged measurements of personality, symptom severity and presence of anxiety and depressive disorder at T0 (year 0), T2 (year 2) and T4 (year 4) were used to predict happiness and emotional well-being at T6 (year 6) controlling for demographics. In particular persons with more depressive symptoms, major depressive disorder, social anxiety disorder and comorbid emotional disorders reported lower levels of happiness and emotional well-being. Depression symptom severity and to a lesser extent depressive disorder predicted future happiness and emotional well-being at T6. Extraversion and to a lesser extent neuroticism also consistently forecasted future happiness and emotional well-being independent of concurrent lagged measurements of emotional disorders and symptoms. A study limitation is that we only measured happiness and emotional well-being at T6 and our measures were confined to hedonistic well-being and did not include psychological and social well-being. In sum, consistent with the two continua model of emotional well-being and mental illness, a ‘happy’ personality characterized by high extraversion and to a lesser extent low neuroticism forecasts future happiness and emotional well-being independent of concurrently measured emotional disorders or symptom severity levels. Boosting positive emotionality may be an important treatment goal for persons

  5. Health or Happiness? A Note on Trading Off Health and Happiness in Rationing Decisions.

    PubMed

    van de Wetering, E J; van Exel, N J A; Brouwer, W B F

    2016-01-01

    Economic evaluations typically value the effects of an intervention in terms of quality-adjusted life-years, which combine length and health-related quality of life. It has been suggested that economic evaluations should incorporate broader outcomes than health-related quality of life. Broader well-being, for instance measured as happiness, could be a better measure of the overall welfare effects in patients because of treatment. An underexplored question is whether and how people trade off information on health and broader outcomes from treatment in rationing decisions. This article presents the results of a first experiment aimed at exploring such trade-offs between health and happiness. We used a Web-based questionnaire in a representative sample of the public from the Netherlands (N = 1015). People made choices between two groups of patients differing in terms of their health and happiness levels before treatment and gains from treatment. The results showed that about half the respondents were willing to discriminate between patient groups on the basis of their health and happiness levels before and after treatment. In the trader group, health gains were considered somewhat more important than happiness gains. Our findings suggest that both health and happiness levels of patients may play a role in priority setting. Copyright © 2016 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Daily happiness and stock returns: Some international evidence

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Wei; Li, Xiao; Shen, Dehua; Teglio, Andrea

    2016-10-01

    In this paper, we examine the relations between the daily happiness sentiment extracted from Twitter and the stock market performance in 11 international stock markets. By partitioning this happiness sentiment into quintiles from the least to the happiest days, we first show that the contemporary correlation coefficients between happiness sentiment and index return in the 4 and most-happiness subgroups are higher than that in least, 2 and 3-happiness subgroups. Secondly, the happiness sentiment can provide additional explanatory power for index return in the most-happiness subgroup. Thirdly, the daily happiness can granger-cause the changes in index return for the majority of stock markets. Fourthly, we find that the index return and the range-based volatility of the most-happiness subgroup are larger than those of other subgroups. These results highlight the important role of social media in stock market.

  7. Short health scale: A valid measure of health-related quality of life in Korean-speaking patients with inflammatory bowel disease

    PubMed Central

    Park, Soo-Kyung; Ko, Bong Min; Goong, Hyeon Jeong; Seo, Jeong Yeon; Lee, Sang Hyuk; Baek, Hae Lim; Lee, Moon Sung; Park, Dong Il

    2017-01-01

    AIM To evaluate the short health scale (SHS), a new, simple, four-part visual analogue scale questionnaire that is designed to assess the impact of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) on health-related quality of life (HRQOL), in Korean-speaking patients with IBD. METHODS The SHS was completed by 256 patients with Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). Individual SHS items were correlated with inflammatory bowel disease questionnaire (IBDQ) dimensions and with disease activity to assess validity. Test-retest reliability, responsiveness and patient or disease characteristics with probable association with high SHS scores were analyzed. RESULTS Of 256 patients with IBD, 139 (54.3%) had UC and 117 (45.7%) had CD. The correlation coefficients between SHS questions about “symptom burden”, “activities of daily living”, and “disease-related worry” and their corresponding dimensions in the IBDQ ranged from 0.62 to 0.71, compared with correlation coefficients ranging from -0.45 to -0.61 for their non-corresponding dimensions. There was a stepwise increase in SHS scores, with increasing disease activity in both CD and UC (all P values < 0.001). Reliability was confirmed with test-retest correlations ranging from 0.68 to 0.90 (all P values < 0.001). Responsiveness was confirmed with the patients who remained in remission. Their SHS scores remained unchanged, except for the SHS dimension “disease-related worry”. In the multivariate analysis, female sex was associated with worse “general well-being” (OR = 2.28, 95%CI: 1.02-5.08) along with worse disease activity. CONCLUSION The SHS is a valid and reliable measure of HRQOL in Korean-speaking patients with IBD. PMID:28596689

  8. Concepts of happiness across time and cultures.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Shigehiro; Graham, Jesse; Kesebir, Selin; Galinha, Iolanda Costa

    2013-05-01

    We explored cultural and historical variations in concepts of happiness. First, we analyzed the definitions of happiness in dictionaries from 30 nations to understand cultural similarities and differences in happiness concepts. Second, we analyzed the definition of happiness in Webster's dictionaries from 1850 to the present day to understand historical changes in American English. Third, we coded the State of the Union addresses given by U.S. presidents from 1790 to 2010. Finally, we investigated the appearance of the phrases happy nation versus happy person in Google's Ngram Viewer from 1800 to 2008. Across cultures and time, happiness was most frequently defined as good luck and favorable external conditions. However, in American English, this definition was replaced by definitions focused on favorable internal feeling states. Our findings highlight the value of a historical perspective in the study of psychological concepts.

  9. The relationship between happiness and health: evidence from Italy.

    PubMed

    Sabatini, Fabio

    2014-08-01

    We test the relationship between happiness and self-rated health in Italy. The analysis relies on a unique dataset collected through the administration of a questionnaire to a representative sample (n = 817) of the population of the Italian Province of Trento in March 2011. Based on probit regressions and instrumental variables estimates, we find that happiness is strongly correlated with perceived good health, after controlling for a number of relevant socio-economic phenomena. Health inequalities based on income, work status and education are relatively contained with respect to the rest of Italy. As expected, this scales down the role of social relationships. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Long and happy living: Trends and patterns of happy life expectancy in the U.S., 1970–2000

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Yang

    2013-01-01

    This study assesses the trends and differentials in length of quality life in the U.S. population as measured by happy life expectancy in 1970, 1980, 1990, and 2000. The analysis combines age-specific prevalence rates of subjective well-being from a large nationally representative survey and life table estimates of mortality in decennial Census years. Employing the period prevalence-rate life table method—Sullivan method, the analysis finds evidence for improvement in quality of life in the U.S. Happy life expectancy largely increased in both absolute terms (number of years) and relative terms (proportion of life) over time at all adult ages examined. And increases in total life expectancy were mainly contributed by increases in expectancy in happy years rather than unhappy years. Happy life expectancy is longer than active life expectancy. And there has been greater compression of unhappiness than compression of morbidity. There are substantial differentials in happy life expectancy by sex and race because of differential prevalence rates of happiness. Women and whites had longer years of total and happy life expectancies at most ages and dates, while men and blacks had greater proportions of happy life expectancies across the three decades. Although race differentials generally decreased at older ages and with time, relative disadvantages of blacks persisted. PMID:19227700

  11. Associations between feeling and judging the emotions of happiness and fear: findings from a large-scale field experiment.

    PubMed

    Buchanan, Tony W; Bibas, David; Adolphs, Ralph

    2010-05-14

    How do we recognize emotions from other people? One possibility is that our own emotional experiences guide us in the online recognition of emotion in others. A distinct but related possibility is that emotion experience helps us to learn how to recognize emotions in childhood. We explored these ideas in a large sample of people (N = 4,608) ranging from 5 to over 50 years old. Participants were asked to rate the intensity of emotional experience in their own lives, as well as to perform a task of facial emotion recognition. Those who reported more intense experience of fear and happiness were significantly more accurate (closer to prototypical) in recognizing facial expressions of fear and happiness, respectively, and intense experience of fear was associated also with more accurate recognition of surprised and happy facial expressions. The associations held across all age groups. These results suggest that the intensity of one's own emotional experience of fear and happiness correlates with the ability to recognize these emotions in others, and demonstrate such an association as early as age 5.

  12. Video game characteristics, happiness and flow as predictors of addiction among video game players: A pilot study.

    PubMed

    Hull, Damien C; Williams, Glenn A; Griffiths, Mark D

    2013-09-01

    Video games provide opportunities for positive psychological experiences such as flow-like phenomena during play and general happiness that could be associated with gaming achievements. However, research has shown that specific features of game play may be associated with problematic behaviour associated with addiction-like experiences. The study was aimed at analysing whether certain structural characteristics of video games, flow, and global happiness could be predictive of video game addiction. A total of 110 video game players were surveyed about a game they had recently played by using a 24-item checklist of structural characteristics, an adapted Flow State Scale, the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire, and the Game Addiction Scale. The study revealed decreases in general happiness had the strongest role in predicting increases in gaming addiction. One of the nine factors of the flow experience was a significant predictor of gaming addiction - perceptions of time being altered during play. The structural characteristic that significantly predicted addiction was its social element with increased sociability being associated with higher levels of addictive-like experiences. Overall, the structural characteristics of video games, elements of the flow experience, and general happiness accounted for 49.2% of the total variance in Game Addiction Scale levels. Implications for interventions are discussed, particularly with regard to making players more aware of time passing and in capitalising on benefits of social features of video game play to guard against addictive-like tendencies among video game players.

  13. Video game characteristics, happiness and flow as predictors of addiction among video game players: A pilot study

    PubMed Central

    Hull, Damien C.; Williams, Glenn A.; Griffiths, Mark D.

    2013-01-01

    Aims: Video games provide opportunities for positive psychological experiences such as flow-like phenomena during play and general happiness that could be associated with gaming achievements. However, research has shown that specific features of game play may be associated with problematic behaviour associated with addiction-like experiences. The study was aimed at analysing whether certain structural characteristics of video games, flow, and global happiness could be predictive of video game addiction. Method: A total of 110 video game players were surveyed about a game they had recently played by using a 24-item checklist of structural characteristics, an adapted Flow State Scale, the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire, and the Game Addiction Scale. Results: The study revealed decreases in general happiness had the strongest role in predicting increases in gaming addiction. One of the nine factors of the flow experience was a significant predictor of gaming addiction – perceptions of time being altered during play. The structural characteristic that significantly predicted addiction was its social element with increased sociability being associated with higher levels of addictive-like experiences. Overall, the structural characteristics of video games, elements of the flow experience, and general happiness accounted for 49.2% of the total variance in Game Addiction Scale levels. Conclusions: Implications for interventions are discussed, particularly with regard to making players more aware of time passing and in capitalising on benefits of social features of video game play to guard against addictive-like tendencies among video game players. PMID:25215196

  14. Happiness Inequality: How Much Is Reasonable?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gandelman, Nestor; Porzecanski, Rafael

    2013-01-01

    We compute the Gini indexes for income, happiness and various simulated utility levels. Due to decreasing marginal utility of income, happiness inequality should be lower than income inequality. We find that happiness inequality is about half that of income inequality. To compute the utility levels we need to assume values for a key parameter that…

  15. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms and happiness among adults in the general population.

    PubMed

    Stickley, Andrew; Koyanagi, Ai; Takahashi, Hidetoshi; Ruchkin, Vladislav; Inoue, Yosuke; Yazawa, Aki; Kamio, Yoko

    2018-07-01

    Despite an increasing focus on the role of mood and emotions in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as yet, there has been comparatively little research on positive emotions. To address this research gap, the current study examined the association between ADHD symptoms and happiness using data from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey. The analytic sample comprised 7274 adults aged 18 and above residing in private households in England. Information was collected on ADHD symptoms using the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) Screener, while happiness was assessed with a single (3-point) measure. Multivariable ordinal logistic regression analysis and a mediation analysis were performed to examine associations. Greater ADHD symptom severity was associated with higher odds for feeling less happy. Mood instability (percentage mediated 37.1%), anxiety disorder (35.6%) and depression (29.9%) were all important mediators of the association between ADHD and happiness. Given that happiness has been linked to a number of beneficial outcomes, the results of this study highlight the importance of diagnosing ADHD in adults and also of screening for and treating any comorbid psychiatric disorders in these individuals. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. An Investigation of Porous Structure of TiNi-Based SHS-Materials Produced at Different Initial Synthesis Temperatures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khodorenko, V. N.; Anikeev, S. G.; Kokorev, O. V.; Yasenchuk, Yu. F.; Gunther, V. É.

    2018-02-01

    An investigation of structural characteristics and behavior of TiNi-based pore-permeable materials manufactured by the methods of selfpropagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) at the initial synthesis temperatures T = 400 and 600°C is performed. It is shown that depending on the temperature regime, the resulting structure and properties of the material can differ. It is found out that the SHS-material produced at the initial synthesis temperature T = 400°C possesses the largest number of micropores in the pore wall surface structure due to a high phase inhomogeneity of the alloy. The regime of structure optimization of the resulting materials is described and the main stages of formation of the pore wall microporous surfaces are revealed. It is demonstrated that after optimization of the surface structure of a TiNi-based fine-pore alloy by its chemical etching, the fraction of micropores measuring in size less than 50 nm increased from 59 to 68%, while the number of pores larger than 1 μm increased twofold from 11 to 22%. In addition, peculiar features of interaction between certain cell cultures with the surface of the SHS-material manufactured at different initial synthesis temperatures are revealed. It is found out that the dynamics of the cell material integration depends on the pore wall surface morphology and dimensions of macropores.

  17. Happiness, Despair and Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roberts, Peter

    2013-01-01

    In today's world we appear to place a premium on happiness. Happiness is often portrayed, directly or indirectly, as one of the key aims of education. To suggest that education is concerned with promoting unhappiness or even despair would, in many contexts, seem outlandish. This paper challenges these widely held views. Focusing on the work…

  18. Happiness and Longevity in the United States

    PubMed Central

    Lawrence, Elizabeth M.; Rogers, Richard G.; Wadsworth, Tim

    2016-01-01

    This is the first study to our knowledge to examine the relationship between happiness and longevity among a nationally representative sample of adults. We use the recently-released General Social Survey-National Death Index dataset and Cox proportional hazards models to reveal that overall happiness is related to longer lives among U.S. adults. Indeed, compared to very happy people, the risk of death over the follow-up period is 6% (95% CI 1.01 – 1.11) higher among individuals who are pretty happy and 14% (95% CI 1.06 – 1.22) higher among those who are not happy, net of marital status, socioeconomic status, census division, and religious attendance. This study provides support for happiness as a stand-alone indicator of well-being that should be used more widely in social science and health research. PMID:26421947

  19. The Relationship between Happiness, Subjective Well-Being, Creativity and Job Performance of Primary School Teachers in Ramhormoz City

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jalali, Zohreh; Heidari, Alireza

    2016-01-01

    The research aimed to investigate the relationship between happiness, subjective well-being, creativity and job performance of primary school teachers in Ramhormoz City. Hence, a sample of 330 individuals was selected through random stratified sampling. The research tools included Oxford Happiness Inventory, Subjective Well-being Scale by Keyes…

  20. Happiness and longevity in the United States.

    PubMed

    Lawrence, Elizabeth M; Rogers, Richard G; Wadsworth, Tim

    2015-11-01

    This is the first study to our knowledge to examine the relationship between happiness and longevity among a nationally representative sample of adults. We use the recently-released General Social Survey-National Death Index dataset and Cox proportional hazards models to reveal that overall happiness is related to longer lives among U.S. adults. Indeed, compared to very happy people, the risk of death over the follow-up period is 6% (95% CI 1.01-1.11) higher among individuals who are pretty happy and 14% (95% CI 1.06-1.22) higher among those who are not happy, net of marital status, socioeconomic status, census division, and religious attendance. This study provides support for happiness as a stand-alone indicator of well-being that should be used more widely in social science and health research. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Wellness within illness: Happiness in schizophrenia

    PubMed Central

    Palmer, Barton W.; Martin, Averria Sirkin; Depp, Colin A.; Glorioso, Danielle K.; Jeste, Dilip V.

    2016-01-01

    Schizophrenia is typically a chronic disorder and among the most severe forms of serious mental illnesses in terms of adverse impact on quality of life. Yet, there have been suggestions that some people with schizophrenia can experience an overall sense of happiness in their lives. We investigated happiness among 72 outpatients with non-remitted chronic schizophrenia with a mean duration of illness of 24.4 years, and 64 healthy comparison subjects (HCs). Despite continued treatment with antipsychotic medications, the individuals with schizophrenia manifested a mild to moderate level of psychopathology. People with schizophrenia reported lower mean levels of happiness than HCs, but there was substantial heterogeneity within the schizophrenia group. Level of happiness in persons with schizophrenia was significantly correlated with higher mental health-related quality of life, and several positive psychosocial factors (lower perceived stress, and higher levels of resilience, optimism, and personal mastery). However, level of happiness was not related to sociodemographic characteristics, duration of illness, severity of positive or negative symptoms, physical function, medical comorbidity, or cognitive functioning. Except for an absence of an association with resilience, the pattern of correlations of happiness with other variables seen among HCs was similar to that in individuals with schizophrenia. Although happiness may be harder to achieve in the context of a serious mental illness, it nonetheless appears to be a viable treatment goal in schizophrenia. Psychotherapies targeting positive coping factors such as resilience, optimism, and personal mastery warrant further investigation. PMID:25153363

  2. Happiness & Health: The Biological Factors- Systematic Review Article

    PubMed Central

    DFARHUD, Dariush; MALMIR, Maryam; KHANAHMADI, Mohammad

    2014-01-01

    Abstract Happiness underlying factors are considerable from two dimensions: endogenic factors (biological, cognitive, personality and ethical sub-factors) and exogenic factors (behavioral, socialcultural, economical, geographical, life events and aesthetics sub-factors). Among all endogenic factors, biological sub-factors are the significant predictors of happiness. Existence of significant differences in temperament and happiness of infants is an indicator of biological influences. Therefore, this study aimed to consider biological factors that underlie happiness. At the first, all of the biological factors in relation with happiness were searched from following websites: PubMed, Wiley& Sons, Science direct (1990–2014). Then, the articles divided into five sub-groups (genetic, brain and neurotransmitters, endocrinology and hormones, physical health, morphology and physical attractiveness). Finally, a systematic review performed based on existing information. Results of studies on genetic factors indicated an average effectiveness of genetic about 35 -50 percent on happiness. In spite of difficulties in finding special genes, several genes distributed to emotion and mood. Neuroscience studies showed that some part of brain (e.g. amygdala, hipocamp and limbic system) and neurotransmitters (e.g. dopamine, serotonin, norepinefrine and endorphin) play a role in control of happiness. A few studies pointed to the role of cortisol and adrenaline (adrenal gland) and oxitocin (pituitary gland) in controlling happiness. Physical health and typology also concluded in most related studies to have a significant role in happiness. Therefore, according to previous research, it can be said that biological and health factors are critical in underlying happiness and its role in happiness is undeniable. PMID:26060713

  3. Healthy and happy in Europe? On the association between happiness and life expectancy over time.

    PubMed

    Bjørnskov, Christian

    2008-04-01

    This paper revisits the standard finding in individual-level studies that happiness leads to longevity. It does so in a cross-country time-series analysis in which the use of a random effects estimator controls for most relevant time-invariant factors. The findings suggest that happiness is negatively associated with longevity at the national level, and suggests a potential indirect transmission channel, as national happiness is negatively associated with public health expenditures. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the results for public policy and future research.

  4. Valuing happiness is associated with bipolar disorder.

    PubMed

    Ford, Brett Q; Mauss, Iris B; Gruber, June

    2015-04-01

    Although people who experience happiness tend to have better psychological health, people who value happiness to an extreme tend to have worse psychological health, including more depression. We propose that the extreme valuing of happiness may be a general risk factor for mood disturbances, both depressive and manic. To test this hypothesis, we examined the relationship between the extreme valuing of happiness and risk for, diagnosis of, and illness course for bipolar disorder (BD). Supporting our hypothesis, the extreme valuing of happiness was associated with a measure of increased risk for developing BD (Studies 1 and 2), increased likelihood of past diagnosis of BD (Studies 2 and 3), and worse prospective illness course in BD (Study 3), even when controlling for current mood symptoms (Studies 1-3). These findings indicate that the extreme valuing of happiness is associated with and even predicts BD. Taken together with previous evidence, these findings suggest that the extreme valuing of happiness is a general risk factor for mood disturbances. More broadly, what emotions people strive to feel may play a critical role in psychological health. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  5. Valuing happiness is associated with bipolar disorder

    PubMed Central

    Ford, Brett Q.; Mauss, Iris B.; Gruber, June

    2015-01-01

    While people who experience happiness tend to have better psychological health, people who value happiness to an extreme tend to have worse psychological health, including more depression. We propose that the extreme valuing of happiness may be a general risk factor for mood disturbances, both depressive and manic. To test this hypothesis, we examined the relationship between the extreme valuing of happiness and risk for, diagnosis of, and illness course for Bipolar Disorder (BD). Supporting our hypothesis, the extreme valuing of happiness was associated with a measure of increased risk for developing BD (Studies 1–2), increased likelihood of past diagnosis of BD (Studies 2–3), and worse prospective illness course in BD (Study 3), even when controlling for current mood symptoms (Studies 1–3). These findings indicate that the extreme valuing of happiness is associated with and even predicts BD. Taken together with previous evidence, these findings suggest that the extreme valuing of happiness is a general risk factor for mood disturbances. More broadly, what emotions people strive to feel may play a critical role in psychological health. PMID:25603134

  6. The MAOA gene predicts happiness in women.

    PubMed

    Chen, Henian; Pine, Daniel S; Ernst, Monique; Gorodetsky, Elena; Kasen, Stephanie; Gordon, Kathy; Goldman, David; Cohen, Patricia

    2013-01-10

    Psychologists, quality of life and well-being researchers have grown increasingly interested in understanding the factors that are associated with human happiness. Although twin studies estimate that genetic factors account for 35-50% of the variance in human happiness, knowledge of specific genes is limited. However, recent advances in molecular genetics can now provide a window into neurobiological markers of human happiness. This investigation examines association between happiness and monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) genotype. Data were drawn from a longitudinal study of a population-based cohort, followed for three decades. In women, low expression of MAOA (MAOA-L) was related significantly to greater happiness (0.261 SD increase with one L-allele, 0.522 SD with two L-alleles, P=0.002) after adjusting for the potential effects of age, education, household income, marital status, employment status, mental disorder, physical health, relationship quality, religiosity, abuse history, recent negative life events and self-esteem use in linear regression models. In contrast, no such association was found in men. This new finding may help explain the gender difference on happiness and provide a link between MAOA and human happiness. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Factor affecting happiness among nursing students in South Korea.

    PubMed

    Jun, W H; Jo, M J

    2016-08-01

    WHAT IS KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT?: Despite the increased interest in nursing students' happiness in South Korea, few studies have attempted to identify factors influencing their happiness. Therefore, nursing educators should consistently investigate the factors influencing happiness and develop strategies to improve happiness among Korean nursing students. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: This study confirmed that there were positive correlations between grateful disposition, social support and happiness. In addition, grateful disposition and support from intimate people were identified as predictors of happiness in Korean nursing students. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: Development of intervention programmes to help nursing students increase grateful disposition and support from intimate people may be helpful for improving happiness. These programmes can include activity, such as writing a gratitude journal, and extracurricular programmes, such as mentoring programmes between seniors and juniors and/or professor and student. Introduction Happiness is very important in the training and development of nursing students as future nurses. However, nursing students experience a high level of stress and low level of happiness in South Korea. Aim This study aimed to investigate factors that affect happiness among nursing students in South Korea. Method Data were collected from a total of 241 nursing enrolled in two 4-year baccalaureate nursing programmes in South Korea, using a self-administrated questionnaire. To identify predictors of happiness, stepwise regression analysis was conducted. Results The results indicated that grateful disposition and support from intimate people significantly predict happiness among Korean nursing students. These two factors accounted for 38.0% of the variance in happiness. Discussion This study indicated grateful disposition and support from intimate people as factors promoting happiness in nursing students. The findings

  8. Happiness and Defense Styles in Psychiatrists.

    PubMed

    Machado, Leonardo; Tavares, Hermano; Petribú, Kátia; Pinto, Tiago; Cantilino, Amaury

    2016-03-01

    The aim of this study was to measure happiness in a sample of Brazilian psychiatrists and correlate it with the defense styles used by them and sociodemographic data. This study was observational, cross-sectional, and analytical. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires by Brazilian psychiatrists who participated in the XXXII Brazilian Congress of Psychiatry, 2014. In this sample of psychiatrists, happiness levels were high (scoring 5.69 of a total of 7), and mature defense styles prevailed, especially humor and anticipation. In a multivariate analysis, having children, good sleep quality, increased sexual interest, and use of defense styles such as humor, anticipation, and idealization all showed a positive relationship with happiness; on the other hand, using defense style such as acting out or annulment demonstrated a negative relationship with happiness. Despite the well-known professional burden that they bear, Brazilian psychiatrists surveyed presented, in general, high levels of subjective well-being and happiness.

  9. The biometric antecedents to happiness.

    PubMed

    Böckerman, Petri; Bryson, Alex; Viinikainen, Jutta; Hakulinen, Christian; Hintsanen, Mirka; Pehkonen, Jaakko; Viikari, Jorma; Raitakari, Olli

    2017-01-01

    It has been suggested that biological markers are associated with human happiness. We contribute to the empirical literature by examining the independent association between various aspects of biometric wellbeing measured in childhood and happiness in adulthood. Using Young Finns Study data (n = 1905) and nationally representative linked data we examine whether eight biomarkers measured in childhood (1980) are associated with happiness in adulthood (2001). Using linked data we account for a very rich set of confounders including age, sex, body size, family background, nutritional intake, physical activity, income, education and labour market experiences. We find that there is a negative relationship between triglycerides and subjective well-being but it is both gender- and age-specific and the relationship does not prevail using the later measurements (1983/1986) on triglycerides. In summary, we conclude that none of the eight biomarkers measured in childhood predict happiness robustly in adulthood.

  10. The biometric antecedents to happiness

    PubMed Central

    Bryson, Alex; Viinikainen, Jutta; Hakulinen, Christian; Hintsanen, Mirka; Pehkonen, Jaakko; Viikari, Jorma; Raitakari, Olli

    2017-01-01

    It has been suggested that biological markers are associated with human happiness. We contribute to the empirical literature by examining the independent association between various aspects of biometric wellbeing measured in childhood and happiness in adulthood. Using Young Finns Study data (n = 1905) and nationally representative linked data we examine whether eight biomarkers measured in childhood (1980) are associated with happiness in adulthood (2001). Using linked data we account for a very rich set of confounders including age, sex, body size, family background, nutritional intake, physical activity, income, education and labour market experiences. We find that there is a negative relationship between triglycerides and subjective well-being but it is both gender- and age-specific and the relationship does not prevail using the later measurements (1983/1986) on triglycerides. In summary, we conclude that none of the eight biomarkers measured in childhood predict happiness robustly in adulthood. PMID:28915269

  11. A global perspective on happiness and fertility.

    PubMed

    Margolis, Rachel; Myrskylä, Mikko

    2011-01-01

    The literature on fertility and happiness has neglected comparative analysis. We investigate the fertility/happiness association using data from the world values surveys for 86 countries. We find that, globally, happiness decreases with the number of children. This association, however, is strongly modified by individual and contextual factors. Most importantly, we find that the association between happiness and fertility evolves from negative to neutral to positive above age 40, and is strongest among those who are likely to benefit most from upward intergenerational transfers. In addition, analyses by welfare regime show that the negative fertility/ happiness association for younger adults is weakest in countries with high public support for families, and the positive association above age 40 is strongest in countries where old-age support depends mostly on the family. Overall these results suggest that children are a long-term investment in well-being, and highlight the importance of the life-cycle stage and contextual factors in explaining the happiness/fertility association.

  12. A Hidden Cost of Happiness in Children

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schnall, Simone; Jaswal, Vikram K.; Rowe, Christina

    2008-01-01

    Happiness is generally considered an emotion with only beneficial effects, particularly in childhood. However, there are some situations where the style of information processing triggered by happiness could be a liability. In particular, happiness seems to motivate a top-down processing style, which could impair performance when attention to…

  13. Clinical ethics and happiness.

    PubMed

    Devettere, R J

    1993-02-01

    Most contemporary accounts of clinical ethics do not explain why clinicians should be ethical. Those few that do attempt an explanation usually claim that clinicians should be ethical because ethical behavior provides an important good for the patient--better care. Both these approaches ignore the customary traditional reason for being ethical, namely, the good of the moral agent. This good was commonly called 'happiness'. The following article shows how the personal happiness of the moral agent provided a major reason for being ethical in the ancient philosophical and biblical traditions and how it continues to play a role in the more modern rights-based, Kantian and utilitarian theories. This history suggests that the personal happiness of the clinician, rightly understood, is a legitimate and important goal of clinical ethics.

  14. Determinants of exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke (SHS) among current non-smoking in-school adolescents (aged 11-18 years) in South Africa: results from the 2008 GYTS study.

    PubMed

    Peltzer, Karl

    2011-09-01

    The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and identify correlates of second-hand tobacco smoke (SHS) among 6,412 current non-smoking school-going adolescents (aged 11 to 18 years) in South Africa. A cross-sectional study was carried out in 2008 in South Africa within the framework of the Global Youth Tobacco Survey. Overall, 25.7% of students were exposed to SHS at home, 34.2% outside of the home and 18.3% were exposed to SHS at home and outside of the home. Parental and close friends smoking status, allowing someone to smoke around you and perception that passive smoking was harmful were significant determinants of adolescent's exposure to both SHS at home and outside of the home. Identified factors can inform the implementation of public health interventions in order to reduce passive smoking among adolescents.

  15. Wellness within illness: happiness in schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Palmer, Barton W; Martin, Averria Sirkin; Depp, Colin A; Glorioso, Danielle K; Jeste, Dilip V

    2014-10-01

    Schizophrenia is typically a chronic disorder and among the most severe forms of serious mental illnesses in terms of adverse impact on quality of life. Yet, there have been suggestions that some people with schizophrenia can experience an overall sense of happiness in their lives. We investigated happiness among 72 outpatients with non-remitted chronic schizophrenia with a mean duration of illness of 24.4 years, and 64 healthy comparison subjects (HCs). Despite continued treatment with antipsychotic medications, the individuals with schizophrenia manifested a mild to moderate level of psychopathology. People with schizophrenia reported lower mean levels of happiness than HCs, but there was substantial heterogeneity within the schizophrenia group. Level of happiness in persons with schizophrenia was significantly correlated with higher mental health-related quality of life, and several positive psychosocial factors (lower perceived stress, and higher levels of resilience, optimism, and personal mastery). However, level of happiness was not related to sociodemographic characteristics, duration of illness, severity of positive or negative symptoms, physical function, medical comorbidity, or cognitive functioning. Except for an absence of an association with resilience, the pattern of correlations of happiness with other variables seen among HCs was similar to that in individuals with schizophrenia. Although happiness may be harder to achieve in the context of a serious mental illness, it nonetheless appears to be a viable treatment goal in schizophrenia. Psychotherapies targeting positive coping factors such as resilience, optimism, and personal mastery warrant further investigation. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  16. Does Academic Work Make Australian Academics Happy?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Duncan, Roderick; Tilbrook, Kerry; Krivokapic-Skoko, Branka

    2015-01-01

    Happiness research is a rapidly-growing area in social psychology and has emphasised the link between happiness and workplace productivity and creativity for knowledge workers. Recent articles in this journal have raised concerns about the level of happiness and engagement of Australian academics with their work, however there is little research…

  17. Towards a functional neuroanatomy of pleasure and happiness

    PubMed Central

    Kringelbach, Morten L.; Berridge, Kent C.

    2009-01-01

    The pursuit of happiness is a preoccupation for many people. Yet only the pursuit can be promised, not happiness itself. Can science help? We focus on the most tractable ingredient, hedonia or positive affect. A step toward happiness might be gained by improving the pleasures and positive moods in daily life. The neuroscience of pleasure and reward provides relevant insights, and we discuss how specific hedonic mechanisms might relate to happiness or the lack thereof. Although the neuroscience of happiness is still in its infancy, further advances might be made through mapping overlap between brain networks of hedonic pleasure with others, such as the brain's default network, potentially involved in the other happiness ingredient, eudemonia or life meaning and engagement. PMID:19782634

  18. Conceptions of Happiness and Unhappiness among Italian Psychology Undergraduates.

    PubMed

    Sotgiu, Igor

    2016-01-01

    The present study aims at investigating the conceptions of happiness and unhappiness in a sample of Italian psychology undergraduates. Participants completed a questionnaire asking them to report the most important things that made them feel happy (happiness components) and those ones that made them feel unhappy (unhappiness components). Different measures of overall happiness and overall unhappiness were also obtained by asking respondents to assess to what extent each reported happiness and unhappiness component was present in their life, and by inviting them to provide a global judgment about their happiness and unhappiness. Results indicated that participants did not conceptualize happiness and unhappiness as perfect antonyms. Indeed, both investigated concepts encompassed a similar set of semantic components; however, the perceived salience of some of them - assessed in terms of frequency of citation and average ranking - significantly varied between happiness and unhappiness. With regard to the measurement of overall happiness and unhappiness, on average, respondents considered themselves as moderately happy and only slightly unhappy. However, a judgmental asymmetry was found when comparing global and specific evaluations of unhappiness. Theoretical and empirical implications of the study are discussed.

  19. Conceptions of Happiness and Unhappiness among Italian Psychology Undergraduates

    PubMed Central

    2016-01-01

    The present study aims at investigating the conceptions of happiness and unhappiness in a sample of Italian psychology undergraduates. Participants completed a questionnaire asking them to report the most important things that made them feel happy (happiness components) and those ones that made them feel unhappy (unhappiness components). Different measures of overall happiness and overall unhappiness were also obtained by asking respondents to assess to what extent each reported happiness and unhappiness component was present in their life, and by inviting them to provide a global judgment about their happiness and unhappiness. Results indicated that participants did not conceptualize happiness and unhappiness as perfect antonyms. Indeed, both investigated concepts encompassed a similar set of semantic components; however, the perceived salience of some of them − assessed in terms of frequency of citation and average ranking − significantly varied between happiness and unhappiness. With regard to the measurement of overall happiness and unhappiness, on average, respondents considered themselves as moderately happy and only slightly unhappy. However, a judgmental asymmetry was found when comparing global and specific evaluations of unhappiness. Theoretical and empirical implications of the study are discussed. PMID:27977718

  20. Measuring happiness in individuals with profound multiple disabilities.

    PubMed

    Darling, Joseph A; Circo, Deborah K

    2015-12-01

    This quantitative study assessed whether presentation of preferred items and activities during multiple periods of the day (and over multiple days) increased indices of happiness (over time/sustained) in individuals with PMD. A multiple baseline design across participants was utilized to measure changes in indices of happiness of the participants. Participants were recruited from an adult day activity program specializing in providing assistance to individuals with disabilities. For Mary, baseline indices of happiness were 26.67% of intervals, increasing 6.76% during intervention to 33.43%. For Caleb, baseline indices of happiness were 20.84% of intervals, increasing 6.34% during intervention to 27.18%. For Mark, baseline indices of happiness were 40.00% of intervals, increasing 12.75% during intervention to 52.75%. Overall interobserver agreement was 82.8%, with interobserver agreement observations occurring during 63.04% of the observations. The results of the investigation demonstrated that presenting preferred items and activities increased the indices of happiness compared to baseline rates of indices of happiness. Results may have been more robust if the participants were assessed for overall responsiveness patterns prior to the initiation of measurement of indices of happiness. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Happiness and Ethical Values in Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to discuss relations between happiness and ethical values in higher education, focusing on the need for the university to pursue happiness and ethical values. To examine the paper logically, four research questions are addressed. First, what are general concepts of happiness and ethical values? Second, why higher…

  2. On Being a Happy Academic

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Martin, Brian

    2011-01-01

    Happiness research provides guidance on what academics can do to increase their satisfaction at work. Changes in external circumstances, such as salary rises, seldom have a lasting effect. More likely to improve long-term happiness levels are exercising well-developed skills, building strong relationships, helping others and cultivating…

  3. The Relationships Among Socio-Demographics, Perceived Health, and Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Weech-Maldonado, Robert; Miller, Michael J.; Lord, Justin C.

    2017-01-01

    This article explores explore the relationships among socio-demographics, perceived health, and happiness in a patient population of 221 adults recruited from 39 primary care practices in Alabama. We also explored whether the relationship between socio-demographics and happiness is mediated by perceived health. The dependent variable, happiness, was dichotomized as happy versus unhappy. Independent variables or correlates of happiness included race (Black or White), age (< 65 vs. 65 and older), gender (male vs. female), perceived income (sufficient vs. insufficient to meet basic needs), health literacy (adequate vs. inadequate), and self-rated health (excellent/very good/good vs. poor/fair). Data were analyzed using generalized linear latent and mixed models to examine the relationship between happiness and its correlates. Our findings suggest that adequate health literacy and better perceived health are associated with an increase in the likelihood of happiness. In addition, the relationship between perceived sufficient income and happiness is mediated by perceived health; whereas, individuals with sufficient income are more likely to have better perceived health, and as a result more likely to be happy. Other individual factors, such as gender, age, and race were not significantly associated with being happy or having higher perceived health in any of the models. Results suggest that policies aimed at increasing health literacy, promoting health, and reducing income disparities may be associated with greater happiness. PMID:28757904

  4. How to Be Happy: Tips for Cultivating Contentment

    MedlinePlus

    ... management Are you tired of waiting around for happiness to find you? Stop waiting and start getting ... to be happy? Or are you waiting for happiness to find you? Despite what the fairy tales ...

  5. Cultural values and happiness: an East-West dialogue.

    PubMed

    Luo, L; Gilmour, R; Kao, S F

    2001-08-01

    Happiness as a state of mind may be universal, but its meaning is complex and ambiguous. The authors directly examined the relationships between cultural values and experiences of happiness in 2 samples, by using a measurement of values derived from Chinese culture and a measurement of subjective well-being balanced for sources of happiness salient in both the East and the West. The participants were university students-439 from an Eastern culture (Taiwan) and 344 from a Western culture (the United Kingdom). Although general patterns were similar in the 2 samples, the relationships between values and happiness were stronger in the Taiwanese sample than in the British sample. The values social integration and human-heartedness had culture-dependent effects on happiness, whereas the value Confucian work dynamism had a culture-general effect on happiness.

  6. A new measure for assessing executive function across a wide age range: children and adults find happy-sad more difficult than day-night.

    PubMed

    Lagattuta, Kristin Hansen; Sayfan, Liat; Monsour, Michael

    2011-05-01

    Two experiments examined 4- to 11-year-olds' and adults' performance (N = 350) on two variants of a Stroop-like card task: the day-night task (say 'day' when shown a moon and 'night' when shown a sun) and a new happy-sad task (say 'happy' for a sad face and 'sad' for a happy face). Experiment 1 featured colored cartoon drawings. In Experiment 2, the happy-sad task featured photographs, and pictures for both measures were gray scale. All age groups made more errors and took longer to respond to the happy-sad versus the day-night versions. Unlike the day-night task, the happy-sad task did not suffer from ceiling effects, even in adults. The happy-sad task provides a methodological advance for measuring executive function across a wide age range.

  7. Do Test Scores Buy Happiness?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McCluskey, Neal

    2017-01-01

    Since at least the enactment of No Child Left Behind in 2002, standardized test scores have served as the primary measures of public school effectiveness. Yet, such scores fail to measure the ultimate goal of education: maximizing happiness. This exploratory analysis assesses nation level associations between test scores and happiness, controlling…

  8. The New Pursuit of Happiness.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Berns, Walter

    1987-01-01

    Discusses the changes in American thinking and tolerance between the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and the writing of the Constitution. Concludes that the right to pursue happiness allows everyone to personally define happiness. The government that secures that right will leave people alone to do as they wish. (PS)

  9. Does Education Affect Happiness? Evidence for Spain

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cunado, Juncal; de Gracia, Fernando Perez

    2012-01-01

    In this paper we study the impact of education on happiness in Spain using individual-level data from the European Social Survey, by means of estimating Ordinal Logit Models. We find both direct and indirect effects of education on happiness. First, we find an indirect effect of education on happiness through income and labour status. That is, we…

  10. Income inequality and happiness.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Shigehiro; Kesebir, Selin; Diener, Ed

    2011-09-01

    Using General Social Survey data from 1972 to 2008, we found that Americans were on average happier in the years with less national income inequality than in the years with more national income inequality. We further demonstrated that this inverse relation between income inequality and happiness was explained by perceived fairness and general trust. That is, Americans trusted other people less and perceived other people to be less fair in the years with more national income inequality than in the years with less national income inequality. The negative association between income inequality and happiness held for lower-income respondents, but not for higher-income respondents. Most important, we found that the negative link between income inequality and the happiness of lower-income respondents was explained not by lower household income, but by perceived unfairness and lack of trust.

  11. Current and future directions in culture and happiness research.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Shigehiro; Gilbert, Elizabeth A

    2016-04-01

    Once believed to be universal, a growing body of research shows that both the conception and predictors of happiness vary cross-culturally. First, the meaning and importance of happiness varies both across time and between nations. Americans, for instance, tend to define happiness in terms of pleasure or enjoyment and view happiness as universally positive, whereas East Asian and Middle Eastern cultures may highlight the transient and socially disruptive nature of happiness and be ambivalent about whether it is good. Second, predictors of happiness vary between cultures. Recent work highlights new mediators (e.g., relational mobility), individual predictors (e.g., person-culture fit), societal factors (e.g., good governance and wealth), within-culture variations (e.g., at the state or city level), and interventions (e.g., practicing gratitude) that differ cross-culturally or help explain cultural differences in happiness. Though many questions remain, this review highlights how these recent advances broaden and revise our understanding of culture and happiness. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Happiness and Childbearing across Europe

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aassve, Arnstein; Goisis, Alice; Sironi, Maria

    2012-01-01

    Using happiness as a well-being measure and comparative data from the European social survey we focus in this paper on the link between happiness and childbearing across European countries. The analysis motivates from the recent lows in fertility in many European countries and that economic wellbeing measures are problematic when considering…

  13. What differs between happy and unhappy people?

    PubMed

    Kaliterna-Lipovčan, Ljiljana; Prizmić-Larsen, Zvjezdana

    2016-01-01

    This study explores the determinants (demographic, personal, behavioural, and social) by which happy and unhappy people differ. The primary sample from which the participants were chosen was a representative sample of Croatian citizens (N = 4000). On the basis of the distribution of overall happiness the sample of the highest (the happy group) and the lowest 10 % of participants (the unhappy group) were selected. The happy group (N = 400) represented the upper end of the happiness distribution, while the unhappy group (N = 400) represented the lower end of the distribution. The questionnaire included demographic characteristics (age, gender, income, and education), ratings of subjective health status, satisfaction with specific personal and national domains (IWI-International Wellbeing Index), trust in people, and trust in institutions. Frequency of various leisure activities, and involvement in the community life were also reported. The differences in examined variables were analysed between the two groups. Results showed that the happy individuals were younger, with higher income, and with higher education than unhappy ones. After controlling for age, income, and education level, the happy people were found to be more satisfied with personal and national wellbeing domains, of better subjective health status, reported higher trust in people and institutions, and were more engaged in leisure activities and community life than the unhappy ones.

  14. Happiness and memory: affective significance of endowment and contrast.

    PubMed

    Liberman, Varda; Boehm, Julia K; Lyubomirsky, Sonja; Ross, Lee D

    2009-10-01

    Three studies (two conducted in Israel and one in the United States) examined associations between self-rated dispositional happiness and tendencies to treat memories of positive and negative events as sources of enhanced or attenuated happiness through the use of "endowment" and "contrast." Although participants generally endorsed items describing happiness-enhancing tendencies more than happiness-diminishing ones, self-reported happiness was associated with greater endorsement of "positive endowment" items and less endorsement of "negative endowment" items, and also with less endorsement of items that involved contrasting the present with happier times in the past. Only in the American sample, however, was happiness associated with greater endorsement of items that involved contrasting the present with less happy times in the past. These data suggest that relatively unhappy people show somewhat conflicting memorial tendencies vis-à-vis happiness, whereas very happy people show simpler, and less conflicting, tendencies. These findings augment the existing literatures on the affective consequences of memory, which have been concerned more with mood than with temperament and/or have dealt only with a subset of the endowment and contrast tendencies explored in the present work.

  15. Misrepresenting Chinese Folk Happiness: A Critique of a Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ip, Po-Keung

    2013-01-01

    Discourses on Chinese folk happiness are often based on anecdotal narratives or qualitative analysis. A recent study on Chinese folk happiness using qualitative method seems to provide some empirical findings beyond anecdotal evidence on Chinese folk happiness. This paper critically examines the study's constructed image of Chinese folk happiness,…

  16. Happier People Live More Active Lives: Using Smartphones to Link Happiness and Physical Activity

    PubMed Central

    Lathia, Neal; Sandstrom, Gillian M.; Mascolo, Cecilia; Rentfrow, Peter J.

    2017-01-01

    Physical activity, both exercise and non-exercise, has far-reaching benefits to physical health. Although exercise has also been linked to psychological health (e.g., happiness), little research has examined physical activity more broadly, taking into account non-exercise activity as well as exercise. We examined the relationship between physical activity (measured broadly) and happiness using a smartphone application. This app has collected self-reports of happiness and physical activity from over ten thousand participants, while passively gathering information about physical activity from the accelerometers on users' phones. The findings reveal that individuals who are more physically active are happier. Further, individuals are happier in the moments when they are more physically active. These results emerged when assessing activity subjectively, via self-report, or objectively, via participants' smartphone accelerometers. Overall, this research suggests that not only exercise but also non-exercise physical activity is related to happiness. This research further demonstrates how smartphones can be used to collect large-scale data to examine psychological, behavioral, and health-related phenomena as they naturally occur in everyday life. PMID:28052069

  17. Happier People Live More Active Lives: Using Smartphones to Link Happiness and Physical Activity.

    PubMed

    Lathia, Neal; Sandstrom, Gillian M; Mascolo, Cecilia; Rentfrow, Peter J

    2017-01-01

    Physical activity, both exercise and non-exercise, has far-reaching benefits to physical health. Although exercise has also been linked to psychological health (e.g., happiness), little research has examined physical activity more broadly, taking into account non-exercise activity as well as exercise. We examined the relationship between physical activity (measured broadly) and happiness using a smartphone application. This app has collected self-reports of happiness and physical activity from over ten thousand participants, while passively gathering information about physical activity from the accelerometers on users' phones. The findings reveal that individuals who are more physically active are happier. Further, individuals are happier in the moments when they are more physically active. These results emerged when assessing activity subjectively, via self-report, or objectively, via participants' smartphone accelerometers. Overall, this research suggests that not only exercise but also non-exercise physical activity is related to happiness. This research further demonstrates how smartphones can be used to collect large-scale data to examine psychological, behavioral, and health-related phenomena as they naturally occur in everyday life.

  18. The use of hypnosis in therapy to increase happiness.

    PubMed

    Ruysschaert, Nicole

    2014-01-01

    In their journey through life, most people are looking for happiness. Definitions of happiness and the concepts of a pleasant, good, meaningful, and a full life are reviewed. Next, Seligman's (2002) concept of "authentic happiness" and a happiness formula, S+C+V (Set + Circumstances + Variables), are discussed. An integration of happiness, as a goal, and hypnosis, as a facilitative approach, are presented. Hypnotic techniques with case examples are given. Hypnosis is presented as an efficient companion intervention to work on these variables in a creative way and to pave the way to a happy and full life. The following results are presented: (1) hypnosis allows for increased executive attention with control of emotions, (2) focusing on positive imagery contributes to strengthening "happy pathways," and (3) emotions about the past, present, and future are subject to change.

  19. Will Happiness Improve the Psychological Integration of Migrant Workers?

    PubMed Central

    Li, Qin; Mo, Di; Li, Bin

    2018-01-01

    Happiness is a major factor that influences people’s perceptions and behavior. Two-stage least squares regression was applied to investigate the effect of happiness on the psychological integration of migrant workers in China. The data for a total of 1625 individuals were obtained from the 2014 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey (CLDS). This study describes happiness from three main aspects: happiness, life satisfaction, and economic satisfaction. The psychological integration includes two dimensions of settlement willingness, and trust level; these have gone through dimension-reduced processing by using the weighted average method. The empirical evidence shows, first, that happiness has a significantly positive effect on the psychological integration of migrant workers and second, that the sense of life satisfaction in particular plays a more significant role. The acceleration of the social and political integration in migrant workers will enhance their psychological integration. Additionally, social, cultural and economic integration is found to influence migrant workers’ psychological integration by promoting happiness. Happiness between different generations of migrant workers was found to have a noticeably positive impact on their psychological integration; however, the happiness of the younger migrant workers was more perceivable than that of the other generations. Preferential policies should therefore be provided to improve the happiness of migrant workers. PMID:29751489

  20. Will Happiness Improve the Psychological Integration of Migrant Workers?

    PubMed

    Li, Tian-Cheng; Chu, Chien-Chi; Meng, Fan-Cun; Li, Qin; Mo, Di; Li, Bin; Tsai, Sang-Bing

    2018-05-03

    Happiness is a major factor that influences people’s perceptions and behavior. Two-stage least squares regression was applied to investigate the effect of happiness on the psychological integration of migrant workers in China. The data for a total of 1625 individuals were obtained from the 2014 China Labor-force Dynamics Survey (CLDS). This study describes happiness from three main aspects: happiness, life satisfaction, and economic satisfaction. The psychological integration includes two dimensions of settlement willingness, and trust level; these have gone through dimension-reduced processing by using the weighted average method. The empirical evidence shows, first, that happiness has a significantly positive effect on the psychological integration of migrant workers and second, that the sense of life satisfaction in particular plays a more significant role. The acceleration of the social and political integration in migrant workers will enhance their psychological integration. Additionally, social, cultural and economic integration is found to influence migrant workers’ psychological integration by promoting happiness. Happiness between different generations of migrant workers was found to have a noticeably positive impact on their psychological integration; however, the happiness of the younger migrant workers was more perceivable than that of the other generations. Preferential policies should therefore be provided to improve the happiness of migrant workers.

  1. Subjective Vitality as Mediator and Moderator of the Relationship between Life Satisfaction and Subjective Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uysal, Recep; Satici, Seydi Ahmet; Satici, Begüm; Akin, Ahmet

    2014-01-01

    In this study, the mediator and moderator effects of subjective vitality on the relationship between life satisfaction and subjective happiness were investigated. The participants were 378 university students who completed a questionnaire package that included the Subjective Vitality Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Subjective…

  2. The Self-sustained High temperature Synthesis (SHS) technology as novel approach in the management of asbestos waste.

    PubMed

    Gaggero, Laura; Ferretti, Maurizio

    2018-06-15

    The SHS technique was experimented in chrysotile breakdown. By means of two reactions such as Mg 3 Si 2 O 5 (OH) 4  + Fe 2 O 3  + 3 Mg and 2Mg 3 Si 2 O 5 (OH) 4  + Fe 3 O 4  + 4 Mg the chrysotile was completely converted into forsterite-rich olivine. Different mixtures of hematite + Mg and magnetite + Mg were tested with chrysotile to establish the maximum chrysotile amount in order to allow the reaction. In comparison with conventional thermal treatments, the SHS process is characterized by a fast reaction, needs low activation energy and the apparatus is simple. For these reasons, the asbestos neutralisation is carried out with positive balance of time and costs of the process. Furthermore, the combustion product can be re-used as secondary material. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. A neural link between generosity and happiness

    PubMed Central

    Park, Soyoung Q.; Kahnt, Thorsten; Dogan, Azade; Strang, Sabrina; Fehr, Ernst; Tobler, Philippe N.

    2017-01-01

    Generous behaviour is known to increase happiness, which could thereby motivate generosity. In this study, we use functional magnetic resonance imaging and a public pledge for future generosity to investigate the brain mechanisms that link generous behaviour with increases in happiness. Participants promised to spend money over the next 4 weeks either on others (experimental group) or on themselves (control group). Here, we report that, compared to controls, participants in the experimental group make more generous choices in an independent decision-making task and show stronger increases in self-reported happiness. Generous decisions engage the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) in the experimental more than in the control group and differentially modulate the connectivity between TPJ and ventral striatum. Importantly, striatal activity during generous decisions is directly related to changes in happiness. These results demonstrate that top–down control of striatal activity plays a fundamental role in linking commitment-induced generosity with happiness. PMID:28696410

  4. The Long Slide to Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Smith, Richard

    2008-01-01

    The recent wave of interest in "teaching happiness" is beset by problems. It consists of many different emphases and approaches, many of which are inconsistent with each other. If happiness is understood as essentially a matter of "feeling good", then it is difficult to account for the fact that we want and value all sorts of things that do not…

  5. Under which conditions can introverts achieve happiness? Mediation and moderation effects of the quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability on happiness

    PubMed Central

    Cabello, Rosario

    2015-01-01

    Personality traits have been directly associated with happiness. One consistent finding is a strong link between extraversion and happiness: extraverts are happier than introverts. Although happy introverts exist, it is currently unclear under what conditions they can achieve happiness. The present study analyzes, generally, how the quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability influence happiness and, specifically, how these factors can lead introverts to be happy. In the present study, 1,006 participants aged 18–80 (42% males) completed measures of extraversion, neuroticism, quality of social relationships, emotion regulation ability, and happiness. We found that extraverts had significantly higher happiness, quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability scores than introverts. In addition, people with high quality social relationships or high emotion regulation ability were happier. Serial mediation analyses indicated that greater levels of extraversion were associated with greater happiness, with small effect size, via two indirect mechanisms: (a) higher quality of social relationships, and (b) higher quality of social relationships followed serially by higher emotion regulation ability. We also found a moderating effect due to the three-way interaction of extraversion, quality of social relationships, and emotion regulation ability: introverts were happier when they had high scores for these two variables, though the effect size was small. These results suggest that the quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability are relevant to our understanding of complex associations between extraversion and happiness. PMID:26500814

  6. Under which conditions can introverts achieve happiness? Mediation and moderation effects of the quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability on happiness.

    PubMed

    Cabello, Rosario; Fernandez-Berrocal, Pablo

    2015-01-01

    Personality traits have been directly associated with happiness. One consistent finding is a strong link between extraversion and happiness: extraverts are happier than introverts. Although happy introverts exist, it is currently unclear under what conditions they can achieve happiness. The present study analyzes, generally, how the quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability influence happiness and, specifically, how these factors can lead introverts to be happy. In the present study, 1,006 participants aged 18-80 (42% males) completed measures of extraversion, neuroticism, quality of social relationships, emotion regulation ability, and happiness. We found that extraverts had significantly higher happiness, quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability scores than introverts. In addition, people with high quality social relationships or high emotion regulation ability were happier. Serial mediation analyses indicated that greater levels of extraversion were associated with greater happiness, with small effect size, via two indirect mechanisms: (a) higher quality of social relationships, and (b) higher quality of social relationships followed serially by higher emotion regulation ability. We also found a moderating effect due to the three-way interaction of extraversion, quality of social relationships, and emotion regulation ability: introverts were happier when they had high scores for these two variables, though the effect size was small. These results suggest that the quality of social relationships and emotion regulation ability are relevant to our understanding of complex associations between extraversion and happiness.

  7. More than one way to be happy: a typology of marital happiness.

    PubMed

    Rauer, Amy; Volling, Brenda

    2013-09-01

    This study utilized observational and self-report data from 57 happily married couples to explore assumptions regarding marital happiness. Suggesting that happily married couples are not a homogeneous group, cluster analyses revealed the existence of three types of couples based on their observed behaviors in a problem-solving task: (1) mutually engaged couples (characterized by both spouses' higher negative and positive problem-solving); (2) mutually supportive couples (characterized by both spouses' higher positivity and support); and (3) wife compensation couples (characterized by high wife positivity). Although couples in all three clusters were equally happy with and committed to their marriages, these clusters were differentially associated with spouses' evaluations of their marriage. Spouses in the mutually supportive cluster reported greater intimacy and maintenance and less conflict and ambivalence, although this was more consistently the case in comparison to the wife compensation cluster, as opposed to the mutually engaged cluster. The implications of these typologies are discussed as they pertain to efforts on the part of both practitioners to promote marital happiness and repair marital relations when couples are faced with difficulties. © FPI, Inc.

  8. Concept analysis of nurses' happiness.

    PubMed

    Ozkara San, Eda

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this analysis is to examine and clarify the concept of nurses' happiness (NH), understand the different uses of the concept, explore the conditions that foster it, and consider the consequences of NH, including the phenomena that emerge as a result of NH occurrence. The author utilizes Walker and Avant's eight-stage concept analysis. Computer and manual searches were conducted of articles in the English language addressing NH from 1990 to present. EBSCO and PubMed are the electronic databases used to access literature for this paper. For both databases, the researcher has examined this new term by splitting the term nurses' happiness into its two root words, namely nurses and happiness. An inductive analysis of articles produced descriptive themes. Definitions of happiness and NH are analyzed. Antecedents, attributes, and consequences of NH are described. Model, borderline, contrary, and related cases for NH are also identified. This concept analysis helps in the understanding of the definition of NH, the attributes that contribute to the occurrence of NH in clinical practice, as well as the consequences of NH, and how it should be measured from a nursing perspective. Ozkara San. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Shared meanings of success, happiness, and health among adults with cerebral palsy and physiotherapists: implications for practice and research.

    PubMed

    Gannotti, Mary E; Blanchard, Yvette; Blumberg, Lisa; LaRocco, Diana

    2018-01-25

    To describe shared meanings of success, happiness, and health of adults with cerebral palsy and physiotherapists. Ethnography employed open ended/semi-structured interviews and structured questionnaires (Satisfaction with Life Scale, Beck Depression Inventory-II ® , Oxford Happiness Questionnaire, Life Habits Questionnaire, Medical Outcomes Study-Social Support Survey, and PROMIS ® Pain Interference Scale). Content analysis of qualitative data and principal components analysis of questionnaire responses identified shared meanings. Fourteen adults with cerebral palsy and 15 physiotherapists (median age 46) had similar levels of education. For both groups, social achievements, personal goals, employment, and supporting a family defined success. Adults with cerebral palsy more frequently identified tenacity and persistence as important for success. Both groups described happiness as spending time with loved ones, recreational activities, and having purpose in life. Adults with cerebral palsy identified the importance of self-acceptance for happiness. For both, health included self-care of mind/spirit, cardiovascular and musculoskeletal wellness, and physical fitness (the ability to perform physical tasks). Analysis of questionnaire responses identified shared meanings (eigenvalue 41, 95% explained variance). Adults with cerebral palsy and physiotherapists share similar experiences, behaviors, and feelings about success, happiness, and health. This knowledge may improve communication, enhance evidence-based practice, and foster services to support wellbeing. Implications for rehabilitation Cerebral palsy is a life-long condition, but we know little about social and physical outcomes for adults with cerebral palsy. Lack of understanding about meanings of success, happiness, and health may be a barrier for consumers accessing and for providers delivering evidence-based services. Physiotherapists and adults with cerebral palsy share similar meanings (feelings

  10. Greater perceptual sensitivity to happy facial expression.

    PubMed

    Maher, Stephen; Ekstrom, Tor; Chen, Yue

    2014-01-01

    Perception of subtle facial expressions is essential for social functioning; yet it is unclear if human perceptual sensitivities differ in detecting varying types of facial emotions. Evidence diverges as to whether salient negative versus positive emotions (such as sadness versus happiness) are preferentially processed. Here, we measured perceptual thresholds for the detection of four types of emotion in faces--happiness, fear, anger, and sadness--using psychophysical methods. We also evaluated the association of the perceptual performances with facial morphological changes between neutral and respective emotion types. Human observers were highly sensitive to happiness compared with the other emotional expressions. Further, this heightened perceptual sensitivity to happy expressions can be attributed largely to the emotion-induced morphological change of a particular facial feature (end-lip raise).

  11. Higher Education: Teach Happiness and Wisdom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this article is to examine why a university should teach happiness and wisdom from religious perspectives. To explore this paper systematically, three research questions are addressed. First, why higher education institutions should teach happiness? Second, why higher education institutions should teach wisdom? Third, how ethical…

  12. A new science of happiness: the paradox of pleasure.

    PubMed

    Paulson, Steve; Azzarelli, Kim K; McMahon, Darrin M; Schwartz, Barry

    2016-11-01

    The pursuit of happiness is enshrined in the founding document of our nation as a fundamental and inalienable right. Yet nowhere is the method of this pursuit clearly defined. What, exactly, does it mean to be happy, and how can such happiness be sustained over the long term? Can happiness be accurately gauged or measured? How does the paradoxical relationship between happiness and pleasure shape our quest to lead the good life? And what does modern science have to tell us about this universal yet elusive pursuit? Steve Paulson, executive producer and host of To the Best of Our Knowledge, moderated a discussion that included attorney and author Kim Azzarelli, historian Darrin McMahon, and social psychologist Barry Schwartz, who joined forces to share their research and insight on happiness, pleasure, and the coveted good life. © 2016 New York Academy of Sciences.

  13. Life Satisfaction and Happiness in Turkey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Selim, Sibel

    2008-01-01

    This research aims to investigate life satisfaction and happiness in Turkey. It extends the previous researches on subjective well-being (SWB) for Turkey by considering both happiness and life satisfaction. The previous researches for Turkey are local studies, and their findings cannot be generalized to the population of Turkish society. Given…

  14. Marital Happiness and Psychological Well-Being across the Life Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kamp Dush, Claire M.; Taylor, Miles G.; Kroeger, Rhiannon A.

    2008-01-01

    Using data from six waves of the Study of Marital Instability over the Life Course (N = 1,998), we conducted a latent class analysis to test for distinct marital happiness trajectories. We found three distinct marital happiness trajectories: low, middle, and high happiness. Initial levels of life happiness were strongly associated with membership…

  15. Progressive taxation, income inequality, and happiness.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Shigehiro; Kushlev, Kostadin; Schimmack, Ulrich

    2018-01-01

    Income inequality has become one of the more widely debated social issues today. The current article explores the role of progressive taxation in income inequality and happiness. Using historical data in the United States from 1962 to 2014, we found that income inequality was substantially smaller in years when the income tax was more progressive (i.e., a higher tax rate for higher income brackets), even when controlling for variables like stock market performance and unemployment rate. Time lag analyses further showed that higher progressive taxation predicted increasingly lower income inequality up to 5 years later. Data from the General Social Survey (1972-2014; N = 59,599) with U.S. residents (hereafter referred to as "Americans") showed that during years with higher progressive taxation rates, less wealthy Americans-those in the lowest 40% of the income distribution-tended to be happier, whereas the richest 20% were not significantly less happy. Mediational analyses confirmed that the association of progressive taxation with the happiness of less wealthy Americans can be explained by lower income inequality in years with higher progressive taxation. A separate sample of Americans polled online (N = 373) correctly predicted the positive association between progressive taxation and the happiness of poorer Americans but incorrectly expected a strong negative association between progressive taxation and the happiness of richer Americans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  16. [An investigation of occupational stress, social support, and happiness of junior civil servants].

    PubMed

    Wang, Lingfeng

    2015-10-01

    To investigate the current status of occupational stress, social support, and happiness in junior civil servants in northern Zhejiang Province, China, and to investigate the relationship between occupational stress, social support and happiness. A total of 360 junior civil servants from below-county-level administrative organizations in Huzhou, Jiaxing, and Hangzhou were surveyed using the job stress questionnaire and social support rating scale for civil servants. The total average score of occupational stress in junior civil servants was 2.52 ± 0.48, indicating a moderate level of occupational stress; career prospects topped the rank list of sources of occupational stress with a score of 2.90 ± 0.60; different generations showed significant differences in the sources and total average scores of occupational stress, with the scores of the 1980s, 1990s, 1970s, 1950s, and 1960s groups decreasing in the same order (P<0.01); the occupational stress of males was significantly greater than that of the females (P<0.01). The levels of social support and happiness among the junior civil servants were relatively low, with scores of 38.43 ± 8.38 and 76.88 ± 12.77, respectively; different generations also showed significant differences, with the scores of 1980s, 1990s, 1970s, 1950s, and 1960s groups increasing in the same order (P<0.01); females experienced significantly more social support and happiness than males (P<0.01). Sources of occupational stress like superior leaders, work task, tendency to perfection, and career prospects, objective and subjective support, and utilization of the support were significantly related to the happiness of junior civil servants (r=0.405~0.571, P<0.01; β=0.090~0.210, P <0.01). Occupational stress and social support are significantly related to the happiness of junior civil servants.

  17. Scaling laws for the mechanics of loose and cohesive granular materials based on Baxter's sticky hard spheres

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gaume, Johan; Löwe, Henning; Tan, Shurun; Tsang, Leung

    2017-09-01

    We have conducted discrete element simulations (pfc3d) of very loose, cohesive, granular assemblies with initial configurations which are drawn from Baxter's sticky hard sphere (SHS) ensemble. The SHS model is employed as a promising auxiliary means to independently control the coordination number zc of cohesive contacts and particle volume fraction ϕ of the initial states. We focus on discerning the role of zc and ϕ for the elastic modulus, failure strength, and the plastic consolidation line under quasistatic, uniaxial compression. We find scaling behavior of the modulus and the strength, which both scale with the cohesive contact density νc=zcϕ of the initial state according to a power law. In contrast, the behavior of the plastic consolidation curve is shown to be independent of the initial conditions. Our results show the primary control of the initial contact density on the mechanics of cohesive granular materials for small deformations, which can be conveniently, but not exclusively explored within the SHS-based assembling procedure.

  18. "Happiness and Education": Tilting at Windmills?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Verducci, Susan

    2013-01-01

    This essay explores the question: Is Nel Noddings a visionary who sees past the constraints of contemporary education or is she, like Don Quixote, madly tilting at windmills in her description and defense of happiness as an educational aim? Viewing the educational aim of happiness as an ideal raises substantial challenges for the practicality of…

  19. The pursuit of happiness: time, money, and social connection.

    PubMed

    Mogilner, Cassie

    2010-09-01

    Does thinking about time, rather than money, influence how effectively individuals pursue personal happiness? Laboratory and field experiments revealed that implicitly activating the construct of time motivates individuals to spend more time with friends and family and less time working-behaviors that are associated with greater happiness. In contrast, implicitly activating money motivates individuals to work more and socialize less, which (although productive) does not increase happiness. Implications for the relative roles of time versus money in the pursuit of happiness are discussed.

  20. Happiness increases distraction by auditory deviant stimuli.

    PubMed

    Pacheco-Unguetti, Antonia Pilar; Parmentier, Fabrice B R

    2016-08-01

    Rare and unexpected changes (deviants) in an otherwise repeated stream of task-irrelevant auditory distractors (standards) capture attention and impair behavioural performance in an ongoing visual task. Recent evidence indicates that this effect is increased by sadness in a task involving neutral stimuli. We tested the hypothesis that such effect may not be limited to negative emotions but reflect a general depletion of attentional resources by examining whether a positive emotion (happiness) would increase deviance distraction too. Prior to performing an auditory-visual oddball task, happiness or a neutral mood was induced in participants by means of the exposure to music and the recollection of an autobiographical event. Results from the oddball task showed significantly larger deviance distraction following the induction of happiness. Interestingly, the small amount of distraction typically observed on the standard trial following a deviant trial (post-deviance distraction) was not increased by happiness. We speculate that happiness might interfere with the disengagement of attention from the deviant sound back towards the target stimulus (through the depletion of cognitive resources and/or mind wandering) but help subsequent cognitive control to recover from distraction. © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

  1. Perceived autonomy support, friendship maintenance, and happiness.

    PubMed

    Demir, Melikşah; Ozdemir, Metin; Marum, Kendra Patrice

    2011-01-01

    Decades of empirical research have shown that perceived autonomy support in close relationships is an essential correlate of happiness. However, what might account for the relationship between the 2? For this article, 4 studies (total N=1325) investigated friendship maintenance as a mediator of the association between friendship autonomy support and happiness. The first 3 studies supported the model for the best friendship of the individual when happiness was assessed with 3 different measures. The 4th study extended the findings by showing that the model was generalizable to the other close friendship of the individual. Overall, the results supported the idea that engaging in routine and strategic behaviors to maintain friendships explains how perceived autonomy support in friendships is associated with happiness. The theoretical and applied implications of the findings were discussed and suggestions for future research were made.

  2. Physical activity predicts quality of life and happiness in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy.

    PubMed

    Maher, Carol Ann; Toohey, Monica; Ferguson, Monika

    2016-01-01

    To examine the associations between physical activity, health-related quality of life and happiness in young people with cerebral palsy. A total of 70 young people with cerebral palsy (45 males, 25 females; mean age 13 years 11 months, SD 2 years 0 month) took part in a cross-sectional, descriptive postal survey assessing physical activity (Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents), functional ability (Gross Motor Function Classification System), quality of life (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0) and happiness (single Likert-scale item). Relationships between physical activity, quality of life and happiness were examined using backward stepwise linear regression. Physical activity significantly predicted physical quality of life (R(2 )= 0.64, β = 6.12, p = 0.02), social quality of life (R(2 )= 0.28, β = 9.27, p < 0.01) and happiness (R(2 )= 0.08, β = 0.9, p = 0.04). Physical activity was not associated with emotional or school quality of life. This study found a positive association between physical activity, social and physical quality of life, and happiness in young people with cerebral palsy. Findings underscore the potential benefits of physical activity for the wellbeing of young people with cerebral palsy, in addition to its well-recognised physical and health benefits. Physical activity is a key predictor of quality of life and happiness in young people with cerebral palsy. Physical activity is widely recognised as having physical health benefits for young people with cerebral palsy; however, this study also highlights that it may have important benefits for wellbeing, quality of life and happiness. This emphasises the need for clinical services and intervention studies aimed specifically at increasing physical activity amongst children and adolescents with cerebral palsy.

  3. Examining the Relation between Emotional Intelligence and Happiness Status of Wellness Trainers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zorba, Ercan; Pala, Adem; Göksel, Ali Gürel

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study is examining the relation between the emotional intelligence and happiness of the wellness coaches. 390 wellness coaches 282 of whom were women and 108 of whom were men participated voluntarily in the study. The participants were actively working as wellness coaches. The Emotional Intelligence Scale (EIS) whose Turkish…

  4. The Affective Dimension of Religion and Personal Happiness among Students in Estonia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Francis, Leslie J.; Elken, Ahto; Robbins, Mandy

    2012-01-01

    A sample of 150 students in Estonia (119 from a secular university and 31 from a Lutheran theological institute) completed the Oxford Happiness Measure and the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity. The data show no significant correlation between these two variables; thus the findings challenge the generalizability to Estonia of the…

  5. Feeling Happy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Frank, Helen

    1976-01-01

    "Feeling happy" focuses on the syndrome of self-indulgence, self-actualization or self-fulfillment as antagonistic to the survival of marital agreement. Inspite of the obvious redeeming qualities of either spouse the unhappy partner opts for divorce. The article posits the familial advantages of responsiblity and commitment and reviews the older…

  6. Higher Education and Happiness in the Age of Information

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2011-01-01

    This article discusses relations between happiness and higher education in the age of information, focusing on the need for the university to pursue happiness. Three questions are addressed. First, why should higher education pursue happiness? Second, what are the shapes and characteristics of higher education in the information age? Third, what…

  7. Sport and Recreation Are Associated With Happiness Across Countries.

    PubMed

    Balish, Shea M; Conacher, Dan; Dithurbide, Lori

    2016-12-01

    Preliminary findings suggest sport participation is positively associated with happiness. However, it is unknown if this association is universal and how sport compares to other leisure activities in terms of an association with happiness. This study had 3 objectives: (a) to test if sport membership is associated with happiness, (b) to test if this relationship is universal, and (c) to compare sport membership to other leisure activities. Hierarchal Bernoulli modeling was used to analyze the 6th wave (2014) of the World Values Survey (n Ss  = 67,736, n countries  = 48). The critical variables included measures of membership in different leisure activities (e.g., sport membership) and self-reported happiness. Even when controlling for known covariates such as perceived health, those who report sport/recreation membership are more likely to report being happy compared with non-sport members (OR = 1.38; 95% CI [1.24, 1.53]). Being a member of a sport organization had a greater association with happiness than did being a member of other leisure activities. Follow-up analyses suggested that this association is nearly universal. This study offers initial evidence that sport membership elicits happiness across many different societies. Although the causal direction remains unclear, this study establishes a positive association between happiness and sport membership. Future research should target the mechanism(s) of this effect, which we hypothesize are meaningful social relations.

  8. Folk Theories of Happiness: A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Conceptions of Happiness in Germany and South Africa

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pflug, Jan

    2009-01-01

    Although happiness as a state of mind may be universal, its meaning takes culture-specific forms. Drawing on the concept of folk theories, this study attempted to uncover lay beliefs about the nature of happiness in Germany and South Africa. To that end, 57 German and 44 black South African students wrote free-format essays in response to the…

  9. Effects of physical exercise programme on happiness among older people.

    PubMed

    Khazaee-Pool, M; Sadeghi, R; Majlessi, F; Rahimi Foroushani, A

    2015-02-01

    This randomized-controlled trial investigated the effect of physical exercise programme (PEP) on happiness among older adults in Nowshahr, Iran. Results of this study on 120 male and female volunteers showed that an 8-week group physical exercise programme was significantly effective in older adults' happiness. Findings showed that physical exercise programme is so beneficial for increasing older adults' happiness. Physical activity is associated with well-being and happiness. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an 8-week long physical exercise programme (PEP) on happiness among older adults in Nowshahr, Iran. This was a randomized control trial study. The participants consisted of a group of 120 male and female volunteers (mean ± SD age: 71 ± 5.86 years) in a convenience sampling among older adults in public parks in Nowshahr, Iran. We randomly allocated them into experimental (n = 60) and control (n = 60) groups. A validated instrument was used to measure well-being and happiness [Oxford Happiness Inventory (OHI)]. Respondents were asked to complete the OHI before and 2 months after implementing PEP. The 8-week PEP was implemented with the intervention group. The statistical analysis of the data was conducted using paired t-test, Fisher's exact test and χ(2). Before the intervention, there was no significant difference in the happiness mean score between the case and control groups; however, after implementing PEP, happiness significantly improved among the experimental group (P = 0.001) and did not improve within the control group (P = 0.79). It can be concluded that PEP had positive effects on happiness among older adults. Planning and implementing of physical activity is so important for older happiness. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  10. "So Happy I Could Shout!" and "So Happy I Could Cry!" Dimorphous expressions represent and communicate motivational aspects of positive emotions.

    PubMed

    Aragón, Oriana R; Bargh, John A

    2018-03-01

    Happiness can be expressed through smiles. Happiness can also be expressed through physical displays that without context, would appear to be sadness (tears, downward turned mouths, and crumpled body postures) and anger (clenched jaws, snarled lips, furrowed brows, and pumped fists). These seemingly incongruent displays of happiness, termed dimorphous expressions, we propose, represent and communicate expressers' motivational orientations. When participants reported their own aggressive expressions in positive or negative contexts, their expressions represented positive or negative emotional experiences respectively, imbued with appetitive orientations (feelings of wanting to go). In contrast, reported sad expressions, in positive or negative contexts, represented positive and negative emotional experiences respectively, imbued with consummatory orientations (feelings of wanting to pause). In six additional experiments, participant observers interpreted that aggression displayed in positive contexts signalled happy-appetitive states, and sadness displayed in positive contexts signalled happy-consummatory states. Implications for the production and interpretation of emotion expressions are discussed.

  11. Predicting students’ happiness from physiology, phone, mobility, and behavioral data

    PubMed Central

    Jaques, Natasha; Taylor, Sara; Azaria, Asaph; Ghandeharioun, Asma; Sano, Akane; Picard, Rosalind

    2017-01-01

    In order to model students’ happiness, we apply machine learning methods to data collected from undergrad students monitored over the course of one month each. The data collected include physiological signals, location, smartphone logs, and survey responses to behavioral questions. Each day, participants reported their wellbeing on measures including stress, health, and happiness. Because of the relationship between happiness and depression, modeling happiness may help us to detect individuals who are at risk of depression and guide interventions to help them. We are also interested in how behavioral factors (such as sleep and social activity) affect happiness positively and negatively. A variety of machine learning and feature selection techniques are compared, including Gaussian Mixture Models and ensemble classification. We achieve 70% classification accuracy of self-reported happiness on held-out test data. PMID:28515966

  12. Predicting students' happiness from physiology, phone, mobility, and behavioral data.

    PubMed

    Jaques, Natasha; Taylor, Sara; Azaria, Asaph; Ghandeharioun, Asma; Sano, Akane; Picard, Rosalind

    2015-09-01

    In order to model students' happiness, we apply machine learning methods to data collected from undergrad students monitored over the course of one month each. The data collected include physiological signals, location, smartphone logs, and survey responses to behavioral questions. Each day, participants reported their wellbeing on measures including stress, health, and happiness. Because of the relationship between happiness and depression, modeling happiness may help us to detect individuals who are at risk of depression and guide interventions to help them. We are also interested in how behavioral factors (such as sleep and social activity) affect happiness positively and negatively. A variety of machine learning and feature selection techniques are compared, including Gaussian Mixture Models and ensemble classification. We achieve 70% classification accuracy of self-reported happiness on held-out test data.

  13. Sport and Recreation Are Associated with Happiness across Countries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Balish, Shea M.; Conacher, Dan; Dithurbide, Lori

    2016-01-01

    Purpose: Preliminary findings suggest sport participation is positively associated with happiness. However, it is unknown if this association is universal and how sport compares to other leisure activities in terms of an association with happiness. This study had 3 objectives: (a) to test if sport membership is associated with happiness, (b) to…

  14. Is the Study of Happiness a Worthy Scientific Pursuit?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Norrish, Jacolyn M.; Vella-Brodrick, Dianne A.

    2008-01-01

    This paper critiques the view that the study of happiness is not a worthy scientific pursuit. The happiness set point and hedonic treadmill theories denote the complexity of increasing happiness levels due to genetic limitations and adaptation, however, there is mounting evidence to suggest that with the use of appropriate measures and specific…

  15. Happy Healers

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Winter, Robin O.

    2011-01-01

    Family Medicine residency programs in the United States are required to promote resident well-being. This article describes how one residency does this by teaching the concepts of Positive Psychology and Authentic Happiness developed by Dr. Martin Seligman utilizing a multi-media curriculum. As part of this curriculum, residents listen to the song…

  16. Reconsidering Happiness in the Context of Social Justice Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jackson, Liz; Bingham, Charles

    2018-01-01

    That happiness leads to lack of harm and suffering, representing both a good and a means to good, is promoted, for example, by educational philosophers such as Nel Noddings. But happiness should not be seen as an unproblematic goal, for education or otherwise. In this article, we critically investigate the importance of happiness in the…

  17. Visual attention mechanisms in happiness versus trustworthiness processing of facial expressions.

    PubMed

    Calvo, Manuel G; Krumhuber, Eva G; Fernández-Martín, Andrés

    2018-03-01

    A happy facial expression makes a person look (more) trustworthy. Do perceptions of happiness and trustworthiness rely on the same face regions and visual attention processes? In an eye-tracking study, eye movements and fixations were recorded while participants judged the un/happiness or the un/trustworthiness of dynamic facial expressions in which the eyes and/or the mouth unfolded from neutral to happy or vice versa. A smiling mouth and happy eyes enhanced perceived happiness and trustworthiness similarly, with a greater contribution of the smile relative to the eyes. This comparable judgement output for happiness and trustworthiness was reached through shared as well as distinct attentional mechanisms: (a) entry times and (b) initial fixation thresholds for each face region were equivalent for both judgements, thereby revealing the same attentional orienting in happiness and trustworthiness processing. However, (c) greater and (d) longer fixation density for the mouth region in the happiness task, and for the eye region in the trustworthiness task, demonstrated different selective attentional engagement. Relatedly, (e) mean fixation duration across face regions was longer in the trustworthiness task, thus showing increased attentional intensity or processing effort.

  18. Happiness and health: lessons--and questions--for public policy.

    PubMed

    Graham, Carol

    2008-01-01

    This paper reviews the happiness-health relationship from an economics perspective, highlighting the role of adaptation. People's expectations for health standards influence their reported health and associated happiness, a finding that roughly mirrors the Easterlin paradox in income and happiness. Research on unhappiness and obesity shows that norms and stigma vary a great deal across countries and cohorts, mediating the related well-being costs. Better understanding this variance and its effects on incentives for addressing the condition is important to policy design. More generally, the paper discusses how happiness surveys can-and cannot-inform public health policy.

  19. A search for ejecta nebulae around Wolf-Rayet stars using the SHS Hα survey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stock, D. J.; Barlow, M. J.

    2010-12-01

    Recent large-scale Galactic plane Hα surveys allow a re-examination of the environs of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars for the presence of a circumstellar nebula. Using the morphologies of WR nebulae known to be composed of stellar ejecta as a guide, we constructed ejecta nebula criteria similar to those of Chu and searched for likely WR ejecta nebulae in the Southern Hα Survey (SHS). A new WR ejecta nebula around WR 8 is found and its morphology is discussed. The fraction of WR stars with ejecta-type nebulae is roughly consistent between the Milky Way (MW) and Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) at around 5-6 per cent, with the MW sample dominated by nitrogen-rich WR central stars (WN type) and the LMC stars having a higher proportion of carbon-rich WR central stars (WC type). We compare our results with those of previous surveys, including those of Marston and Miller & Chu, and find broad consistency. We investigate several trends in the sample: most of the clear examples of ejecta nebulae have WNh central stars, and very few ejecta nebulae have binary central stars. Finally, the possibly unique evolutionary status of the nebula around the binary star WR 71 is explored.

  20. Culture shapes whether the pursuit of happiness predicts higher or lower well-being

    PubMed Central

    Ford, Brett Q.; Dmitrieva, Julia O.; Heller, Daniel; Chentsova-Dutton, Yulia; Grossmann, Igor; Tamir, Maya; Uchida, Yukiko; Koopmann-Holm, Birgit; Floerke, Victoria A.; Uhrig, Meike; Bokhan, Tatiana; Mauss, Iris B.

    2015-01-01

    Pursuing happiness can paradoxically impair well-being. Here, we propose the potential downsides to pursuing happiness may be specific to individualistic cultures. In collectivistic (vs. individualistic) cultures, pursuing happiness may be more successful because happiness is viewed – and thus pursued – in relatively socially-engaged ways. In four geographical regions that vary in level of collectivism (U.S., Germany, Russia, East Asia), we assessed participants’ well-being, motivation to pursue happiness, and to what extent they pursued happiness in socially-engaged ways. Motivation to pursue happiness predicted lower well-being in the U.S., did not predict well-being in Germany, and predicted higher well-being in Russia and in East Asia. These cultural differences in the link between motivation to pursue happiness and well-being were explained by cultural differences in the socially-engaged pursuit of happiness. These findings suggest that culture shapes whether the pursuit of happiness is linked with better or worse well-being, perhaps via how people pursue happiness. PMID:26347945

  1. Environment and Happiness: New Evidence for Spain

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cunado, Juncal; Perez de Gracia, Fernando

    2013-01-01

    This paper explores the relationship between air pollution, climate and reported subjective well-being (or happiness) in Spanish regions. The results show that, after controlling for most of the socio-economic variables affecting happiness, there are still significant regional differences in subjective well-being. Evidence also suggests that…

  2. Happiness, Psychology, and Degrees of Realism

    PubMed Central

    Lavazza, Andrea

    2016-01-01

    The recent emphasis on a realist ontology that cannot be overshadowed by subjectivist or relativist perspectives seems to have a number of consequences for psychology as well. My attempt here is to analyse the relationship between happiness as a state of the individual and the states of the external world and the brain events related to (or, in some hypotheses, causally responsible for) its occurrence. It can be maintained that different degrees of realism are suitable to describe the states of happiness and this fact might have relevant psychological implications, namely for the so-called positive psychology. This is especially true now that there are methods available to induce subjective states of happiness unrelated to the external conditions usually taken to be linked to such states. PMID:27536261

  3. Dissociating maternal responses to sad and happy facial expressions of their own child: An fMRI study.

    PubMed

    Kluczniok, Dorothea; Hindi Attar, Catherine; Stein, Jenny; Poppinga, Sina; Fydrich, Thomas; Jaite, Charlotte; Kappel, Viola; Brunner, Romuald; Herpertz, Sabine C; Boedeker, Katja; Bermpohl, Felix

    2017-01-01

    Maternal sensitive behavior depends on recognizing one's own child's affective states. The present study investigated distinct and overlapping neural responses of mothers to sad and happy facial expressions of their own child (in comparison to facial expressions of an unfamiliar child). We used functional MRI to measure dissociable and overlapping activation patterns in 27 healthy mothers in response to happy, neutral and sad facial expressions of their own school-aged child and a gender- and age-matched unfamiliar child. To investigate differential activation to sad compared to happy faces of one's own child, we used interaction contrasts. During the scan, mothers had to indicate the affect of the presented face. After scanning, they were asked to rate the perceived emotional arousal and valence levels for each face using a 7-point Likert-scale (adapted SAM version). While viewing their own child's sad faces, mothers showed activation in the amygdala and anterior cingulate cortex whereas happy facial expressions of the own child elicited activation in the hippocampus. Conjoint activation in response to one's own child happy and sad expressions was found in the insula and the superior temporal gyrus. Maternal brain activations differed depending on the child's affective state. Sad faces of the own child activated areas commonly associated with a threat detection network, whereas happy faces activated reward related brain areas. Overlapping activation was found in empathy related networks. These distinct neural activation patterns might facilitate sensitive maternal behavior.

  4. Work and Marital Happiness among African Americans.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ball, Richard E.

    This study investigated the relationships between the employment statuses of African American husbands and wives, and their marital happiness. Data for 234 husbands and 292 wives were obtained from the 1980-86 General Social Surveys. The data corroborated earlier findings that African American husbands indicated greater marital happiness than did…

  5. Purity Determination by Capillary Electrophoresis Sodium Hexadecyl Sulfate (CE-SHS): A Novel Application For Therapeutic Protein Characterization.

    PubMed

    Beckman, Jeff; Song, Yuanli; Gu, Yan; Voronov, Sergey; Chennamsetty, Naresh; Krystek, Stanley; Mussa, Nesredin; Li, Zheng Jian

    2018-02-20

    Capillary gel electrophoresis using sodium dodecyl sulfate (CE-SDS) is used commercially to provide quantitative purity data for therapeutic protein characterization and release. In CE-SDS, proteins are denatured under reducing or nonreducing conditions in the presence of SDS and electrophoretically separated by molecular weight and hydrodynamic radius through a sieving polymer matrix. Acceptable performance of this method would yield protein peaks that are baseline resolved and symmetrical. Nominal CE-SDS conditions and parameters are not optimal for all therapeutic proteins, specifically for Recombinant Therapeutic Protein-1 (RTP-1), where acceptable resolution and peak symmetry were not achieved. The application of longer alkyl chain detergents in the running buffer matrix substantially improved assay performance. Matrix running buffer containing sodium hexadecyl sulfate (SHS) increased peak resolution and plate count 3- and 8-fold, respectively, compared to a traditional SDS-based running gel matrix. At Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS), we developed and qualified a viable method for the characterization and release of RTP-1 using an SHS-containing running buffer matrix. This work underscores the potential of detergents other than SDS to enhance the resolution and separation power of CE-based separation methods.

  6. Buying time promotes happiness.

    PubMed

    Whillans, Ashley V; Dunn, Elizabeth W; Smeets, Paul; Bekkers, Rene; Norton, Michael I

    2017-08-08

    Around the world, increases in wealth have produced an unintended consequence: a rising sense of time scarcity. We provide evidence that using money to buy time can provide a buffer against this time famine, thereby promoting happiness. Using large, diverse samples from the United States, Canada, Denmark, and The Netherlands ( n = 6,271), we show that individuals who spend money on time-saving services report greater life satisfaction. A field experiment provides causal evidence that working adults report greater happiness after spending money on a time-saving purchase than on a material purchase. Together, these results suggest that using money to buy time can protect people from the detrimental effects of time pressure on life satisfaction.

  7. Buying time promotes happiness

    PubMed Central

    Whillans, Ashley V.; Dunn, Elizabeth W.; Smeets, Paul; Bekkers, Rene; Norton, Michael I.

    2017-01-01

    Around the world, increases in wealth have produced an unintended consequence: a rising sense of time scarcity. We provide evidence that using money to buy time can provide a buffer against this time famine, thereby promoting happiness. Using large, diverse samples from the United States, Canada, Denmark, and The Netherlands (n = 6,271), we show that individuals who spend money on time-saving services report greater life satisfaction. A field experiment provides causal evidence that working adults report greater happiness after spending money on a time-saving purchase than on a material purchase. Together, these results suggest that using money to buy time can protect people from the detrimental effects of time pressure on life satisfaction. PMID:28739889

  8. Self-centeredness and selflessness: happiness correlates and mediating psychological processes.

    PubMed

    Dambrun, Michael

    2017-01-01

    The main objective of this research was to test central assumptions from the Self-centeredness/Selflessness Happiness Model. According to this model, while self-centered psychological functioning induces fluctuating happiness, authentic-durable happiness results from selflessness. Distinct mediating processes are supposed to account for these relationships: afflictive affects (e.g., anger, fear, jealousy, frustration) in the case of the former, and both emotional stability and feelings of harmony in the case of the latter. We tested these hypotheses in two studies based on heterogeneous samples of citizens ( n  = 547). Factor analyses revealed that self-centeredness (assessed through egocentrism and materialism) and selflessness (assessed through self-transcendence and connectedness to other) were two distinct psychological constructs. Second, while self-centeredness was positively and significantly related to fluctuating happiness, selflessness was positively and significantly related to authentic-durable happiness. Finally, distinct psychological processes mediated these relationships (study 2). On one hand, the relationship between self-centeredness and fluctuating happiness was fully mediated by afflictive affects. On the other hand, emotional stability and the feeling of being in harmony partially mediated the relation between selflessness and authentic-durable happiness.

  9. Self-centeredness and selflessness: happiness correlates and mediating psychological processes

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    The main objective of this research was to test central assumptions from the Self-centeredness/Selflessness Happiness Model. According to this model, while self-centered psychological functioning induces fluctuating happiness, authentic–durable happiness results from selflessness. Distinct mediating processes are supposed to account for these relationships: afflictive affects (e.g., anger, fear, jealousy, frustration) in the case of the former, and both emotional stability and feelings of harmony in the case of the latter. We tested these hypotheses in two studies based on heterogeneous samples of citizens (n = 547). Factor analyses revealed that self-centeredness (assessed through egocentrism and materialism) and selflessness (assessed through self-transcendence and connectedness to other) were two distinct psychological constructs. Second, while self-centeredness was positively and significantly related to fluctuating happiness, selflessness was positively and significantly related to authentic–durable happiness. Finally, distinct psychological processes mediated these relationships (study 2). On one hand, the relationship between self-centeredness and fluctuating happiness was fully mediated by afflictive affects. On the other hand, emotional stability and the feeling of being in harmony partially mediated the relation between selflessness and authentic–durable happiness. PMID:28507820

  10. Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys.

    PubMed

    Clark, Andrew E; Flèche, Sarah; Senik, Claudia

    2016-09-01

    In spite of the great U-turn that saw income inequality rise in Western countries in the 1980s, happiness inequality has fallen in countries that have experienced income growth (but not in those that did not). Modern growth has reduced the share of both the "very unhappy" and the "perfectly happy". Lower happiness inequality is found both between and within countries, and between and within individuals. Our cross-country regression results argue that the extension of various public goods helps to explain this greater happiness homogeneity. This new stylised fact arguably comes as a bonus to the Easterlin paradox, offering a somewhat brighter perspective for developing countries.

  11. Culture shapes whether the pursuit of happiness predicts higher or lower well-being.

    PubMed

    Ford, Brett Q; Dmitrieva, Julia O; Heller, Daniel; Chentsova-Dutton, Yulia; Grossmann, Igor; Tamir, Maya; Uchida, Yukiko; Koopmann-Holm, Birgit; Floerke, Victoria A; Uhrig, Meike; Bokhan, Tatiana; Mauss, Iris B

    2015-12-01

    Pursuing happiness can paradoxically impair well-being. Here, the authors propose the potential downsides to pursuing happiness may be specific to individualistic cultures. In collectivistic (vs. individualistic) cultures, pursuing happiness may be more successful because happiness is viewed--and thus pursued--in relatively socially engaged ways. In 4 geographical regions that vary in level of collectivism (United States, Germany, Russia, East Asia), we assessed participants' well-being, motivation to pursue happiness, and to what extent they pursued happiness in socially engaged ways. Motivation to pursue happiness predicted lower well-being in the United States, did not predict well-being in Germany, and predicted higher well-being in Russia and in East Asia. These cultural differences in the link between motivation to pursue happiness and well-being were explained by cultural differences in the socially engaged pursuit of happiness. These findings suggest that culture shapes whether the pursuit of happiness is linked with better or worse well-being, perhaps via how people pursue happiness. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  12. Forgiveness and Subjective Happiness of University Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Batik, Meryem Vural; Bingöl, Tugba Yilmaz; Kodaz, Aynur Firinci; Hosoglu, Rumeysa

    2017-01-01

    This research was conducted to investigate the forgiveness and subjective happiness level of university students in terms of gender, faculty, grade, residence, and parental attitudes, and to determine predictive role of forgiveness on subjective happiness. The study group consists of 828 university students (56.3% female, 43.7% male). The data was…

  13. The Impact of Economic Crisis on Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gudmundsdottir, Dora Gudrun

    2013-01-01

    There is a common belief that economic crisis will lead to a decrease in subjective wellbeing. Previous studies indicate that income is correlated with happiness and unemployment with unhappiness. The relationship between increased income and happiness is well documented while the impact of decreased income has been less explored. The aim of this…

  14. Is it good to make happy people?

    PubMed

    Rachels, Stuart

    1998-04-01

    Would it be good, other things being equal, for additional people to exist whose lives would be worth living? I examine and reject several arguments for the answer that it would not be good; then I offer opposing arguments that I believe are more successful. Thus, I agree with utilitarians who say that it is better for there to be more happy people. Next I argue for the stronger claim that the happiness of potential people is as important as that of adults. Potential quality of life, then, matters in a host of bioethical issues: abortion, commercial surrogacy, the treatment of defective newborns, and so on. What is the practical upshot of all this? I reject the idea that we must do whatever is necessary to prolong life worth living. But I also reject the view that the side-effects of overpopulation always outweigh the value of realizing potential happiness. So I advocate a middle position, which I do not identify precisely. Even from this middle position, however, potential happiness is more important that is commonly assumed in bioethics.

  15. The Pursuit of Happiness Measurement: A Psychometric Model Based on Psychophysiological Correlates

    PubMed Central

    Pietro, Cipresso; Silvia, Serino; Giuseppe, Riva

    2014-01-01

    Everyone is interested in the pursuit of happiness, but the real problem for the researchers is how to measure it. Our aim was to deeply investigate happiness measurement through biomedical signals, using psychophysiological methods to objectify the happiness experiences measurements. The classic valence-arousal model of affective states to study happiness has been extensively used in psychophysiology. However, really few studies considered a real combination of these two dimensions and no study further investigated multidimensional models. More, most studies focused mainly on self-report to measure happiness and a deeper psychophysiological investigation on the dimensions of such an experience is still missing. A multidimensional model of happiness is presented and both the dimensions and the measures extracted within each dimension are comprehensively explained. This multidimensional model aims at being a milestone for future systematic study on psychophysiology of happiness and affective states. It seems everyone has a view on happiness. Joan Collins, theDalai Lama and over 100 others have released new titles on the subject since the beginning of 2001 Richard Tooth “The Psychology of Happiness (2nd Edition)”Michael Argyle, Routledge PMID:24955383

  16. Defining Happiness for Young Adults with Schizophrenia: A Building Block for Recovery

    PubMed Central

    Buckland, Helen T.; Schepp, Karen G.; Crusoe, Kristen

    2013-01-01

    Purpose Findings from this mixed methods descriptive study include a definition of happiness for young adults with schizophrenia (SCZ). Methods Thirteen men and women, ages 23 to 35, completed a series of three individual one-hour interviews over six weeks. Results This definition included themes of material happiness, relational happiness, and health happiness. Although these themes correspond to those for young adults without SCZ, four barriers to happiness were identified for this vulnerable population: 1) fear, 2) isolation, 3) medication, 4) not being considered “normal.” Conclusion Implications of these findings include designing interventions to support recovery by overcoming barriers to happiness. PMID:24070992

  17. Dissociating maternal responses to sad and happy facial expressions of their own child: An fMRI study

    PubMed Central

    Hindi Attar, Catherine; Stein, Jenny; Poppinga, Sina; Fydrich, Thomas; Jaite, Charlotte; Kappel, Viola; Brunner, Romuald; Herpertz, Sabine C.; Boedeker, Katja; Bermpohl, Felix

    2017-01-01

    Background Maternal sensitive behavior depends on recognizing one’s own child’s affective states. The present study investigated distinct and overlapping neural responses of mothers to sad and happy facial expressions of their own child (in comparison to facial expressions of an unfamiliar child). Methods We used functional MRI to measure dissociable and overlapping activation patterns in 27 healthy mothers in response to happy, neutral and sad facial expressions of their own school-aged child and a gender- and age-matched unfamiliar child. To investigate differential activation to sad compared to happy faces of one’s own child, we used interaction contrasts. During the scan, mothers had to indicate the affect of the presented face. After scanning, they were asked to rate the perceived emotional arousal and valence levels for each face using a 7-point Likert-scale (adapted SAM version). Results While viewing their own child’s sad faces, mothers showed activation in the amygdala and anterior cingulate cortex whereas happy facial expressions of the own child elicited activation in the hippocampus. Conjoint activation in response to one’s own child happy and sad expressions was found in the insula and the superior temporal gyrus. Conclusions Maternal brain activations differed depending on the child’s affective state. Sad faces of the own child activated areas commonly associated with a threat detection network, whereas happy faces activated reward related brain areas. Overlapping activation was found in empathy related networks. These distinct neural activation patterns might facilitate sensitive maternal behavior. PMID:28806742

  18. A Gender-based Comparison in Health Behaviors and State of Happiness among University Students

    PubMed Central

    Rehman, Rehana; Zafar, Amara; Mohib, Aleena

    2018-01-01

    Objective The presence of good healthy behaviors among university students is imperative for their future life. This study aimed to compare positive health behaviors and state of happiness between the two genders of Bahria University (BU), Karachi, Pakistan. Subjects and methods This cross-sectional study was conducted at BU, Karachi, Pakistan. A total 813 students participated in this study. The health questionnaire, adapted from Health and Behavior Survey and the Subjective Happiness Scale, was used to assess self-reported happiness. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 22. Results Overall self-reported health behaviors were found to be more prevalent in females as compared to males, but males reported a better self-reported general health (p = 0.012). Testicular and breast self-examination was not common in both genders. Smoking was found to be more common in males (p < 0.01). Males exhibited habit of regular breakfast (p = 0.013) whereas females showed a tendency to avoid food rich in cholesterol and fat (p < 0.01) and the practice of consuming food rich in fiber was found to be more prevalent among females (p < 0.01) and they showed urge to lose weight (p < 0.01). Sleep disturbance was found in both genders, more so in females (p = 0.012). Consciousness about dental hygiene was common in females (p < 0.01). As compared to the females, more males strongly believe that they are very happy in life (p < 0.01), and they make the most out of everything in life (p < 0.01). Conclusion There was a diverse response to positive health behaviors and state of happiness in both genders. PMID:29796354

  19. Comparison of Happiness and Spiritual Well-Being among the Community Dwelling Elderly and those who Lived in Sanitariums.

    PubMed

    Adib-Hajbaghery, Mohsen; Faraji, Mona

    2015-07-01

    Several studies are available on the lifestyle, psychological and mental health of the elderly adults. This study aimed to compare the spiritual well-being and happiness in the elderly who lived in sanitariums with those lived in the community. A comparative study was conducted on 384 elderly adults. A census sampling was used in sanitariums and a convenience sampling was performed to select the community dwelling (CD) older adults. A demographic questionnaire, the Pauloutzian and Ellison's spiritual well-being scale and the Oxford happiness questionnaire were used in this study. Descriptive statistics and Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Chi-square and Mann-Whitney U tests and Spearman correlation coefficient were employed for data analysis, using the SPSS software, version 13.0. From the total participants, 56% were CD elderly and 44% were in sanitariums. Among the CD older adults, no one was at a high level of spiritual well-being while in sanitariums 24.4% were at a high level of spiritual well-being. Also, 71.2% of the community dwelling older adults were at a high level of happiness while only 3.6% of those living in sanitariums expressed a high level of happiness. A significant association was found between the level of spiritual well-being and happiness in those who lived in sanitariums (r=0.177, P<0.021). Most of the elderly living in the community and in sanitariums showed moderate spiritual well-being and low happiness. Therefore, nurses and health authorities are responsible not only to inform the community about the importance of spiritual well-being and happiness, but also to establish some strategies in this regard.

  20. The pursuit of happiness measurement: a psychometric model based on psychophysiological correlates.

    PubMed

    Pietro, Cipresso; Silvia, Serino; Giuseppe, Riva

    2014-01-01

    Everyone is interested in the pursuit of happiness, but the real problem for the researchers is how to measure it. Our aim was to deeply investigate happiness measurement through biomedical signals, using psychophysiological methods to objectify the happiness experiences measurements. The classic valence-arousal model of affective states to study happiness has been extensively used in psychophysiology. However, really few studies considered a real combination of these two dimensions and no study further investigated multidimensional models. More, most studies focused mainly on self-report to measure happiness and a deeper psychophysiological investigation on the dimensions of such an experience is still missing. A multidimensional model of happiness is presented and both the dimensions and the measures extracted within each dimension are comprehensively explained. This multidimensional model aims at being a milestone for future systematic study on psychophysiology of happiness and affective states.

  1. Beyond Disease: Happiness, Goals, and Meanings among Persons with Multiple Sclerosis and Their Caregivers

    PubMed Central

    Delle Fave, Antonella; Bassi, Marta; Allegri, Beatrice; Cilia, Sabina; Falautano, Monica; Goretti, Benedetta; Grobberio, Monica; Minacapelli, Eleonora; Pattini, Marianna; Pietrolongo, Erika; Valsecchi, Manuela; Amato, Maria Pia; Lugaresi, Alessandra; Patti, Francesco

    2017-01-01

    The experience of persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) and their caregivers is usually investigated in terms of emotional distress and health-related quality of life, while well-being indicators remain largely underexplored. In addition, findings are often interpreted from the clinical perspective, neglecting socio-cultural aspects that may crucially contribute to individuals' functioning. At the methodological level, most studies rely on scaled instruments, not allowing participants to freely express their needs and resources. Based on the bio-psycho-social perspective endorsed by the International Classification of Functioning, well-being indicators were investigated among 62 persons with MS (PwMS), their 62 caregivers and two control groups, matched by age and gender. Participants completed the Positive Affect Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), and the Eudaimonic and Hedonic Happiness Investigation instrument (EHHI). EHHI provides information on participants' happiness, goals and meanings through scaled and open-ended questions, contextualized within major life domains. No relevant differences emerged among PwMS and caregivers, compared with the respective control groups, as concerns life domains associated with happiness, goals and meaning. Participants across groups prominently mentioned family, highlighting its intrinsic value and its relevance as a sharing context; health did not represent a major theme for PwMS; community, society and religion/spirituality issues were substantially neglected by all participants. PwMS and caregivers reported lower levels of positive affect than their control groups, while no substantial differences emerged for negative affect, happiness and meaningfulness levels in life and across most domains. Results suggest that the experience of MS is associated with well-being in relevant life domains, such as family and close relationships. Although PwMS and caregivers identified a lower number

  2. Beyond Disease: Happiness, Goals, and Meanings among Persons with Multiple Sclerosis and Their Caregivers.

    PubMed

    Delle Fave, Antonella; Bassi, Marta; Allegri, Beatrice; Cilia, Sabina; Falautano, Monica; Goretti, Benedetta; Grobberio, Monica; Minacapelli, Eleonora; Pattini, Marianna; Pietrolongo, Erika; Valsecchi, Manuela; Amato, Maria Pia; Lugaresi, Alessandra; Patti, Francesco

    2017-01-01

    The experience of persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) and their caregivers is usually investigated in terms of emotional distress and health-related quality of life, while well-being indicators remain largely underexplored. In addition, findings are often interpreted from the clinical perspective, neglecting socio-cultural aspects that may crucially contribute to individuals' functioning. At the methodological level, most studies rely on scaled instruments, not allowing participants to freely express their needs and resources. Based on the bio-psycho-social perspective endorsed by the International Classification of Functioning, well-being indicators were investigated among 62 persons with MS (PwMS), their 62 caregivers and two control groups, matched by age and gender. Participants completed the Positive Affect Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), and the Eudaimonic and Hedonic Happiness Investigation instrument (EHHI). EHHI provides information on participants' happiness, goals and meanings through scaled and open-ended questions, contextualized within major life domains. No relevant differences emerged among PwMS and caregivers, compared with the respective control groups, as concerns life domains associated with happiness, goals and meaning. Participants across groups prominently mentioned family, highlighting its intrinsic value and its relevance as a sharing context; health did not represent a major theme for PwMS; community, society and religion/spirituality issues were substantially neglected by all participants. PwMS and caregivers reported lower levels of positive affect than their control groups, while no substantial differences emerged for negative affect, happiness and meaningfulness levels in life and across most domains. Results suggest that the experience of MS is associated with well-being in relevant life domains, such as family and close relationships. Although PwMS and caregivers identified a lower number

  3. A comparative study of a happiness intervention in medical-surgical nurses.

    PubMed

    Appel, Linda; Labhart, Lana; Balczo, Pam; McCleary, Nancy; Raley, Mary; Winsett, Rebecca P

    2013-01-01

    An intervention study evaluating the impact of journaling on nurse happiness was conducted with 91 medical-surgical nurses. No differences in general happiness, percentage of time happy, and gratitude were detected among groups although journaling was qualitatively described as meaningful.

  4. Why is intelligence associated with stability of happiness?

    PubMed

    Kanazawa, Satoshi

    2014-08-01

    In the National Child Development Study, life-course variability in happiness over 18 years was significantly negatively associated with its mean level (happier individuals were more stable in their happiness, and it was not due to the ceiling effect), as well as childhood general intelligence and all Big Five personality factors (except for Agreeableness). In a multiple regression analysis, childhood general intelligence was the strongest predictor of life-course variability in life satisfaction, stronger than all Big Five personality factors, including Emotional stability. More intelligent individuals were significantly more stable in their happiness, and it was not entirely because: (1) they were more educated and wealthier (even though they were); (2) they were healthier (even though they were); (3) they were more stable in their marital status (even though they were); (4) they were happier (even though they were); (5) they were better able to assess their own happiness accurately (even though they were); or (6) they were better able to recall their previous responses more accurately or they were more honest in their survey responses (even though they were both). While I could exclude all of these alternative explanations, it ultimately remained unclear why more intelligent individuals were more stable in their happiness. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

  5. Structural and functional associations of the rostral anterior cingulate cortex with subjective happiness.

    PubMed

    Matsunaga, Masahiro; Kawamichi, Hiroaki; Koike, Takahiko; Yoshihara, Kazufumi; Yoshida, Yumiko; Takahashi, Haruka K; Nakagawa, Eri; Sadato, Norihiro

    2016-07-01

    Happiness is one of the most fundamental human goals, which has led researchers to examine the source of individual happiness. Happiness has usually been discussed regarding two aspects (a temporary positive emotion and a trait-like long-term sense of being happy) that are interrelated; for example, individuals with a high level of trait-like subjective happiness tend to rate events as more pleasant. In this study, we hypothesized that the interaction between the two aspects of happiness could be explained by the interaction between structure and function in certain brain regions. Thus, we first assessed the association between gray matter density (GMD) of healthy participants and trait-like subjective happiness using voxel-based morphometry (VBM). Further, to assess the association between the GMD and brain function, we conducted functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using the task of positive emotion induction (imagination of several emotional life events). VBM indicated that the subjective happiness was positively correlated with the GMD of the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC). Functional MRI demonstrated that experimentally induced temporal happy feelings were positively correlated with subjective happiness level and rACC activity. The rACC response to positive events was also positively correlated with its GMD. These results provide convergent structural and functional evidence that the rACC is related to happiness and suggest that the interaction between structure and function in the rACC may explain the trait-state interaction in happiness. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Environmentally Responsible Happy Nation Index: Towards an Internationally Acceptable National Success Indicator

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ng, Yew-Kwang

    2008-01-01

    Amidst increasing attention to happiness studies by economists, the New Economics Foundation launched in July 2006 the Happy Planet Index (Marks et al. 2006). This is the ratio of the average happy life years (HLY) to the per capita ecological footprint of the country concerned. HLY is in turn the product of the average happiness (or life…

  7. Does a Culture of Happiness Increase Rumination Over Failure?

    PubMed

    McGuirk, Lucy; Kuppens, Peter; Kingston, Rosemary; Bastian, Brock

    2017-07-17

    Promoting happiness within society is good for health, but could the overpromotion of happiness have a downside? Across 2 studies, we investigate 2 emotion norms associated with an emphasis on happiness-the importance of (a) seeking positive emotion, and (b) avoiding negative emotion-and whether these norms have implications for how people respond to, and seek to regulate, their negative emotional experiences. In Study 1, we used an experimental design to show that emphasizing the importance of happiness increased rumination in response to failure. In Study 2, we drew on cross-sectional evidence to investigate the other side of this equation, finding that emphasizing the importance of not experiencing negative emotional states (e.g., depression and anxiety) was also associated with increased rumination, and that this had downstream consequences for well-being. Together, the findings suggest that the overpromotion of happiness, and, in turn, the felt social pressure not to experience negative emotional states, has implications for maladaptive responses to negative emotional experiences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. Cultural Values and Happiness: An East-West Dialogue.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lu, Luo; Gilmour, Robin; Kao, Shu-Fang

    2001-01-01

    Examines the relationships between cultural values and experiences of happiness in two samples focusing on university students in Taiwan (n=439) and the United Kingdom (n=344). Reports that the relationships between values and happiness were stronger in the Taiwanese sample. Includes references and an appendix. (CMK)

  9. Happy Despite Pain

    PubMed Central

    Smeets, Elke; Feijge, Marion; van Breukelen, Gerard; Andersson, Gerhard; Buhrman, Monica; Linton, Steven J.

    2017-01-01

    Objectives: There is preliminary evidence for the efficacy of positive psychology interventions for pain management. The current study examined the effects of an internet-based positive psychology self-help program for patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain and compared it with an internet-based cognitive-behavioral program. Materials and Methods: A randomized controlled trial was carried out with 3 conditions: an internet-delivered positive psychology program, an internet-delivered cognitive-behavioral program and waitlist control. A total of 276 patients were randomized to 1 of the 3 conditions and posttreatment data were obtained from 206 patients. Primary outcomes were happiness, depression, and physical impairments at posttreatment and at 6-month follow-up. Intention-to-treat analyses were carried out using mixed regression analyses. Results: Both treatments led to significant increases in happiness and decreases in depression. Physical impairments did not significantly decrease compared with waitlist. Improvements in happiness and depression were maintained until 6-month follow-up. There were no overall differences in the efficacy of the 2 active interventions but effects seemed to be moderated by education. Patients with a higher level of education profited slightly more from the positive psychology intervention than from the cognitive-behavioral program. Discussion: The results suggest that an internet-based positive psychology and cognitive-behavioral self-help interventions for the management of chronic pain are clinically useful. Because the self-help exercises as used in the current program do not require therapist involvement, dissemination potential is large. Further studies should examine whether it can best be used as stand-alone or add-on treatment combined with established pain treatment programs. PMID:28379873

  10. Money Buys Happiness When Spending Fits Our Personality.

    PubMed

    Matz, Sandra C; Gladstone, Joe J; Stillwell, David

    2016-05-01

    In contrast to decades of research reporting surprisingly weak relationships between consumption and happiness, recent findings suggest that money can indeed increase happiness if it is spent the "right way" (e.g., on experiences or on other people). Drawing on the concept of psychological fit, we extend this research by arguing that individual differences play a central role in determining the "right" type of spending to increase well-being. In a field study using more than 76,000 bank-transaction records, we found that individuals spend more on products that match their personality, and that people whose purchases better match their personality report higher levels of life satisfaction. This effect of psychological fit on happiness was stronger than the effect of individuals' total income or the effect of their total spending. A follow-up study showed a causal effect: Personality-matched spending increased positive affect. In summary, when spending matches the buyer's personality, it appears that money can indeed buy happiness. © The Author(s) 2016.

  11. Education Fever and Happiness in Korean Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2017-01-01

    This article discusses relevance between education fever and happiness from the viewpoint of Korean higher education. To review this study systematically, three research questions are addressed. First, what is education fever from the viewpoint of the Korean people? Second, what are relations between education fever and happiness? Last, can…

  12. Health Literacy and Happiness: A Community-Based Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Angner, Erik; Miller, Michael J.; Ray, Midge N.; Saag, Kenneth G.; Allison, Jeroan J.

    2010-01-01

    The relationship between health literacy and happiness was explored using a cross-sectional survey of community-dwelling older primary-care patients. Health literacy status was estimated with the following previously validated question: "How confident are you in filling out medical forms by yourself?" Happiness was measured using an adapted…

  13. Neural and Genetic Correlates of the Social Sharing of Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Matsunaga, Masahiro; Kawamichi, Hiroaki; Umemura, Tomohiro; Hori, Reiko; Shibata, Eiji; Kobayashi, Fumio; Suzuki, Kohta; Ishii, Keiko; Ohtsubo, Yohsuke; Noguchi, Yasuki; Ochi, Misaki; Yamasue, Hidenori; Ohira, Hideki

    2017-01-01

    Happiness is regarded as one of the most fundamental human goals. Given recent reports that positive feelings are contagious (e.g., the presence of a happy person enhances others' happiness) because of the human ability to empathize (i.e., sharing emotions), empathic ability may be a key factor in increasing one's own subjective level of happiness. Based on previous studies indicating that a single nucleotide polymorphism in the serotonin 2A receptor gene [HTR2A rs6311 guanine (G) vs. adenine (A)] is associated with sensitivity to emotional stimuli and several mental disorders such as depression, we predicted that the polymorphism might be associated with the effect of sharing happiness. To elucidate the neural and genetic correlates of the effect of sharing happiness, we first performed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a “happy feelings” evocation task (emotional event imagination task), during which we manipulated the valence of the imagined event (positive, neutral, or negative), as well as the presence of a friend experiencing a positive-valence event (presence or absence). We recruited young adult women for this fMRI study because empathic ability may be higher in women than in men. Participants felt happier (p < 0.01) and the mentalizing/theory-of-mind network, which spans the medial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, temporal poles, and precuneus, was significantly more active (p < 0.05) in the presence condition than in the absence condition regardless of event valence. Moreover, participants with the GG (p < 0.01) and AG (p < 0.05) genotypes of HTR2A experienced happier feelings as well as greater activation of a part of the mentalizing/theory-of-mind network (p < 0.05) during empathy for happiness (neutral/presence condition) than those with the AA genotype. In a follow-up study with a vignette-based questionnaire conducted in a relatively large sample, male and female participants were presented with the same imagined

  14. Neural and Genetic Correlates of the Social Sharing of Happiness.

    PubMed

    Matsunaga, Masahiro; Kawamichi, Hiroaki; Umemura, Tomohiro; Hori, Reiko; Shibata, Eiji; Kobayashi, Fumio; Suzuki, Kohta; Ishii, Keiko; Ohtsubo, Yohsuke; Noguchi, Yasuki; Ochi, Misaki; Yamasue, Hidenori; Ohira, Hideki

    2017-01-01

    Happiness is regarded as one of the most fundamental human goals. Given recent reports that positive feelings are contagious (e.g., the presence of a happy person enhances others' happiness) because of the human ability to empathize (i.e., sharing emotions), empathic ability may be a key factor in increasing one's own subjective level of happiness. Based on previous studies indicating that a single nucleotide polymorphism in the serotonin 2A receptor gene [ HTR2A rs6311 guanine (G) vs. adenine (A)] is associated with sensitivity to emotional stimuli and several mental disorders such as depression, we predicted that the polymorphism might be associated with the effect of sharing happiness. To elucidate the neural and genetic correlates of the effect of sharing happiness, we first performed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a "happy feelings" evocation task (emotional event imagination task), during which we manipulated the valence of the imagined event (positive, neutral, or negative), as well as the presence of a friend experiencing a positive-valence event (presence or absence). We recruited young adult women for this fMRI study because empathic ability may be higher in women than in men. Participants felt happier ( p < 0.01) and the mentalizing/theory-of-mind network, which spans the medial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, temporal poles, and precuneus, was significantly more active ( p < 0.05) in the presence condition than in the absence condition regardless of event valence. Moreover, participants with the GG ( p < 0.01) and AG ( p < 0.05) genotypes of HTR2A experienced happier feelings as well as greater activation of a part of the mentalizing/theory-of-mind network ( p < 0.05) during empathy for happiness (neutral/presence condition) than those with the AA genotype. In a follow-up study with a vignette-based questionnaire conducted in a relatively large sample, male and female participants were presented with the same imagined

  15. Measuring the impact of major life events upon happiness.

    PubMed

    Ballas, Dimitris; Dorling, Danny

    2007-12-01

    In recent years there have been numerous attempts to define and measure happiness in various contexts and pertaining to a wide range of disciplines, ranging from neuroscience and psychology to philosophy, economics and social policy. This article builds on recent work by economists who attempt to estimate happiness regressions using large random samples of individuals in order to calculate monetary 'compensating amounts' for different life 'events'. We estimate happiness regressions using the 'major life event' and 'happiness' data from the British Household Panel Survey. The data and methods used in this article suggest that in contrast to living states such as 'being married', it is more events such as 'starting a new relationship' that have the highest positive effect on happiness. This is closely followed by 'employment-related gains' (in contrast to employment status). Also, women who become pregnant on average report higher than average levels of subjective happiness (in contrast to 'being a parent'). Other events that appear to be associated with happiness according to our analysis include 'personal education-related events' (e.g. starting a new course, graduating from University, passing exams) and 'finance/house related events' (e.g. buying a new house). On the other hand, the event that has the highest negative impact upon happiness according to our analysis is 'the end of my relationship' closely followed by 'death of a parent'. Adverse health events pertaining to the parents of the respondents also have a high negative coefficient and so does an employment-related loss. The analysis presented in this article suggests that what matters the most in people's lives in Britain is to have good dynamic interpersonal relationships and to be respected at work with that respect being constantly renewed. These 'goods' are as much reflected through dynamic events as static situations. Relationships at work appear to be of a similar order of importance to those at

  16. Social support and happiness in immigrant women in Spain.

    PubMed

    Dominguez-Fuentes, Juan Manuel; Hombrados-Mendieta, María Isabel

    2012-06-01

    The association between perceived social support and happiness was investigated in women who are members of various associations in Malaga (Spain) that work with immigrant women. Based on the Social Convoy model, the association between sources of support, frequency of support, satisfaction with support, and happiness reported by women were examined. The main social support predictor of happiness was satisfaction with the support received. Thus, the best predictors of happiness were emotional support from the family and instrumental support from the indigenous population and associations. The best predictor of frequency of support was the frequency of informational support received from social services. These results may prove useful for developing lines of action or interventions centred on the social network and the functions that social support can fulfil among immigrant women.

  17. HappyFace as a generic monitoring tool for HEP experiments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kawamura, Gen; Magradze, Erekle; Musheghyan, Haykuhi; Quadt, Arnulf; Rzehorz, Gerhard

    2015-12-01

    The importance of monitoring on HEP grid computing systems is growing due to a significant increase in their complexity. Computer scientists and administrators have been studying and building effective ways to gather information on and clarify a status of each local grid infrastructure. The HappyFace project aims at making the above-mentioned workflow possible. It aggregates, processes and stores the information and the status of different HEP monitoring resources into the common database of HappyFace. The system displays the information and the status through a single interface. However, this model of HappyFace relied on the monitoring resources which are always under development in the HEP experiments. Consequently, HappyFace needed to have direct access methods to the grid application and grid service layers in the different HEP grid systems. To cope with this issue, we use a reliable HEP software repository, the CernVM File System. We propose a new implementation and an architecture of HappyFace, the so-called grid-enabled HappyFace. It allows its basic framework to connect directly to the grid user applications and the grid collective services, without involving the monitoring resources in the HEP grid systems. This approach gives HappyFace several advantages: Portability, to provide an independent and generic monitoring system among the HEP grid systems. Eunctionality, to allow users to perform various diagnostic tools in the individual HEP grid systems and grid sites. Elexibility, to make HappyFace beneficial and open for the various distributed grid computing environments. Different grid-enabled modules, to connect to the Ganga job monitoring system and to check the performance of grid transfers among the grid sites, have been implemented. The new HappyFace system has been successfully integrated and now it displays the information and the status of both the monitoring resources and the direct access to the grid user applications and the grid collective

  18. The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to Success?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lyubomirsky, Sonja; King, Laura; Diener, Ed

    2005-01-01

    Numerous studies show that happy individuals are successful across multiple life domains, including marriage, friendship, income, work performance, and health. The authors suggest a conceptual model to account for these findings, arguing that the happiness-success link exists not only because success makes people happy, but also because positive…

  19. Genetic variations in the human cannabinoid receptor gene are associated with happiness.

    PubMed

    Matsunaga, Masahiro; Isowa, Tokiko; Yamakawa, Kaori; Fukuyama, Seisuke; Shinoda, Jun; Yamada, Jitsuhiro; Ohira, Hideki

    2014-01-01

    Happiness has been viewed as a temporary emotional state (e.g., pleasure) and a relatively stable state of being happy (subjective happiness level). As previous studies demonstrated that individuals with high subjective happiness level rated their current affective states more positively when they experience positive events, these two aspects of happiness are interrelated. According to a recent neuroimaging study, the cytosine to thymine single-nucleotide polymorphism of the human cannabinoid receptor 1 gene is associated with sensitivity to positive emotional stimuli. Thus, we hypothesized that our genetic traits, such as the human cannabinoid receptor 1 genotypes, are closely related to the two aspects of happiness. In Experiment 1, 198 healthy volunteers were used to compare the subjective happiness level between cytosine allele carriers and thymine-thymine carriers of the human cannabinoid receptor 1 gene. In Experiment 2, we used positron emission tomography with 20 healthy participants to compare the brain responses to positive emotional stimuli of cytosine allele carriers to that of thymine-thymine carriers. Compared to thymine-thymine carriers, cytosine allele carriers have a higher subjective happiness level. Regression analysis indicated that the cytosine allele is significantly associated with subjective happiness level. The positive mood after watching a positive film was significantly higher for the cytosine allele carriers compared to the thymine-thymine carriers. Positive emotion-related brain region such as the medial prefrontal cortex was significantly activated when the cytosine allele carriers watched the positive film compared to the thymine-thymine carriers. Thus, the human cannabinoid receptor 1 genotypes are closely related to two aspects of happiness. Compared to thymine-thymine carriers, the cytosine allele carriers of the human cannabinoid receptor 1 gene, who are sensitive to positive emotional stimuli, exhibited greater magnitude

  20. Genetic Variations in the Human Cannabinoid Receptor Gene Are Associated with Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Matsunaga, Masahiro; Isowa, Tokiko; Yamakawa, Kaori; Fukuyama, Seisuke; Shinoda, Jun; Yamada, Jitsuhiro; Ohira, Hideki

    2014-01-01

    Happiness has been viewed as a temporary emotional state (e.g., pleasure) and a relatively stable state of being happy (subjective happiness level). As previous studies demonstrated that individuals with high subjective happiness level rated their current affective states more positively when they experience positive events, these two aspects of happiness are interrelated. According to a recent neuroimaging study, the cytosine to thymine single-nucleotide polymorphism of the human cannabinoid receptor 1 gene is associated with sensitivity to positive emotional stimuli. Thus, we hypothesized that our genetic traits, such as the human cannabinoid receptor 1 genotypes, are closely related to the two aspects of happiness. In Experiment 1, 198 healthy volunteers were used to compare the subjective happiness level between cytosine allele carriers and thymine-thymine carriers of the human cannabinoid receptor 1 gene. In Experiment 2, we used positron emission tomography with 20 healthy participants to compare the brain responses to positive emotional stimuli of cytosine allele carriers to that of thymine-thymine carriers. Compared to thymine-thymine carriers, cytosine allele carriers have a higher subjective happiness level. Regression analysis indicated that the cytosine allele is significantly associated with subjective happiness level. The positive mood after watching a positive film was significantly higher for the cytosine allele carriers compared to the thymine-thymine carriers. Positive emotion-related brain region such as the medial prefrontal cortex was significantly activated when the cytosine allele carriers watched the positive film compared to the thymine-thymine carriers. Thus, the human cannabinoid receptor 1 genotypes are closely related to two aspects of happiness. Compared to thymine-thymine carriers, the cytosine allele carriers of the human cannabinoid receptor 1 gene, who are sensitive to positive emotional stimuli, exhibited greater magnitude

  1. Correlates of dimensions of happiness in urban and nonurban settings.

    PubMed

    Fengler, A P; Little, V C; Danigelis, N L

    1983-01-01

    The NORC happiness scale, widely used in Administration on Aging (A.O.A.) needs assessment surveys, is a composite of both a negative and a positive dimension. A re-examination of this scale based on a survey of 1400 urban and nonurban elderly indicates that the independence of these two dimensions varies for different residences. Results indicate that a high proportion of urban elderly were bored, depressed, and lonely as well as pleased, proud, excited, and interested in things about them. This group of urban elders was extremely disadvantaged in a wide range of both objective and subjective indices; their apparent inconsistent feeling states may result from a general feeling of relative deprivation.

  2. Relationship between happiness and tobacco smoking among high school students.

    PubMed

    Ataeiasl, Maryam; Sarbakhsh, Parvin; Dadashzadeh, Hossein; Augner, Christoph; Anbarlouei, Masoumeh; Mohammadpoorasl, Asghar

    2018-01-01

    Recent research has described negative relationship between happiness and habitual smoking among adolescents. No study of this relationship has been conducted among Iranian adolescents. The aim of the present study was to characterize the relationship between happiness and cigarette or hookah smoking among a sample of high school students. A sample of 1,161 10th-grade students in Tabriz (northwest Iran) was selected by multi-stage proportional cluster sampling. Participants completed a self-administered multiple-choice questionnaire including information on cigarette smoking, hookah smoking, happiness score, substance abuse, self-injury, general risk-taking behavior, attitudes towards smoking, socioeconomic information, and demographic characteristics. An ordinal logistic regression model was used for data analysis. It was found that 5.9 and 5.0% of students were regular cigarette smokers and regular hookah smokers, respectively. After controlling for potential confounders, higher happiness scores were found to protect students against more advanced stages of cigarette smoking (odds ratio [OR], 0.98; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.97 to 0.99; p=0.013). However, no significant relationship was found between happiness scores and hookah smoking status (OR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.97 to 1.02; p=0.523). Happiness scores were associated with less advanced stages of habitual cigarette smoking among high school students. Our findings underscore the necessity of conducting longitudinal or interventional studies aiming to determine the effects of enhancing happiness on preventing the transition through the stages of cigarette and hookah smoking.

  3. A New Framework of Happiness Survey and Evaluation of National Wellbeing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhou, Haiou

    2012-01-01

    Happiness surveys based on self-reporting may generate unreliable data due to respondents' imperfect retrospection, vulnerability to context and arbitrariness in measuring happiness. To overcome these problems, this paper proposes to combine a happiness evaluation method developed by Ng (Soc Indic Res, 38:1-29, 1996) with the day reconstruction…

  4. Social Success and Happiness in Korean Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2017-01-01

    This paper discusses the relevance between social success and happiness in Korea from the perspective of Korean higher education. To review this study systematically, three research questions are stated. First of all, what is social success? Second, is social success able to provide happiness for us? Last, what is the relevance between social…

  5. Conflicting Uses of "Happiness" and the Human Condition

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fishman, Stephen M.; McCarthy, Lucille

    2013-01-01

    Nel Noddings claims that there is an important normative element in happiness. For support, she points to the Aristotelian idea of the "eudaimonic" life, a concept that is often translated into English as "the happy life". However, in light of the wide divergence between the Aristotelian view of "eudaimonia" as a life…

  6. Joy and happiness: a simultaneous and evolutionary concept analysis.

    PubMed

    Cottrell, Laura

    2016-07-01

    To report a simultaneous and evolutionary analysis of the concepts of joy and long-term happiness. Joy and happiness are underrepresented in the nursing literature, though negative concepts are well represented. When mentioned in the literature, neither joy nor happiness is adequately defined, explained, or clearly understood. To promote further investigation of these concepts in nursing and to explore their relationship with health and healing, conceptual clarity is an essential first step. Concept analysis. The following databases were searched, without time restrictions, for articles in English: Academic Search Complete, Anthropology Plus; ATLA Religious Database with ATLASerials; Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL); Education Research Complete; Humanities International Complete; Psych EXTRA; and SocINDEX with Full Text. The final sample size consists of 61 articles and one book, published between 1978-2014. An adapted combination of Rodgers' Evolutionary Model and Haase et al.'s Simultaneous Concept Analysis (SCA) method. Though both are positive concepts, joy and happiness have significant differences. Attributes of joy describe a spontaneous, sudden and transient concept associated with connection, awareness, and freedom. Attributes of happiness describe a pursued, long-lasting, stable mental state associated with virtue and self-control. Further exploration of joy and happiness is necessary to ascertain their relationship with health and their value to nursing practice and theory development. Nurses are encouraged to consider the value of positive concepts to all areas of nursing. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. Happiness and its relation to psychological well-being of adolescents.

    PubMed

    Heizomi, Haleh; Allahverdipour, Hamid; Asghari Jafarabadi, Mohammad; Safaian, Abdolrasul

    2015-08-01

    In the present decade, adolescents' mental problems are known as critical problems which have many destructive consequences. This study aimed to measure students' happiness and psychological well-being status in a sample of high school students. The cross sectional study consisted of 403 randomly selected high school students in Tabriz, Iran. Numerous variables including general health status, happiness, self-efficacy, perceived stress, hopefulness and life satisfaction were measured by using self-reported written questionnaires. Significant relation observed between happiness and psychological well-being (r=0.48). Those students with good relationship and those who had reported to enjoy attending social events indicated better mental health status. No causal inferences were investigated due to the non-experimental nature of the study. The findings also revealed that students with higher happiness score have a better school performance. Integration of happiness promotion initiatives into the comprehensive school health programs is recommended to have pleasant environments for a healthy population of adolescents. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. External and internal factors influencing happiness in elite collegiate athletes.

    PubMed

    Denny, Katherine G; Steiner, Hans

    2009-03-01

    When under conditions of high demand and allostatic load, are happiness and satisfaction in four domains (family, friends, academics, recreation) influenced more by external or internal factors? Do student-athletes who lead exceedingly complicated lives report happiness as a function of athletic achievement or internal disposition? Stanford student-athletes (N=140) were studied with a standardized questionnaire which examined internal factors ((1) locus of control, (2) mindfulness, (3) self-restraint, and (4) self-esteem) to see whether they better account for happiness than external factors (playing time, scholarship). As predicted, internal factors were more powerful correlates of happiness when holding constant demographics. Regression models differed for different aspects of happiness, but the main postulated result of internal versus external was maintained throughout. These findings have implications for how well athletes cope with adversity which, in turn, could shed light on the development of traits that may provide a buffer against adversity and build resilience.

  9. Mental health care and average happiness: strong effect in developed nations.

    PubMed

    Touburg, Giorgio; Veenhoven, Ruut

    2015-07-01

    Mental disorder is a main cause of unhappiness in modern society and investment in mental health care is therefore likely to add to average happiness. This prediction was checked in a comparison of 143 nations around 2005. Absolute investment in mental health care was measured using the per capita number of psychiatrists and psychologists working in mental health care. Relative investment was measured using the share of mental health care in the total health budget. Average happiness in nations was measured with responses to survey questions about life-satisfaction. Average happiness appeared to be higher in countries that invest more in mental health care, both absolutely and relative to investment in somatic medicine. A data split by level of development shows that this difference exists only among developed nations. Among these nations the link between mental health care and happiness is quite strong, both in an absolute sense and compared to other known societal determinants of happiness. The correlation between happiness and share of mental health care in the total health budget is twice as strong as the correlation between happiness and size of the health budget. A causal effect is likely, but cannot be proved in this cross-sectional analysis.

  10. A proposal to classify happiness as a psychiatric disorder.

    PubMed Central

    Bentall, R P

    1992-01-01

    It is proposed that happiness be classified as a psychiatric disorder and be included in future editions of the major diagnostic manuals under the new name: major affective disorder, pleasant type. In a review of the relevant literature it is shown that happiness is statistically abnormal, consists of a discrete cluster of symptoms, is associated with a range of cognitive abnormalities, and probably reflects the abnormal functioning of the central nervous system. One possible objection to this proposal remains--that happiness is not negatively valued. However, this objection is dismissed as scientifically irrelevant. PMID:1619629

  11. Happiness and job satisfaction in a casino-dominated economy.

    PubMed

    Zeng, Zhonglu; Forrest, David; McHale, Ian G

    2013-09-01

    Proposals for casinos usually focus on numbers of jobs without considering their quality. We surveyed 1,506 Macau residents, modelling happiness and job satisfaction. Being employed is shown to be important for 'happiness'. But job attributes also matter, confirming the work domain as influential on wellbeing. Casino employees report similar happiness as others. However, despite relatively high pay, they report low overall job satisfaction. The particular aspects of their jobs that they rated generally negatively tended to be those inherent in casino employment rather than easily modifiable by managerial action.

  12. Prayer Lessons to Promote Happiness among Kindergarten School Children: A Cross-Country Experimental Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pandya, Samta P.

    2018-01-01

    Based on a one-year longitudinal experimental study with 3,782 kindergarten school children across 15 countries, this article examines the association between prayer and happiness. Results show that the post-test scores on the faces scale were higher for the participant group who had taken the prayer lessons vis-à-vis the comparison group.…

  13. The Development of a Happiness Measure for Schoolchildren

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ivens, John

    2007-01-01

    Happiness, or subjective well-being, the self-evaluation of how happy or unhappy a person is, has been studied amongst adults using a variety of self-report methods. However, there has been relatively little related work with children. A psychometrically valid and reliable SWB measure for schoolchildren aged 8- to 15-years-old, the School…

  14. Focus Group Outcomes of the Happy Kids Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Anderson, Karen; Ferguson, Neil; Partington, Gary; Byrne, Matt

    2015-01-01

    In this article, the outcomes of The Happy Kids project, a strategy to improve the social and emotional well-being of primary school students, were examined. Results indicated that the Happy Kids program had demonstrated positive social and emotional outcomes for students in all schools, in particular, a positive impact upon students' confidence,…

  15. The benefits of frequent positive affect: does happiness lead to success?

    PubMed

    Lyubomirsky, Sonja; King, Laura; Diener, Ed

    2005-11-01

    Numerous studies show that happy individuals are successful across multiple life domains, including marriage, friendship, income, work performance, and health. The authors suggest a conceptual model to account for these findings, arguing that the happiness-success link exists not only because success makes people happy, but also because positive affect engenders success. Three classes of evidence--crosssectional, longitudinal, and experimental--are documented to test their model. Relevant studies are described and their effect sizes combined meta-analytically. The results reveal that happiness is associated with and precedes numerous successful outcomes, as well as behaviors paralleling success. Furthermore, the evidence suggests that positive affect--the hallmark of well-being--may be the cause of many of the desirable characteristics, resources, and successes correlated with happiness. Limitations, empirical issues, and important future research questions are discussed.

  16. The pursuit of happiness, science, and effective staffing: the leader's challenge.

    PubMed

    Kerfoot, Karlene M

    2012-01-01

    It should be intuitive that happy people produce better results than unhappy people. It should be intuitive that leaders must be singularly focused on how they can create happiness within their companies so that people can grow and thrive and reach sustainable organizational goals. But in spite of such common sense, the data show us people are not too happy at work and it is not getting better. Health care has much to learn about creating happiness that in turn creates a positive return on investment financially, as well as on patient outcomes and the well-being, growth, and productivity of the staff. We need a serious call to action in health care that will implement the research about happy organizations and their success. Our stakes are high; we must do no harm.

  17. The Pursuit of Happiness, Science, And Effective Staffing: The Leader's Challenge.

    PubMed

    Kerfoot, Karlene M

    2015-01-01

    It should be intuitive that happy people produce better results than unhappy people. It should be intuitive that leaders must be singularly focused on how they can create happiness within their companies so that people can grow and thrive and reach sustainable organizational goals. But in spite of such common sense, the data show us people are not too happy at work and it is not getting better. Health care has much to learn about creating happi ness that in turn creates a positive return on investment financially, as well as on patient outcomes and the well-being, growth, and productivity of the staff. (1) We need a serious call to action in health care that will implement the research about happy organizations and their success. Our stakes are high; we must do no harm.

  18. A significant association between religiosity and happiness in a sample of Kuwaiti students.

    PubMed

    Abdel-Khalek, Ahmed M; Lester, David

    2009-10-01

    In a sample of 162 Kuwaiti undergraduates (33 men, 129 women; M age = 20.1 yr., SD = 1.9), self-ratings of happiness were significantly and positively correlated with self-ratings of religiosity and strength of religious belief as well as scores on Hoge's Scale of Intrinsic Religious Motivation (1972). The present data provide evidence that, among a sample of Kuwaiti Muslim undergraduates, religious people are happier.

  19. Perceived happiness of college students measured by Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

    PubMed

    Pettijohn, T F; Pettijohn, T F

    1996-12-01

    Broad categories have been suggested for the events which contribute to happiness. In 1943 Maslow might have argued that people are happy when they meet or continue to meet their basic needs in his hierarchy of needs. A survey was given to 150 college students to assess which of Maslow's levels of need is perceived to be most important to happiness. Falling or staying in love was chosen significantly more often than the other choices by undergraduates of both genders. These results suggest that love is considered to be an extremely important contributor to the feeling of happiness among college students.

  20. A happiness degree predictor using the conceptual data structure for deep learning architectures.

    PubMed

    Pérez-Benito, Francisco Javier; Villacampa-Fernández, Patricia; Conejero, J Alberto; García-Gómez, Juan M; Navarro-Pardo, Esperanza

    2017-11-13

    Happiness is a universal fundamental human goal. Since the emergence of Positive Psychology, a major focus in psychological research has been to study the role of certain factors in the prediction of happiness. The conventional methodologies are based on linear relationships, such as the commonly used Multivariate Linear Regression (MLR), which may suffer from the lack of representative capacity to the varied psychological features. Using Deep Neural Networks (DNN), we define a Happiness Degree Predictor (H-DP) based on the answers to five psychometric standardized questionnaires. A Data-Structure driven architecture for DNNs (D-SDNN) is proposed for defining a HDP in which the network architecture enables the conceptual interpretation of psychological factors associated to happiness. Four different neural network configurations have been tested, varying the number of neurons and the presence or absence of bias in the hidden layers. Two metrics for evaluating the influence of conceptual dimensions have been defined and computed: one quantifies the influence weight of the conceptual dimension in absolute terms and the other one pinpoints the direction (positive or negative) of the influence. A cross-sectional survey targeting non-institutionalized adult population residing in Spain was completed by 823 cases. The total of 111 elements of the survey are grouped by socio-demographic data and by five psychometric scales (Brief COPE Inventory, EPQR-A, GHQ-28, MOS-SSS and SDHS) measuring several psychological factors acting one as the outcome (SDHS) and the four others as predictors. Our D-SDNN approach provided a better outcome (MSE: 1.46·10 -2 ) than MLR (MSE: 2.30·10 -2 ), hence improving by 37% the predictive accuracy, and allowing to simulate the conceptual structure. We observe a better performance of Deep Neural Networks (DNN) with respect to traditional methodologies. This demonstrates its capability to capture the conceptual structure for predicting happiness

  1. Development and Validation of Science Homework Scale for Middle-School Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tas, Yasemin; Sungur, Semra; Oztekin, Ceren

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to develop and validate Science Homework Scale (SHS) which assesses middle-school (grades 6-8) students' perceptions of teachers' homework practices and homework self-regulation in science. Students' perceptions of teachers' homework practices included homework quality and feedback on homework while students' homework…

  2. Income Inequality and Happiness: An Inverted U-Shaped Curve.

    PubMed

    Yu, Zonghuo; Wang, Fei

    2017-01-01

    Numerous studies agree that income inequality, rather than absolute income, is an important predictor of happiness. However, its specific role has been controversial. We argue that income inequality and happiness should exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship due to the dynamic competing process between two effects: when income inequality is relatively low, the signal effect will be the dominating factor, in which individuals feel happy because they consider income inequality as a signal of social mobility and expect upward mobility; however, if income inequality level increases beyond a critical point, the jealousy effect will become the dominating factor, in which individuals tend to be unhappy because they are disillusioned about the prospect of upward mobility and jealous of their wealthier peers. This hypothesis is tested in a longitudinal dataset on the United States and a cross-national dataset on several European countries. In both datasets, the Gini coefficient (a common index of a society's income inequality) and its quadratic term were significant predictors of personal happiness. Further examinations of the quadratic relationships showed that the signal effect was only presented in the European data, while the jealousy effect was presented in both datasets. These findings shed new light on our understanding of the relationship between income inequality and personal happiness.

  3. Income Inequality and Happiness: An Inverted U-Shaped Curve

    PubMed Central

    Yu, Zonghuo; Wang, Fei

    2017-01-01

    Numerous studies agree that income inequality, rather than absolute income, is an important predictor of happiness. However, its specific role has been controversial. We argue that income inequality and happiness should exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship due to the dynamic competing process between two effects: when income inequality is relatively low, the signal effect will be the dominating factor, in which individuals feel happy because they consider income inequality as a signal of social mobility and expect upward mobility; however, if income inequality level increases beyond a critical point, the jealousy effect will become the dominating factor, in which individuals tend to be unhappy because they are disillusioned about the prospect of upward mobility and jealous of their wealthier peers. This hypothesis is tested in a longitudinal dataset on the United States and a cross-national dataset on several European countries. In both datasets, the Gini coefficient (a common index of a society’s income inequality) and its quadratic term were significant predictors of personal happiness. Further examinations of the quadratic relationships showed that the signal effect was only presented in the European data, while the jealousy effect was presented in both datasets. These findings shed new light on our understanding of the relationship between income inequality and personal happiness. PMID:29225588

  4. Analyzing Personal Happiness from Global Survey and Weather Data: A Geospatial Approach

    PubMed Central

    Peng, Yi-Fan; Tang, Jia-Hong; Fu, Yang-chih; Fan, I-chun; Hor, Maw-Kae; Chan, Ta-Chien

    2016-01-01

    Past studies have shown that personal subjective happiness is associated with various macro- and micro-level background factors, including environmental conditions, such as weather and the economic situation, and personal health behaviors, such as smoking and exercise. We contribute to this literature of happiness studies by using a geospatial approach to examine both macro and micro links to personal happiness. Our geospatial approach incorporates two major global datasets: representative national survey data from the International Social Survey Program (ISSP) and corresponding world weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). After processing and filtering 55,081 records of ISSP 2011 survey data from 32 countries, we extracted 5,420 records from China and 25,441 records from 28 other countries. Sensitivity analyses of different intervals for average weather variables showed that macro-level conditions, including temperature, wind speed, elevation, and GDP, are positively correlated with happiness. To distinguish the effects of weather conditions on happiness in different seasons, we also adopted climate zone and seasonal variables. The micro-level analysis indicated that better health status and eating more vegetables or fruits are highly associated with happiness. Never engaging in physical activity appears to make people less happy. The findings suggest that weather conditions, economic situations, and personal health behaviors are all correlated with levels of happiness. PMID:27078263

  5. Analyzing Personal Happiness from Global Survey and Weather Data: A Geospatial Approach.

    PubMed

    Peng, Yi-Fan; Tang, Jia-Hong; Fu, Yang-chih; Fan, I-chun; Hor, Maw-Kae; Chan, Ta-Chien

    2016-01-01

    Past studies have shown that personal subjective happiness is associated with various macro- and micro-level background factors, including environmental conditions, such as weather and the economic situation, and personal health behaviors, such as smoking and exercise. We contribute to this literature of happiness studies by using a geospatial approach to examine both macro and micro links to personal happiness. Our geospatial approach incorporates two major global datasets: representative national survey data from the International Social Survey Program (ISSP) and corresponding world weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). After processing and filtering 55,081 records of ISSP 2011 survey data from 32 countries, we extracted 5,420 records from China and 25,441 records from 28 other countries. Sensitivity analyses of different intervals for average weather variables showed that macro-level conditions, including temperature, wind speed, elevation, and GDP, are positively correlated with happiness. To distinguish the effects of weather conditions on happiness in different seasons, we also adopted climate zone and seasonal variables. The micro-level analysis indicated that better health status and eating more vegetables or fruits are highly associated with happiness. Never engaging in physical activity appears to make people less happy. The findings suggest that weather conditions, economic situations, and personal health behaviors are all correlated with levels of happiness.

  6. Conservatives report, but liberals display, greater happiness.

    PubMed

    Wojcik, Sean P; Hovasapian, Arpine; Graham, Jesse; Motyl, Matt; Ditto, Peter H

    2015-03-13

    Research suggesting that political conservatives are happier than political liberals has relied exclusively on self-report measures of subjective well-being. We show that this finding is fully mediated by conservatives' self-enhancing style of self-report (study 1; N = 1433) and then describe three studies drawing from "big data" sources to assess liberal-conservative differences in happiness-related behavior (studies 2 to 4; N = 4936). Relative to conservatives, liberals more frequently used positive emotional language in their speech and smiled more intensely and genuinely in photographs. Our results were consistent across large samples of online survey takers, U.S. politicians, Twitter users, and LinkedIn users. Our findings illustrate the nuanced relationship between political ideology, self-enhancement, and happiness and illuminate the contradictory ways that happiness differences can manifest across behavior and self-reports. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  7. Parenthood and Happiness: Effects of Work-Family Reconciliation Policies in 22 OECD Countries.

    PubMed

    Glass, Jennifer; Simon, Robin W; Andersson, Matthew A

    2016-11-01

    The recent proliferation of studies examining cross-national variation in the association between parenthood and happiness reveal accumulating evidence of lower levels of happiness among parents than nonparents in most advanced industrialized societies. Conceptualizing parenting as a stressor buffered by institutional support, we hypothesize that parental status differences in happiness are smaller in countries providing more resources and support to families. Our analyses of the European Social Surveys (ESS) and International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) reveal considerable variation in the parenthood gap in happiness across countries, with the U.S. showing the largest disadvantage of parenthood. We also find that more generous family policies, particularly paid time off and childcare subsidies, are associated with smaller disparities in happiness between parents and non-parents. Moreover, the policies that augment parental happiness do not reduce the happiness of nonparents. Our results shed light on macro-level causes of emotional processes, with important implications for public policy.

  8. Parenthood and Happiness: Effects of Work-Family Reconciliation Policies in 22 OECD Countries

    PubMed Central

    Glass, Jennifer; Simon, Robin W.; Andersson, Matthew A

    2016-01-01

    The recent proliferation of studies examining cross-national variation in the association between parenthood and happiness reveal accumulating evidence of lower levels of happiness among parents than nonparents in most advanced industrialized societies. Conceptualizing parenting as a stressor buffered by institutional support, we hypothesize that parental status differences in happiness are smaller in countries providing more resources and support to families. Our analyses of the European Social Surveys (ESS) and International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) reveal considerable variation in the parenthood gap in happiness across countries, with the U.S. showing the largest disadvantage of parenthood. We also find that more generous family policies, particularly paid time off and childcare subsidies, are associated with smaller disparities in happiness between parents and non-parents. Moreover, the policies that augment parental happiness do not reduce the happiness of nonparents. Our results shed light on macro-level causes of emotional processes, with important implications for public policy. PMID:28082749

  9. Happiness, Mental Health, and Socio-Demographic Associations Among a National Cohort of Thai Adults.

    PubMed

    Yiengprugsawan, Vasoontara; Somboonsook, Boonchai; Seubsman, Sam-Ang; Sleigh, Adrian C

    2012-12-01

    Research on happiness has been of interest in many parts of the world. Here we provide evidence from developing countries; this is the first analysis of happiness among a cohort of Thai distance learning adults residing throughout the country (n = 60,569 in 2009). To measure happiness, we tested use of the short format Thai Mental Health Indicators (TMHI), correlating each domain with two direct measures of happiness and life satisfaction. Several TMHI domains correlated strongly with happiness. We found the mental state and the social support domains moderately or strongly correlated with happiness by either measure (correlation coefficients 0.24-0.56). The other two TMHI domains (mental capacity and mental quality) were not correlated with happiness. Analysis of socio-demographic attributes and happiness revealed little effect of age and sex but marital status (divorced or widowed), low household income, and no paid work all had strong adverse effects. Our findings provide Thai benchmarks for measuring happiness and associated socio-demographic attributes. We also provide evidence that the TMHI can measure happiness in the Thai population. Furthermore, the results among Thai cohort members can be monitored over time and could be useful for comparison with other Southeast Asian countries.

  10. Prediction of Happy-Sad mood from daily behaviors and previous sleep history.

    PubMed

    Sano, Akane; Yu, Amy Z; McHill, Andrew W; Phillips, Andrew J K; Taylor, Sara; Jaques, Natasha; Klerman, Elizabeth B; Picard, Rosalind W

    2015-01-01

    We collected and analyzed subjective and objective data using surveys and wearable sensors worn day and night from 68 participants for ~30 days each, to address questions related to the relationships among sleep duration, sleep irregularity, self-reported Happy-Sad mood and other daily behavioral factors in college students. We analyzed this behavioral and physiological data to (i) identify factors that classified the participants into Happy-Sad mood using support vector machines (SVMs); and (ii) analyze how accurately sleep duration and sleep regularity for the past 1-5 days classified morning Happy-Sad mood. We found statistically significant associations amongst Sad mood and poor health-related factors. Behavioral factors including the frequency of negative social interactions, and negative emails, and total academic activity hours showed the best performance in separating the Happy-Sad mood groups. Sleep regularity and sleep duration predicted daily Happy-Sad mood with 65-80% accuracy. The number of nights giving the best prediction of Happy-Sad mood varied for different individuals.

  11. Happiness and unhappiness in east and west: themes and variations.

    PubMed

    Uchida, Yukiko; Kitayama, Shinobu

    2009-08-01

    Cultural folk models of happiness and unhappiness are likely to have important bearings on social cognition and social behavior. At present, however, little is known about the nature of these models. Here, the authors systematically analyzed American and Japanese participants' spontaneously produced descriptions of the two emotions and observed, as predicted, that whereas Americans associated positive hedonic experience of happiness with personal achievement, Japanese associated it with social harmony. Furthermore, Japanese were more likely than Americans to mention both social disruption and transcendental reappraisal as features of happiness. As also predicted, unlike happiness, descriptions of unhappiness included various culture-specific coping actions: Whereas Americans focused on externalizing behavior (e.g., anger and aggression), Japanese highlighted transcendental reappraisal and self-improvement. Implications for research on culture and emotion are discussed. 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

  12. Factors Affecting the Happiness of Urban Elementary School Students: An Exploratory Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tenney, Jodiann K.

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this transformative mixed methods study was to examine the school happiness of upper elementary students in three Connecticut urban demonstration schools. The study examined the differences in students' happiness based on ethnicity, gender, and their interaction. It also investigated the factors that affect students' happiness in…

  13. Situations That Make Students Happy and Unhappy in Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Göksoy, Süleyman

    2017-01-01

    Many research carried out so far have demonstrated that there is a direct relationship between individuals' happiness and aspects of their behaviours. That is to say, happiness has a positive relationship with life quality, job satisfaction, aggression, self-efficacy levels of individuals, vitality, optimism, altruism (self-sacrifice for the…

  14. Education and Happiness in the School-to-Work Transition

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dockery, Alfred Michael

    2010-01-01

    Education is generally seen as enhancing people's lives. However, previous research has reported an inverse relationship between education and happiness or satisfaction with life: as education level goes up, happiness goes down. Using data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY), this report examines the relationship between…

  15. Friendship, perceived mattering and happiness: a study of American and Turkish college students.

    PubMed

    Demir, Melikşah; Ozen, Ayça; Doğan, Aysun

    2012-01-01

    Although it is well established that friendship is a consistent correlate of happiness, less is known about how friendship experiences might promote happiness. The current investigation addressed this gap by testing a mediational model proposing that perceived mattering explains the association of friendship quality with happiness among college students in Turkey and the United States. An alternative model suggesting friendship quality as the mediator was also tested to enhance confidence in the proposed model. SEM analyses revealed that perceived mattering mediated the association of friendship with happiness only in the American sample. In the Turkish sample, friendship quality mediated the association between mattering and happiness. Findings highlight the importance of cross-cultural research and suggest that the underlying processes and psychological mechanisms related to the friendship-happiness link might be different in different cultures.

  16. Associations of perceived interparental relationship, family harmony and family happiness with smoking intention in never-smoking Chinese children and adolescents: a cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    Luk, Tzu Tsun; Wang, Man Ping; Leung, Lok Tung; Wu, Yongda; Chen, Jianjiu; Lam, Tai Hing; Ho, Sai Yin

    2017-10-06

    To examine the associations of perceived interparental relationship, family harmony and family happiness with smoking intention in never-smoking Chinese children and adolescents in Hong Kong. Cross-sectional surveys of 15 753 primary (grades 4-6) and 38 398 secondary (grades 7-12) never-smoking students from 71 to 75 randomly selected primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong, 2012-2013. Outcome variable was smoking intention which denoted any affirmative response to smoke within the coming year or when a cigarette was offered by a good friend. Exposure variables were perceived interparental relationship and family harmony each measured on a five-point scale from 'very good' to 'very bad' and perceived family happiness on a four-point scale from 'very happy' to 'not happy at all'. Potential confounders included age, sex, family structure, perceived family affluence, parental smoking and sibling smoking. In primary students, the adjusted ORs (AORs) (95% CI) of smoking intention generally increased with more negative perception of the family relationship: up to 3.67 (1.91 to 7.05) for interparental relationship, 7.71 (4.38 to 13.6) for family harmony and 5.40 (3.41 to 8.55) for family happiness. For secondary students, the corresponding AORs (95% CI) were 2.15 (1.64 to 2.82) for interparental relationship, 2.98 (2.31 to 3.84) for family harmony and 2.61 (1.80 to 3.79) for family happiness. All p for trend <0.001. More negatively perceived interparental relationship, family harmony and family happiness were associated with higher odds of smoking intention with dose-response relationships in never-smoking Chinese children and adolescents in Hong Kong. Children's perception of their family relationship may be an important intervening point for preventing youth from initiating smoking. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  17. Diagnosing Our National Disease: Trends in Income and Happiness, 1973 to 2004

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schnittker, Jason

    2008-01-01

    An important paradox of the happiness literature is the apparent disconnect between economic growth and happiness, referred to as the "Easterlin Paradox." Although real income has grown over the last thirty years, happiness has stagnated or perhaps even declined. There are a variety of explanations for this. Some emphasize psychological…

  18. Happiness and social determinants across age cohorts in Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Hsu, Hui-Chuan; Chang, Wen-Chiung; Chong, Young-Sook; An, Jeong Shin

    2016-09-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine happiness and social determinants across age cohorts in Taiwan. The data were obtained from the 2011 Taiwan Social Change Survey (aged 18 +, n = 2,199). The social determinants of happiness included socioeconomic status and social connection. Happiness was not different across the age groups. Receiving less family support, less formal support, more social trust and more control over life were significant for the younger group. Being married and having more social participation were significant for the middle-aged. Receiving less family support and having a higher economic status were significant for the older group. © The Author(s) 2015.

  19. Undergraduate Student Happiness and Academic Performance: A Correlation Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Langevin, Elizabeth L.

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between undergraduate student happiness and academic performance (GPA), controlling for age, gender, and race/ethnicity for third and fourth year business students at University of Phoenix, Little Rock Campus. The eight-item Oxford Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ) was used to measure the…

  20. Health, Wealth and Happiness: Why Pursue a Higher Education?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hartog, Joop; Oosterbeek, Hessel

    1998-01-01

    Explores schooling's effect on health, wealth, and happiness for a cohort of Dutch individuals born around 1940. Uses observations on childhood IQ and family background. The group with a nonvocational, intermediate-level education scored highest on all three factors. IQ affects health, not wealth or happiness. Family background increases wealth,…

  1. Effects of Orientations to Happiness on Vocational Identity Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hirschi, Andreas

    2011-01-01

    There is an increased interest in vocational psychology and career counseling regarding the link between career development and well-being, yet, little is known about how different ways to achieve well-being or happiness relate to career development. This study explored the relationship between 3 orientations to happiness (meaning, pleasure, and…

  2. Associations of perceived interparental relationship, family harmony and family happiness with smoking intention in never-smoking Chinese children and adolescents: a cross-sectional study

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Man Ping; Leung, Lok Tung; Wu, Yongda; Chen, Jianjiu; Lam, Tai Hing; Ho, Sai Yin

    2017-01-01

    Objective To examine the associations of perceived interparental relationship, family harmony and family happiness with smoking intention in never-smoking Chinese children and adolescents in Hong Kong. Design, settings and participants Cross-sectional surveys of 15 753 primary (grades 4–6) and 38 398 secondary (grades 7–12) never-smoking students from 71 to 75 randomly selected primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong, 2012–2013. Measurements Outcome variable was smoking intention which denoted any affirmative response to smoke within the coming year or when a cigarette was offered by a good friend. Exposure variables were perceived interparental relationship and family harmony each measured on a five-point scale from ‘very good’ to ‘very bad’ and perceived family happiness on a four-point scale from ‘very happy’ to ‘not happy at all’. Potential confounders included age, sex, family structure, perceived family affluence, parental smoking and sibling smoking. Results In primary students, the adjusted ORs (AORs) (95% CI) of smoking intention generally increased with more negative perception of the family relationship: up to 3.67 (1.91 to 7.05) for interparental relationship, 7.71 (4.38 to 13.6) for family harmony and 5.40 (3.41 to 8.55) for family happiness. For secondary students, the corresponding AORs (95% CI) were 2.15 (1.64 to 2.82) for interparental relationship, 2.98 (2.31 to 3.84) for family harmony and 2.61 (1.80 to 3.79) for family happiness. All p for trend <0.001. Conclusions More negatively perceived interparental relationship, family harmony and family happiness were associated with higher odds of smoking intention with dose–response relationships in never-smoking Chinese children and adolescents in Hong Kong. Children’s perception of their family relationship may be an important intervening point for preventing youth from initiating smoking. PMID:28988179

  3. Infertile Individuals’ Marital Relationship Status, Happiness, and Mental Health: A Causal Model

    PubMed Central

    Ahmadi Forooshany, Seyed Habiballah; Yazdkhasti, Fariba; Safari Hajataghaie, Saiede; Nasr Esfahani, Mohammad Hossein

    2014-01-01

    Background This study examined the causal model of relation between marital relation- ship status, happiness, and mental health in infertile individuals. Materials and Methods In this descriptive study, 155 subjects (men: 52 and women: 78), who had been visited in one of the infertility Centers, voluntarily participated in a self-evaluation. Golombok Rust Inventory of Marital Status, Oxford Happiness Ques- tionnaire, and General Health Questionnaire were used as instruments of the study. Data was analyzed by SPSS17 and Amos 5 software using descriptive statistics, independent sample t test, and path analysis. Results Disregarding the gender factor, marital relationship status was directly related to happiness (p<0.05) and happiness was directly related to mental health, (p<0.05). Also, indirect relation between marital relationship status and mental health was significant (p<0.05). These results were confirmed in women participants but in men participants only the direct relation between happiness and mental health was significant (p<0.05). Conclusion Based on goodness of model fit in fitness indexes, happiness had a mediator role in relation between marital relationship status and mental health in infertile individu- als disregarding the gender factor. Also, considering the gender factor, only in infertile women, marital relationship status can directly and indirectly affect happiness and mental health. PMID:25379161

  4. Self-Efficacy, Self-Esteem, and Subjective Happiness of Teacher Candidates at the Pedagogical Formation Certificate Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Erozkan, Atilgan; Dogan, Ugur; Adiguzel, Arca

    2016-01-01

    This study investigated the relationship between self-efficacy, self-esteem, and subjective happiness. The study group is composed by 556 (291 female; 265 male) students who were studying at the pedagogical formation program at Mugla Sitki Kocman University. The data were collected by using the General Self-Efficacy Scale-Turkish Form,…

  5. Construction and validation of a measure of integrative well-being in seven languages: the Pemberton Happiness Index.

    PubMed

    Hervás, Gonzalo; Vázquez, Carmelo

    2013-04-22

    We introduce the Pemberton Happiness Index (PHI), a new integrative measure of well-being in seven languages, detailing the validation process and presenting psychometric data. The scale includes eleven items related to different domains of remembered well-being (general, hedonic, eudaimonic, and social well-being) and ten items related to experienced well-being (i.e., positive and negative emotional events that possibly happened the day before); the sum of these items produces a combined well-being index. A distinctive characteristic of this study is that to construct the scale, an initial pool of items, covering the remembered and experienced well-being domains, were subjected to a complete selection and validation process. These items were based on widely used scales (e.g., PANAS, Satisfaction With Life Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale, and Psychological Well-Being Scales). Both the initial items and reference scales were translated into seven languages and completed via Internet by participants (N = 4,052) aged 16 to 60 years from nine countries (Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and USA). Results from this initial validation study provided very good support for the psychometric properties of the PHI (i.e., internal consistency, a single-factor structure, and convergent and incremental validity). Given the PHI's good psychometric properties, this simple and integrative index could be used as an instrument to monitor changes in well-being. We discuss the utility of this integrative index to explore well-being in individuals and communities.

  6. Association between salivary serotonin and the social sharing of happiness

    PubMed Central

    Ishii, Keiko; Ohtsubo, Yohsuke; Noguchi, Yasuki; Ochi, Misaki; Yamasue, Hidenori

    2017-01-01

    Although human saliva contains the monoamine serotonin, which plays a key role in the modulation of emotional states, the association between salivary serotonin and empathic ability remains unclear. In order to elucidate the associations between salivary serotonin levels, trait empathy, and the sharing effect of emotions (i.e., sharing emotional experiences with others), we performed a vignette-based study. Participants were asked to evaluate their happiness when they experience several hypothetical life events, whereby we manipulated the valence of the imagined event (positive, neutral, or negative), as well as the presence of a friend (absent, positive, or negative). Results indicated that the presence of a happy friend significantly enhanced participants’ happiness. Correlation analysis demonstrated that salivary serotonin levels were negatively correlated with happiness when both the self and friend conditions were positive. Correlation analysis also indicated a negative relationship between salivary serotonin levels and trait empathy (particularly in perspective taking), which was measured by the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Furthermore, an exploratory multiple regression analysis suggested that mothers’ attention during childhood predicted salivary serotonin levels. Our findings indicate that empathic abilities and the social sharing of happiness decreases as a function of salivary serotonin levels. PMID:28683075

  7. Social connections and happiness among the elder population of Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Hsu, H-C; Chang, W-C

    2015-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the association between social connections and happiness among members of the elder population of Taiwan. Longitudinal panel data collected in three waves from 1999 to 2007 that are selected from national samples of Taiwanese older people were used for the analysis (n = 4731 persons). Happiness was defined as a dichotomous variable. Social connection variables included living arrangements, contacts with children/grandchildren/parents/relatives/friends, telephone contacts, providing instrumental and informational support, receiving instrumental and emotional support, and social participation. We controlled for the variables demographics, physical and mental health, economic satisfaction, and lifestyle. A generalized linear model (GLM) was applied in the analysis. Happiness remained stable over time. Receiving more emotional support and participating in social events were related to happiness at the beginning, while the effect of social participation was offset over time. Living arrangements, telephone contacts, providing social support, and receiving instrumental support were not significant. The quality of social relationships experienced is possibly more important than the quantity of social interaction for older people, and having social relationships outside the informal social network may increase happiness.

  8. Association between salivary serotonin and the social sharing of happiness.

    PubMed

    Matsunaga, Masahiro; Ishii, Keiko; Ohtsubo, Yohsuke; Noguchi, Yasuki; Ochi, Misaki; Yamasue, Hidenori

    2017-01-01

    Although human saliva contains the monoamine serotonin, which plays a key role in the modulation of emotional states, the association between salivary serotonin and empathic ability remains unclear. In order to elucidate the associations between salivary serotonin levels, trait empathy, and the sharing effect of emotions (i.e., sharing emotional experiences with others), we performed a vignette-based study. Participants were asked to evaluate their happiness when they experience several hypothetical life events, whereby we manipulated the valence of the imagined event (positive, neutral, or negative), as well as the presence of a friend (absent, positive, or negative). Results indicated that the presence of a happy friend significantly enhanced participants' happiness. Correlation analysis demonstrated that salivary serotonin levels were negatively correlated with happiness when both the self and friend conditions were positive. Correlation analysis also indicated a negative relationship between salivary serotonin levels and trait empathy (particularly in perspective taking), which was measured by the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Furthermore, an exploratory multiple regression analysis suggested that mothers' attention during childhood predicted salivary serotonin levels. Our findings indicate that empathic abilities and the social sharing of happiness decreases as a function of salivary serotonin levels.

  9. Using "The Happiness Advantage" in a College Honors Program

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rockey, Christine

    2015-01-01

    In the field of college success and retention, researchers have examined school facilities, grade point averages, SAT scores, high school grades, and student involvement among other variables. One of the additional variables that has been examined is how happiness affects college success. The matter of student happiness is of primary importance to…

  10. Happily Ever After? Pre-and-Post Disaster Determinants of Happiness Among Survivors of Hurricane Katrina.

    PubMed

    Calvo, Rocío; Arcaya, Mariana; Baum, Christopher F; Lowe, Sarah R; Waters, Mary C

    2015-04-01

    This study investigated pre- to post-disaster changes in happiness of 491 women affected by Hurricane Katrina, and identified factors that were associated with the survivors' happiness after the storm. Participants completed surveys approximately 1 year before and 1 and 4 years after the storm. The surveys collected information on the women's happiness, social support, household characteristics, and hurricane exposure. We found that happiness significantly decreased from pre-disaster to 1 year post-disaster but there were no significant differences in happiness between the pre-disaster and 4 years post-disaster assessments. An exception were 38 women who continued to have lower levels of happiness 4 years post-disaster than at pre-disaster. These women were more likely to be living on their own after the storm and reported consistently lower levels of perceived social support from the community both before and after the storm than the other women of the sample. Factors associated with the survivor's happiness after the storm included exposure to hurricane stressors and losing a loved one to the hurricane. These were predictive of lower happiness 1 year post-disaster. Four years after the hurricane only exposure to hurricane stressors was predictive of lower levels of happiness. In contrast, pre-disaster happiness and post-disaster social support were protective against the negative effect of the hurricane on survivors' happiness.

  11. Happily Ever After? Pre-and-Post Disaster Determinants of Happiness Among Survivors of Hurricane Katrina

    PubMed Central

    Calvo, Rocío; Arcaya, Mariana; Baum, Christopher F.; Lowe, Sarah R.; Waters, Mary C.

    2014-01-01

    This study investigated pre- to post-disaster changes in happiness of 491 women affected by Hurricane Katrina, and identified factors that were associated with the survivors’ happiness after the storm. Participants completed surveys approximately 1 year before and 1 and 4 years after the storm. The surveys collected information on the women’s happiness, social support, household characteristics, and hurricane exposure. We found that happiness significantly decreased from pre-disaster to 1 year post-disaster but there were no significant differences in happiness between the pre-disaster and 4 years post-disaster assessments. An exception were 38 women who continued to have lower levels of happiness 4 years post-disaster than at pre-disaster. These women were more likely to be living on their own after the storm and reported consistently lower levels of perceived social support from the community both before and after the storm than the other women of the sample. Factors associated with the survivor’s happiness after the storm included exposure to hurricane stressors and losing a loved one to the hurricane. These were predictive of lower happiness 1 year post-disaster. Four years after the hurricane only exposure to hurricane stressors was predictive of lower levels of happiness. In contrast, pre-disaster happiness and post-disaster social support were protective against the negative effect of the hurricane on survivors’ happiness. PMID:26078701

  12. Happiness, subjective and objective oral health status, and oral health behaviors among Korean elders.

    PubMed

    Yoon, Hyun-Seo; Kim, Hae-Young; Patton, Lauren L; Chun, Jin-Ho; Bae, Kwang-Hak; Lee, Mi-Ok

    2013-10-01

    This study aims to comprehensively assess the association of subjective and objective oral health status and oral health behaviors with happiness, under consideration of demographic, socioeconomic, and general health-related factors. This study also aims to test whether subjective oral health outcomes are better predictors of happiness compared with objective oral health outcomes. The data were collected from 479 community-dwelling elders aged 65 years or over selected by a cluster sampling method. A questionnaire and an oral examination were implemented. A multiple regression method was conducted to assess associations with happiness index (HI). The mean age of the elders was 74.6 years. Mean (standard deviation, SD) HI, EuroQol-visual analog scale (EQ-VAS) and 14-item oral health impact profile (OHIP-14) index were 5.7 (SD 2.3), 59.8 (SD 21.1), and 16.3 (SD 13.1). In the final model, a significant association with HI of the OHIP-14 index (P = 0.091) among all the participants and significant associations of oral symptoms (P = 0.038), wearing a removable denture (P = 0.039), and of the oral health behavior of daily toothbrushing (P = 0.007) among poorer oral health QoL group were confirmed under consideration of other related factors. While correlations of HI to subjective measures of health, EQ-VAS and OHIP-14 score were moderate to weak, those to objective measures of health were only weak or insignificant. Oral impacts which might persistently affect one's daily life need to be considered in designing and delivering public services aimed to promote people's happiness. With oral health impacts and behaviors accounting for 10% of happiness among elders, public and community services for the elderly that support oral health and daily toothbrushing for the dentate are critical for the well-being of our elders. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  13. Lower Sensitivity to Happy and Angry Facial Emotions in Young Adults with Psychiatric Problems

    PubMed Central

    Vrijen, Charlotte; Hartman, Catharina A.; Lodder, Gerine M. A.; Verhagen, Maaike; de Jonge, Peter; Oldehinkel, Albertine J.

    2016-01-01

    Many psychiatric problem domains have been associated with emotion-specific biases or general deficiencies in facial emotion identification. However, both within and between psychiatric problem domains, large variability exists in the types of emotion identification problems that were reported. Moreover, since the domain-specificity of the findings was often not addressed, it remains unclear whether patterns found for specific problem domains can be better explained by co-occurrence of other psychiatric problems or by more generic characteristics of psychopathology, for example, problem severity. In this study, we aimed to investigate associations between emotion identification biases and five psychiatric problem domains, and to determine the domain-specificity of these biases. Data were collected as part of the ‘No Fun No Glory’ study and involved 2,577 young adults. The study participants completed a dynamic facial emotion identification task involving happy, sad, angry, and fearful faces, and filled in the Adult Self-Report Questionnaire, of which we used the scales depressive problems, anxiety problems, avoidance problems, Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) problems and antisocial problems. Our results suggest that participants with antisocial problems were significantly less sensitive to happy facial emotions, participants with ADHD problems were less sensitive to angry emotions, and participants with avoidance problems were less sensitive to both angry and happy emotions. These effects could not be fully explained by co-occurring psychiatric problems. Whereas this seems to indicate domain-specificity, inspection of the overall pattern of effect sizes regardless of statistical significance reveals generic patterns as well, in that for all psychiatric problem domains the effect sizes for happy and angry emotions were larger than the effect sizes for sad and fearful emotions. As happy and angry emotions are strongly associated with approach and

  14. Did the Decline in Social Connections Depress Americans' Happiness?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bartolini, Stefano; Bilancini, Ennio; Pugno, Maurizio

    2013-01-01

    During the last 30 years US citizens experienced, on average, a decline in reported happiness, social connections, and confidence in institutions. We show that a remarkable portion of the decrease in happiness is predicted by the decline in social connections and confidence in institutions. We carry out our investigation in three steps. First, we…

  15. Social Factors Explaining Children's Subjective Happiness and Depressive Symptoms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uusitalo-Malmivaara, Lotta; Lehto, Juhani E.

    2013-01-01

    In this study happiness and depression in 737 12-year-old Finnish children were predicted by relationships with family members and other people, the number of close friends and their experiences of parental fighting and drinking. There were no differences in happiness between the genders, but the girls were more depressed than the boys. Low…

  16. Happiness among the elderly in communities: a study in senior clubs of Chonburi Province, Thailand.

    PubMed

    Sumngern, Chommanard; Azeredo, Zaida; Subgranon, Rarchaneeporn; Sungvorawongphana, Narirat; Matos, Eduarda

    2010-06-01

    To study the levels of happiness perception in the elderly in different regions, and determine the reasons affecting it. The Thai Happiness Indicators: THI-15; 2001 were used in this study of 306 participants (> or =60 years) in different regions: rural, suburban, and urban. The elderly were chosen by chance from those belonging to Thai senior clubs in opportunistic random. The elderly perceived their happiness as good, fair, and poor, respectively, 12.4%, 37.9%, and 49.7%. There was a difference in happiness perception among the regions: poor happiness perception (64.5%, 61.2%, and 22.8% in rural, suburban, and urban areas, respectively) (P < 0.001). We also verified that there was a difference in poor happiness perception between males (57.9%) and females (42.2%) (P < 0.01). There were differences in the happiness perception among people with different levels of education (chi(2) (4, N = 306) = 14.15, P = 0.007). There was also a difference between happiness perceptions as related to occupation: the results showed elderly who were not working had a better score of happiness perception than the elderly who had to work. Although we cannot generalize from the results the happiness of all Thai elderly, the present study found that formal education, geographical areas, and gender can influence happiness. Health-care providers should be concerned about and provide the proper intervention and/or activities in order to alleviate the mental health problems among the elderly in communities, especially the elderly who are identified with poor happiness.

  17. Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys

    PubMed Central

    Clark, Andrew E.; Flèche, Sarah; Senik, Claudia

    2015-01-01

    In spite of the great U-turn that saw income inequality rise in Western countries in the 1980s, happiness inequality has fallen in countries that have experienced income growth (but not in those that did not). Modern growth has reduced the share of both the “very unhappy” and the “perfectly happy”. Lower happiness inequality is found both between and within countries, and between and within individuals. Our cross-country regression results argue that the extension of various public goods helps to explain this greater happiness homogeneity. This new stylised fact arguably comes as a bonus to the Easterlin paradox, offering a somewhat brighter perspective for developing countries. PMID:27616797

  18. Impaired detection of happy facial expressions in autism.

    PubMed

    Sato, Wataru; Sawada, Reiko; Uono, Shota; Yoshimura, Sayaka; Kochiyama, Takanori; Kubota, Yasutaka; Sakihama, Morimitsu; Toichi, Motomi

    2017-10-17

    The detection of emotional facial expressions plays an indispensable role in social interaction. Psychological studies have shown that typically developing (TD) individuals more rapidly detect emotional expressions than neutral expressions. However, it remains unclear whether individuals with autistic phenotypes, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and high levels of autistic traits (ATs), are impaired in this ability. We examined this by comparing TD and ASD individuals in Experiment 1 and individuals with low and high ATs in Experiment 2 using the visual search paradigm. Participants detected normal facial expressions of anger and happiness and their anti-expressions within crowds of neutral expressions. In Experiment 1, reaction times were shorter for normal angry expressions than for anti-expressions in both TD and ASD groups. This was also the case for normal happy expressions vs. anti-expressions in the TD group but not in the ASD group. Similarly, in Experiment 2, the detection of normal vs. anti-expressions was faster for angry expressions in both groups and for happy expressions in the low, but not high, ATs group. These results suggest that the detection of happy facial expressions is impaired in individuals with ASD and high ATs, which may contribute to their difficulty in creating and maintaining affiliative social relationships.

  19. Prioritizing Positivity: An Effective Approach to Pursuing Happiness?

    PubMed Central

    Catalino, Lahnna I.; Algoe, Sara B.; Fredrickson, Barbara L.

    2017-01-01

    A decade of research reveals the benefits of positive emotions for mental and physical health; however, recent empirical work suggests the explicit pursuit of happiness may backfire. The present study hypothesized that the pursuit of happiness is not inherently self-defeating; in particular, individuals who seek positivity, as exemplified by how they make decisions about how to organize their day-to-day lives, may be happier. This individual difference is labeled prioritizing positivity. In a community sample of young to older adults (N = 233), prioritizing positivity predicted a host of well-being outcomes (positive emotions, depressive symptomology). In addition, people high in prioritizing positivity have greater resources, and these links are explained by more frequent experiences of positive emotions. In sum, the present study suggests that seeking happiness, although a delicate art, may be a worthwhile pursuit. PMID:25401290

  20. Prioritizing positivity: an effective approach to pursuing happiness?

    PubMed

    Catalino, Lahnna I; Algoe, Sara B; Fredrickson, Barbara L

    2014-12-01

    A decade of research reveals the benefits of positive emotions for mental and physical health; however, recent empirical work suggests the explicit pursuit of happiness may backfire. The present study hypothesized that the pursuit of happiness is not inherently self-defeating; in particular, individuals who seek positivity, as exemplified by how they make decisions about how to organize their day-to-day lives, may be happier. This individual difference is labeled prioritizing positivity. In a community sample of young to older adults (N = 233), prioritizing positivity predicted a host of well-being outcomes (positive emotions, depressive symptomology). In addition, people high in prioritizing positivity have greater resources, and these links are explained by more frequent experiences of positive emotions. In sum, the present study suggests that seeking happiness, although a delicate art, may be a worthwhile pursuit.

  1. Happiness Rich and Poor: Lessons from Philosophy and Literature

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cigman, Ruth

    2014-01-01

    Happiness is a large idea. It looms enticingly before us when we are young, delivers verdicts on our lives when we are old, and seems to inform a responsible engagement with children. The question is raised: do we want this idea? I explore a distinction between rich and poor conceptions of happiness, suggesting that many sceptical arguments are…

  2. Sex differences in the association between countries' smoking prevalence and happiness ratings.

    PubMed

    Drehmer, J E

    2018-05-02

    To examine the cross-sectional relationship between measures of countries' happiness and countries' prevalence of tobacco smoking. Since smoking prevalence differs widely based on sex in some countries and is similar in other countries, it was examined if there was a sex difference in the relationship between smoking prevalence and country-specific happiness ratings. Ecological study design. Countries' age-standardized prevalence estimates of smoking any tobacco product among persons aged 15 years and older (%) for 2015 were obtained from the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Health Observatory. Country-specific scores from the World Happiness Report 2016 Update Ranking of Happiness (2013-15) and the 2015 Gallup Positive Experience Index were matched and correlated to 2015 WHO estimates of tobacco smoking prevalence for males and females. The difference between male and female age-standardized smoking prevalence estimates in each country was calculated by subtracting female prevalence from male prevalence and was then correlated to countries' World Happiness Report scores. The analyses did not control for potential confounders. The association between male age-standardized smoking prevalence estimates and countries' World Happiness Report scores was inversely correlated [r(104) = -0.22, P = 0.03], whereas the association between female age-standardized smoking prevalence estimates and countries' World Happiness Report scores was positively correlated [r(104) = 0.48, P = 0.00]. An inverse correlation was found between the difference in male and female smoking prevalence estimates and countries' World Happiness Report scores [r(104) = -0.50, P = 0.00]. The association between countries' male age-standardized smoking prevalence estimates and the Positive Experience Index scores was inversely correlated [r(99) = -0.37, P = 0.00], whereas the female age-standardized smoking prevalence estimates in countries were not significantly associated with

  3. Health and Gross National Happiness: review of current status in Bhutan.

    PubMed

    Tobgay, Tashi; Dophu, Ugen; Torres, Cristina E; Na-Bangchang, Kesara

    2011-01-01

    Worldwide, contemporary measures of the success of health development programs have been mostly in terms of the reduction of mortality and morbidity as well as increasing longevity. While these goals have yielded much-needed health improvements, the subjective outcomes of these improvements, as experienced by individuals and the communities, have not been considered. Bhutan, under the overarching policy of Gross National Happiness, has provided due consideration to these subjective indicators. Here, we report on the current status of health and happiness in Bhutan as revealed by conventional objective indicators and subjective Gross National Happiness indicators. The current literature on health in Bhutan in relation to the Gross National Happiness Survey conducted by the Centre of Bhutan Studies has been reviewed. Bhutan has made great strides within a short period of modernization, as shown by both objective and subjective indicators. Tremendous challenges lie ahead to achieve the ultimate goal of health and happiness, and how Bhutan articulates its path to modernization may be a lesson for the rest of the world.

  4. Predictor variables of happiness and its connection with risk and protective factors for health

    PubMed Central

    Garaigordobil, Maite

    2015-01-01

    Great thinkers, philosophers, scientists, and artists from History have often been concerned about one of the most important elements of life: happiness. The study had four goals: (1) To analyze possible differences in feelings of happiness as a function of sex and age; (2) To explore the relations of happiness with risk factors (psychopathological symptoms, behavior problems) and protective factors (self-concept-self-esteem, cooperative behavior, social skills) for health; (3) To identify predictor variables of happiness; and (4) To explore whether self-esteem mediates the relationship between happiness and psychopathological symptoms. The sample comprised 286 adolescents (14–16 years old). The study used a descriptive, correlational, and cross-sectional methodology. Seven assessment instruments were administered. The ANOVAs confirm that there are no sex differences, but happiness decreases as age increases. Pearson coefficients show that adolescents with more feelings of happiness had fewer psychopathological symptoms (somatization, obsession–compulsion, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety, hostility, phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, psychoticism…), fewer behavioral problems (school-academic, antisocial behavior, shyness-withdrawal, psychopathological, psychosomatic), high social adaptation, high self-concept/self-esteem, many cooperative behaviors, many appropriate social skills, and few negative social skills (inappropriate assertiveness, impulsiveness, jealousy-withdrawal). Multiple regression analysis identified five variables predicting happiness: high self-concept, few symptoms of depression, many cooperative behaviors, high self-esteem, and low psychoticism. Results showed a partial mediational effect of self-esteem in the relation between happiness and psychopathological symptoms. The discussion focuses on the importance of implementing programs to promote feelings of happiness, as well as protective factors for health (self

  5. The functional neuroanatomy of pleasure and happiness.

    PubMed

    Kringelbach, Morten L; Berridge, Kent C

    2010-06-01

    Over fifty years ago the discovery that rats would work to electrically stimulate their brains suggested the intriguing possibility that bliss could be achieved through the use of 'pleasure electrodes' implanted deep within the brain. Subsequent research has failed to bring about this brave new world of boundless pleasure, but more recent findings have started to throw new light on the intriguing links between brain mechanisms of pleasure and happiness. We discuss these findings of the underlying neural mechanisms and functional neuroanatomy of pleasure in the brain. In particular we address how they may come to shed light on our understanding of the brain basis of happiness. Beyond sensory pleasures, we examine how higher pleasures may be related to the brain's default networks, especially in orchestrating cognitive aspects of the meaningfulness important to happiness. We also address how understanding of the hedonic brain might help alleviate the suffering caused by the lack of pleasure, anhedonia, which is a central feature of affective disorders such as depression and chronic pain.

  6. The Functional Neuroanatomy of Pleasure and Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Kringelbach, Morten L.; Berridge, Kent C.

    2010-01-01

    Over fifty years ago the discovery that rats would work to electrically stimulate their brains suggested the intriguing possibility that bliss could be achieved through the use of ‘pleasure electrodes’ implanted deep within the brain. Subsequent research has failed to bring about this brave new world of boundless pleasure, but more recent findings have started to throw new light on the intriguing links between brain mechanisms of pleasure and happiness. We discuss these findings of the underlying neural mechanisms and functional neuroanatomy of pleasure in the brain. In particular we address how they may come to shed light on our understanding of the brain basis of happiness. Beyond sensory pleasures, we examine how higher pleasures may be related to the brain’s default networks, especially in orchestrating cognitive aspects of the meaningfulness important to happiness. We also address how understanding of the hedonic brain might help alleviate the suffering caused by the lack of pleasure, anhedonia, which is a central feature of affective disorders such as depression and chronic pain. PMID:20587348

  7. Between Pleasure and Contentment: Evolutionary Dynamics of Some Possible Parameters of Happiness.

    PubMed

    Gao, Yue; Edelman, Shimon

    2016-01-01

    We offer and test a simple operationalization of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being ("happiness") as mediating variables that link outcomes to motivation. In six evolutionary agent-based simulation experiments, we compared the relative performance of agents endowed with different combinations of happiness-related traits (parameter values), under four types of environmental conditions. We found (i) that the effects of attaching more weight to longer-term than to momentary happiness and of extending the memory for past happiness are both stronger in an environment where food is scarce; (ii) that in such an environment "relative consumption," in which the agent's well-being is negatively affected by that of its neighbors, is more detrimental to survival when food is scarce; and (iii) that having a positive outlook, under which agents' longer-term happiness is increased by positive events more than it is decreased by negative ones, is generally advantageous.

  8. Happiness Is the Way: Paths to Civic Engagement between Young Adulthood and Midlife

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fang, Shichen; Galambos, Nancy L.; Johnson, Matthew D.; Krahn, Harvey J.

    2018-01-01

    Directional associations between civic engagement and happiness were explored with longitudinal data from a community sample surveyed four times from age 22 to 43 (n = 690). Autoregressive cross-lagged models, controlling for cross-time stabilities in happiness and civic engagement, examined whether happiness predicted future civic engagement,…

  9. External and Internal Factors Influencing Happiness in Elite Collegiate Athletes

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Denny, Katherine G.; Steiner, Hans

    2009-01-01

    When under conditions of high demand and allostatic load, are happiness and satisfaction in four domains (family, friends, academics, recreation) influenced more by external or internal factors? Do student-athletes who lead exceedingly complicated lives report happiness as a function of athletic achievement or internal disposition? Stanford…

  10. The Vividness of Happiness in Dynamic Facial Displays of Emotion

    PubMed Central

    Becker, D. Vaughn; Neel, Rebecca; Srinivasan, Narayanan; Neufeld, Samantha; Kumar, Devpriya; Fouse, Shannon

    2012-01-01

    Rapid identification of facial expressions can profoundly affect social interactions, yet most research to date has focused on static rather than dynamic expressions. In four experiments, we show that when a non-expressive face becomes expressive, happiness is detected more rapidly anger. When the change occurs peripheral to the focus of attention, however, dynamic anger is better detected when it appears in the left visual field (LVF), whereas dynamic happiness is better detected in the right visual field (RVF), consistent with hemispheric differences in the processing of approach- and avoidance-relevant stimuli. The central advantage for happiness is nevertheless the more robust effect, persisting even when information of either high or low spatial frequency is eliminated. Indeed, a survey of past research on the visual search for emotional expressions finds better support for a happiness detection advantage, and the explanation may lie in the coevolution of the signal and the receiver. PMID:22247755

  11. Student Happiness: An Update

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Huebner, Scott

    2017-01-01

    In 2010, Scott Huebner authored an article in "Communiqué" in which he suggested that happiness was a neglected but important topic in education in general and school psychology in particular (Huebner, 2010). At the time, there was a rapidly developing, but still rather modest body of evidence to support the contention. The purpose of…

  12. Validity and reliability of Spanish versions of the Ruminative Responses Scale-Short Form and the Distraction Responses Scale in a sample of Spanish high school and college students.

    PubMed

    Extremera, Natalio; Fernández-Berrocal, Pablo

    2006-02-01

    This study investigated the construct validity and reliability of the Spanish Ruminative Responses Scale-Short From, and the Distraction Responses Scale of the Response Styles Questionnaire for a sample of 727 Spanish high school and college students who responded anonymously and voluntarily to a questionnaire (293 men, 434 women; ages 16 to 29 years, M=18.8, SD=3.0). In addition to the above scales, the questionnaire included the Spanish forms of the Beck Depression Inventory, the Trait Anxiety Scale from the State-Trait Anxiety Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. The internal consistency of the scales was satisfactory (Cronbach alpha=.86 for the Ruminative Responses Scale and .78 for the Distraction Responses Scale). As expected, scores on the Spanish Ruminative Responses Scale showed positive correlations with those on the Beck Depression Inventory and the Trait Anxiety Scale and negative associations with the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Subjective Happiness Scale. Conversely, the Spanish Distraction Responses Scale was negatively correlated with the Beck Depression Inventory and positively associated with the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Subjective Happiness Scale. These results provide evidence of appropriate reliability for research purposes. Furthermore, the correlational analysis supported prior findings that ruminative response and distraction response styles are differentially associated with reported depressed and positive moods.

  13. Happiness and health behaviours in Chilean college students: A cross-sectional survey

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background Happiness has been associated with a range of favourable health outcomes through two pathways: its relationship with favourable biological responses to stress and with healthy lifestyles and prudent health behaviours. There are a substantial number of cross-cultural studies about happiness, but none of them has studied the association of happiness with perceived stress and health behaviours in Latin American samples. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the association between general happiness and these variables in a Latin American sample. Methods We conducted a survey to examine the status of 3461 students aged between 17 and 24 years old (mean age = 19.89; SD = 1.73) who attended University of Santiago de Chile during 2009. The healthy behaviours indexes assessed were the frequency of daily physical exercise, fruits/vegetables intake, breakfast and lunch intake, smoking, alcohol and other drugs consumption. We also included the assessment of perceived stress and Body Mass Index. All of them were evaluated using a self-report questionnaire. Results The univariate and multivariate binary logistic regression analyses showed that being female and younger was related to a higher happiness, as well as that people self-reporting daily physical activity, having lunch and fruits and vegetables each day had a higher likelihood (OR between 1.33 and 1.40) of being classified as "very happy". Those who informed felt stressed in normal circumstances and during tests situations showed a lower likelihood (0.73 and 0.82, respectively) of being considered "very happy". Regarding drug consumption, taking tranquilizers under prescription was negative related to "subjective happiness" (OR = 0.62), whereas smoking was positive associated (OR = 1.20). Conclusions The findings of this study mainly support the relationship between happiness and health outcomes through the two pathways previously mentioned. They also underscore the importance of that some healthy

  14. Subjective Happiness Optimizes Educational Outcomes: Evidence from Filipino High School Students.

    PubMed

    Datu, Jesus Alfonso D; Valdez, Jana Patricia; Cabrera, Ian Kenneth; Salanga, Maria Guadalupe

    2017-10-30

    Subjective happiness has been found to be associated with key psychological outcomes. However, there is paucity of research that assessed how subjective happiness is related to a number of positive student outcomes in the educational setting. The objective of the study was to assess the associations of subjective happiness with academic engagement, flourishing, and school resilience among 606 Filipino high school students (m age = 13.87; n boys = 300, n girls = 305, n missing = 1) in the Philippine context. Results of path analysis demonstrated that subjective happiness positively predicted behavioral engagement (β = .08, p < .01), emotional engagement (β = .08, p < .01), flourishing (β = .17, p < .01), and school resilience (β = .18, p < .01) even after controlling for gender. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

  15. Whatever happened to "What might have been"? Regrets, happiness, and maturity.

    PubMed

    King, Laura A; Hicks, Joshua A

    2007-10-01

    Although lost opportunities and mistaken expectations are unpleasant to think and talk about, these experiences may have a role to play in personality development. Drawing on research using narratives of lost possible selves, the authors review the relations of regrettable experiences to 2 important and independent aspects of maturity, happiness and complexity. Thinking about a lost possible self is related to concurrent regrets, distress, and lowered well-being; however, elaborating on a lost possible self is related, concurrently, to complexity and predicts complexity, prospectively, over time. In this article, the authors describe the role that regrettable experiences have in promoting both happiness and complexity. Finally, expanding on previous work, the authors examine potential affordances of happy maturity and suggest psychological capacities that may promote happy maturity. Copyright 2007 APA, all rights reserved.

  16. How Education Enhances Happiness: Comparison of Mediating Factors in Four East Asian Countries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Wan-chi

    2012-01-01

    Educational philosophers contend that education enhances autonomy and thus happiness, but empirical studies rarely explore the positive influence of education on happiness. Based on the previous finding that being better connected to the outside world makes people happy, this study examines the possibility that how well an individual connects to…

  17. In search of the emotional face: anger versus happiness superiority in visual search.

    PubMed

    Savage, Ruth A; Lipp, Ottmar V; Craig, Belinda M; Becker, Stefanie I; Horstmann, Gernot

    2013-08-01

    Previous research has provided inconsistent results regarding visual search for emotional faces, yielding evidence for either anger superiority (i.e., more efficient search for angry faces) or happiness superiority effects (i.e., more efficient search for happy faces), suggesting that these results do not reflect on emotional expression, but on emotion (un-)related low-level perceptual features. The present study investigated possible factors mediating anger/happiness superiority effects; specifically search strategy (fixed vs. variable target search; Experiment 1), stimulus choice (Nimstim database vs. Ekman & Friesen database; Experiments 1 and 2), and emotional intensity (Experiment 3 and 3a). Angry faces were found faster than happy faces regardless of search strategy using faces from the Nimstim database (Experiment 1). By contrast, a happiness superiority effect was evident in Experiment 2 when using faces from the Ekman and Friesen database. Experiment 3 employed angry, happy, and exuberant expressions (Nimstim database) and yielded anger and happiness superiority effects, respectively, highlighting the importance of the choice of stimulus materials. Ratings of the stimulus materials collected in Experiment 3a indicate that differences in perceived emotional intensity, pleasantness, or arousal do not account for differences in search efficiency. Across three studies, the current investigation indicates that prior reports of anger or happiness superiority effects in visual search are likely to reflect on low-level visual features associated with the stimulus materials used, rather than on emotion. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

  18. Developmental programming of happiness.

    PubMed

    Schmidt, Louis A; Fortier, Paz; Lahat, Ayelet; Tang, Alva; Mathewson, Karen J; Saigal, Saroj; Boyle, Michael H; Van Lieshout, Ryan J

    2017-09-01

    Being born at an extremely low birth weight (ELBW; <1,000 grams) is presumed to reflect a suboptimal intrauterine environment and thus presents an opportunity for examining developmental programming hypotheses. Interfacing prenatal programming and differential susceptibility hypotheses, we tested whether individuals with ELBW in different childhood rearing environments showed different attention biases to positive and negative facial emotions in adulthood. Using the oldest known, prospectively followed cohort of ELBW survivors, we found that relative to normal birth weight controls (NBW; >2,500 grams), ELBW survivors displayed the highest and lowest attention bias to happy faces at age 30-35, depending on whether their total family income at age 8 was relatively low (environmental match) or high (environmental mismatch), respectively. This bias to happy faces was associated with a reduced likelihood of emotional problems. Findings suggest that differential susceptibility to positive emotions may be prenatally programmed, with effects lasting into adulthood. We discuss implications for integrating prenatal programming and differential susceptibility hypotheses, and the developmental origins of postnatal plasticity and resilience. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Construction and validation of a measure of integrative well-being in seven languages: The Pemberton Happiness Index

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Purpose We introduce the Pemberton Happiness Index (PHI), a new integrative measure of well-being in seven languages, detailing the validation process and presenting psychometric data. The scale includes eleven items related to different domains of remembered well-being (general, hedonic, eudaimonic, and social well-being) and ten items related to experienced well-being (i.e., positive and negative emotional events that possibly happened the day before); the sum of these items produces a combined well-being index. Methods A distinctive characteristic of this study is that to construct the scale, an initial pool of items, covering the remembered and experienced well-being domains, were subjected to a complete selection and validation process. These items were based on widely used scales (e.g., PANAS, Satisfaction With Life Scale, Subjective Happiness Scale, and Psychological Well-Being Scales). Both the initial items and reference scales were translated into seven languages and completed via Internet by participants (N = 4,052) aged 16 to 60 years from nine countries (Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and USA). Results Results from this initial validation study provided very good support for the psychometric properties of the PHI (i.e., internal consistency, a single-factor structure, and convergent and incremental validity). Conclusions Given the PHI’s good psychometric properties, this simple and integrative index could be used as an instrument to monitor changes in well-being. We discuss the utility of this integrative index to explore well-being in individuals and communities. PMID:23607679

  20. Divorce over the Life Course: The Role of Marital Happiness.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    White, Lynn K.; Booth, Alan

    1991-01-01

    Explored apparent anomaly that marital happiness and divorce are both lower in longer marriages using a national panel of over 2,000 married individuals interviewed in 1980 and 1988. Results indicated marital happiness had a stronger effect on divorce at longer durations than at shorter durations. (Author/ABL)

  1. Do You Live Happily? Exploring the Impact of Physical Environment on Residents’ Sense of Happiness

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Chiu-lin; Zhang, Heng

    2018-01-01

    From the beginning of human civilization, human beings have been exploring the source of happiness. Capitalists believed that economic growth would bring us happiness, but a small, poor Buddhist country—Bhutan—has dispelled the myth with the concept of Gross National Happiness. Today, the concept of happiness has evolved from the field of psychology to all disciplines. Many researchers are exploring how environmental psychology/behavioral psychology influences residents’ sense of happiness. The goal of this study is to explore how various environmental factors influence residents’ sense of happiness. Through statistical analysis of 473 samples, the results showed that factors like green area, community layout, aesthetics, transportation service and social service significantly influenced residents’ sense of happiness. Among all the factors, transportation service and social service simultaneously influence “satisfied” and “joyful”, the two factors related to residents’ sense of happiness; community layout and aesthetics are significantly correlated to “satisfied” green area and business service significantly influences “joyful”. The results of this study can be used as reference for professionals as they make relevant decisions.

  2. The Importance of Scientific Research on Happiness and Its Relevance to Higher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bourner, Tom; Rospigliosi, Asher

    2014-01-01

    There has been much interest in happiness over the last decade fueled by developments in neuroscience and the measurement of happiness. Positive psychology has emerged as a recognised discipline within academia to provide a home for the findings of the new scientific study of happiness. In 2011, positive psychology was the most popular course at…

  3. The Pedagogy of Happiness and Death: From the Perspectives of Buddhism and Christianity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to review the pedagogy of happiness and death from the perspectives of Buddhism and Christianity. To discuss this study logically, three research questions are addressed. First, what are the concepts of happiness and death? Second, what is the relevance between happiness and death? Last, what are the meanings of…

  4. Higher Education and Happiness: The Perspectives of the Bible and Tao Te Ching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to discuss the concepts and principles of happiness shown in the Bible and Tao Te Ching for implications in higher education. To review the paper systematically, three research questions are addressed. First, what are happiness concepts and principles in the Bible? Second, what are happiness concepts and principles in…

  5. Congruence of happy and sad emotion in music and faces modifies cortical audiovisual activation.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Jeong-Won; Diwadkar, Vaibhav A; Chugani, Carla D; Sinsoongsud, Piti; Muzik, Otto; Behen, Michael E; Chugani, Harry T; Chugani, Diane C

    2011-02-14

    The powerful emotion inducing properties of music are well-known, yet music may convey differing emotional responses depending on environmental factors. We hypothesized that neural mechanisms involved in listening to music may differ when presented together with visual stimuli that conveyed the same emotion as the music when compared to visual stimuli with incongruent emotional content. We designed this study to determine the effect of auditory (happy and sad instrumental music) and visual stimuli (happy and sad faces) congruent or incongruent for emotional content on audiovisual processing using fMRI blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) signal contrast. The experiment was conducted in the context of a conventional block-design experiment. A block consisted of three emotional ON periods, music alone (happy or sad music), face alone (happy or sad faces), and music combined with faces where the music excerpt was played while presenting either congruent emotional faces or incongruent emotional faces. We found activity in the superior temporal gyrus (STG) and fusiform gyrus (FG) to be differentially modulated by music and faces depending on the congruence of emotional content. There was a greater BOLD response in STG when the emotion signaled by the music and faces was congruent. Furthermore, the magnitude of these changes differed for happy congruence and sad congruence, i.e., the activation of STG when happy music was presented with happy faces was greater than the activation seen when sad music was presented with sad faces. In contrast, incongruent stimuli diminished the BOLD response in STG and elicited greater signal change in bilateral FG. Behavioral testing supplemented these findings by showing that subject ratings of emotion in faces were influenced by emotion in music. When presented with happy music, happy faces were rated as more happy (p=0.051) and sad faces were rated as less sad (p=0.030). When presented with sad music, happy faces were rated as less

  6. The relationship between students’ study habits, happiness and depression

    PubMed Central

    Bahrami, Susan; Rajaeepour, Saeed; Rizi, Hasan Ashrafi; Zahmatkesh, Monereh; Nematolahi, Zahra

    2011-01-01

    BACKGROUND: One of the important requirements for cultural, social and even economic development is having a book-loving nation. In order to achieve this, there is a need for purposeful and continuous programming. The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between students’ study habits, happiness and depression in Isfahan University of Medical Science. METHODS: This research was a kind of descriptive and correlation survey. Statistical population included all MSc and PhD students in the second semester of the Isfahan University of Medical Science (263 students). In this research, stratified and random sampling was used in which a sample of 100 students was selected. Data collection instruments were Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Oxford Happiness Inventory and a researcher-made questionnaire to determine the amount of students’ study. Validity of this questionnaires was determined by structure and content related validity and its reliability was calculated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the first (r = 0.94), second (r = 0.91) and third (r = 0.85) questionnaire. Analysis of research findings was done through descriptive and inferential statistics. RESULTS: Findings showed that 68.8 percent of students study less than 5 hours and only 2.5 percent of students study more than 10 hours. 65 percent of students had high amount of happiness and 35 percent had medium amount of happiness. In 60 percent of students there was no symptom of depression and 7.5 had depression symptoms. Also, there was no significant relationship between happiness and studying but there was a significant and negative relationship between studying and depression and happiness and depression. CONCLUSIONS: The amount of study and tendency for reading are among the most important indices of human growth in terms of potential abilities for achieving a perfect human life and to prevent one-dimensional thinking. Thus, finding ways to encourage students to study is

  7. Resting-state functional connectivity of the default mode network associated with happiness

    PubMed Central

    Luo, Yangmei; Kong, Feng; Qi, Senqing; You, Xuqun

    2016-01-01

    Happiness refers to people’s cognitive and affective evaluation of their life. Why are some people happier than others? One reason might be that unhappy people are prone to ruminate more than happy people. The default mode network (DMN) is normally active during rest and is implicated in rumination. We hypothesized that unhappiness may be associated with increased default-mode functional connectivity during rest, including the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and inferior parietal lobule (IPL). The hyperconnectivity of these areas may be associated with higher levels of rumination. One hundred forty-eight healthy participants underwent a resting-state fMRI scan. A group-independent component analysis identified the DMNs. Results indicated increased functional connectivity in the DMN was associated with lower levels of happiness. Specifically, relative to happy people, unhappy people exhibited greater functional connectivity in the anterior medial cortex (bilateral MPFC), posterior medial cortex regions (bilateral PCC) and posterior parietal cortex (left IPL). Moreover, the increased functional connectivity of the MPFC, PCC and IPL, correlated positively with the inclination to ruminate. These results highlight the important role of the DMN in the neural correlates of happiness, and suggest that rumination may play an important role in people’s perceived happiness. PMID:26500289

  8. Culture, interpersonal perceptions, and happiness in social interactions.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Shigehiro; Koo, Minkyung; Akimoto, Sharon

    2008-03-01

    The authors examined cultural differences in interpersonal processes associated with happiness felt in social interactions. In a false feedback experiment (Study 1a), they found that European Americans felt happier when their interaction partner perceived their personal self accurately, whereas Asian Americans felt happier when their interaction partner perceived their collective self accurately. In Study 1b, the authors further demonstrated that the results from Study 1a were not because of cultural differences in desirability of the traits used in Study 1a. In Studies 2 and 3, they used a 2-week event sampling method and replicated Study 1. Unlike Asian Americans, African Americans were not significantly different from European Americans in the predictors of happiness in social interactions. Together, this research shows that interpersonal affirmation of important aspects of the self leads to happiness and that cultural differences are likely to emerge from the emphasis placed on different aspects of the self.

  9. Happiness among poor women victims of intimate partner violence in Nicaragua.

    PubMed

    Vázquez, José Juan; Panadero, Sonia; Rivas, Esther

    2015-01-01

    The article analyzes various aspects of overall happiness expressed by 136 women in poverty who are victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Nicaragua, a country with low levels of development. The information was gathered using a structured interview. Results obtained show that despite the hardships they face, one half of the women in poverty who are victims of IPV say they are happy, and the vast majority are optimistic about their future. The main sources of happiness among the interviewees are in areas outside their economic life and are mainly associated with social relations.

  10. Are pension types associated with happiness in Japanese older people?: JAGES cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    Sasaki, Ichiro; Kondo, Katsunori; Kondo, Naoki; Aida, Jun; Ichikawa, Hiroshi; Kusumi, Takashi; Sueishi, Naoya; Imanaka, Yuichi

    2018-01-01

    Although many previous studies have examined the determinants of happiness in older adults, few have investigated the association between pension types and happiness. When compared to other conventional socioeconomic indicators, pension types may be more indicative of long-term socioeconomic status as they can reflect a person's job history over their life course. This study examined the association between pension types and happiness in Japanese older people. Cross-sectional survey data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study were used to analyze the association between pension types and happiness. The study population comprised 120152 participants from 2013. We calculated the prevalence ratios of happiness for the different pension types using Poisson regression models that controlled for age, sex, marital status, equivalent income, wealth, education level, working status, occupation, depression, and social support. After controlling for socioeconomic indicators, the prevalence ratios (95% confidence intervals) of happiness for no pension benefits, low pension benefits, and moderate pension benefits relative to high pension benefits were 0.77 (0.73-0.81), 0.95 (0.94-0.97), and 0.98 (0.97-0.99), respectively. However, the inclusion of depression as a covariate weakened the association between pension types and happiness. While pension types were associated with happiness after adjusting for other proxy measures of socioeconomic status, the association diminished following adjustment for depression. Pension types may provide rich information on socioeconomic status and depression throughout the course of life. In addition to conventional socioeconomic indicators, pension types should also be considered when assessing the determinants of happiness in older adults.

  11. God image and happiness in chronic pain patients: the mediating role of disease interpretation.

    PubMed

    Dezutter, Jessie; Luyckx, Koen; Schaap-Jonker, Hanneke; Büssing, Arndt; Corveleyn, Jozef; Hutsebaut, Dirk

    2010-05-01

    The present study explored the role of the emotional experience of God (i.e., positive and negative God images) in the happiness of chronic pain (CP) patients. Framed in the transactional model of stress, we tested a model in which God images would influence happiness partially through its influence on disease interpretation as a mediating mechanism. We expected God images to have both a direct and an indirect (through the interpretation of disease) effect on happiness. A cross-sectional questionnaire design was adopted in order to measure demographics, pain condition, God images, disease interpretation, and happiness. One hundred thirty-six CP patients, all members of a national patients' association, completed the questionnaires. Correlational analyses showed meaningful associations among God images, disease interpretation, and happiness. Path analyses from a structural equation modeling approach indicated that positive God images seemed to influence happiness, both directly and indirectly through the pathway of positive interpretation of the disease. Ancillary analyses showed that the negative influence of angry God images on happiness disappeared after controlling for pain severity. The results indicated that one's emotional experience of God has an influence on happiness in CP patients, both directly and indirectly through the pathway of positive disease interpretation. These findings can be framed within the transactional theory of stress and can stimulate further pain research investigating the possible effects of religion in the adaptation to CP.

  12. Factors influencing happiness of the grandmothers raising grandchildren in rural areas of Northern Thailand.

    PubMed

    Nanthamongkolchai, Sutham; Munsawaengsub, Chokchai; Taechaboonsermsak, Pimsurang; Powwattana, Arpaporn

    2013-12-01

    To study the factors influencing happiness of grandmothers raising grandchildren in the rural areas of Northern Thailand. Cross-sectional survey research was conducted among 400 grandmothers, aged 50-79 years, who raised their grandchildren in the rural areas of Northern Thailand. Participants were selected by cluster sampling. Data were collected through a structured interview from April to July 2009 and analyzed by frequency, percentage, Pearson product moment correlation coefficient, and Multiple regression analysis. Nearly half (46.8%) of grandmothers raising grandchildren had high level of happiness, followed by moderate level (40.4%) and low level (12.8%). The factors, which significantly influenced the happiness of the grandmothers, were self-esteem, social support, and family relationships (p-value < 0.05). In addition, self-esteem, social support, and family relationships could significantly predict happiness of the grandmothers by 48.1%. Self-esteem had the highest predictive power of happiness among grandmothers. The factors influencing happiness of grandmothers raising grandchildren were self-esteem, social support, and family relationships. To promote happiness of grandmothers, responsible organizations should establish activities that enhance the grandmother's self-esteem, provide sufficient social support, and promote good family relationships.

  13. The Geography of Happiness: Connecting Twitter Sentiment and Expression, Demographics, and Objective Characteristics of Place

    PubMed Central

    Mitchell, Lewis; Frank, Morgan R.; Harris, Kameron Decker; Dodds, Peter Sheridan; Danforth, Christopher M.

    2013-01-01

    We conduct a detailed investigation of correlations between real-time expressions of individuals made across the United States and a wide range of emotional, geographic, demographic, and health characteristics. We do so by combining (1) a massive, geo-tagged data set comprising over 80 million words generated in 2011 on the social network service Twitter and (2) annually-surveyed characteristics of all 50 states and close to 400 urban populations. Among many results, we generate taxonomies of states and cities based on their similarities in word use; estimate the happiness levels of states and cities; correlate highly-resolved demographic characteristics with happiness levels; and connect word choice and message length with urban characteristics such as education levels and obesity rates. Our results show how social media may potentially be used to estimate real-time levels and changes in population-scale measures such as obesity rates. PMID:23734200

  14. The geography of happiness: connecting twitter sentiment and expression, demographics, and objective characteristics of place.

    PubMed

    Mitchell, Lewis; Frank, Morgan R; Harris, Kameron Decker; Dodds, Peter Sheridan; Danforth, Christopher M

    2013-01-01

    We conduct a detailed investigation of correlations between real-time expressions of individuals made across the United States and a wide range of emotional, geographic, demographic, and health characteristics. We do so by combining (1) a massive, geo-tagged data set comprising over 80 million words generated in 2011 on the social network service Twitter and (2) annually-surveyed characteristics of all 50 states and close to 400 urban populations. Among many results, we generate taxonomies of states and cities based on their similarities in word use; estimate the happiness levels of states and cities; correlate highly-resolved demographic characteristics with happiness levels; and connect word choice and message length with urban characteristics such as education levels and obesity rates. Our results show how social media may potentially be used to estimate real-time levels and changes in population-scale measures such as obesity rates.

  15. Natural selection and the elusiveness of happiness.

    PubMed Central

    Nesse, Randolph M

    2004-01-01

    The quest for happiness has expanded from a focus on relieving suffering to also considering how to promote happiness. However, both approaches have yet to be conducted in an evolutionary framework based on the situations that shaped the capacities for happiness and sadness. Because of this, the emphasis has almost all been on the disadvantages of negative states and the benefits of positive states, to the nearly total neglect of 'diagonal psychology', which also considers the dangers of unwarranted positive states and the benefits of negative emotions in certain situations. The situations that arise in goal pursuit contain adaptive challenges that have shaped domain-general positive and negative emotions that were partially differentiated by natural selection to cope with the more specific situations that arise in the pursuit of different kinds of goals. In cultures where large social groups give rise to specialized and competitive social roles, depression may be common because regulation systems are pushed far beyond the bounds for which they were designed. Research on the evolutionary origins of the capacities for positive and negative emotions is urgently needed to provide a foundation for sensible decisions about the use of new mood-manipulating technologies. PMID:15347525

  16. Natural selection and the elusiveness of happiness.

    PubMed

    Nesse, Randolph M

    2004-09-29

    The quest for happiness has expanded from a focus on relieving suffering to also considering how to promote happiness. However, both approaches have yet to be conducted in an evolutionary framework based on the situations that shaped the capacities for happiness and sadness. Because of this, the emphasis has almost all been on the disadvantages of negative states and the benefits of positive states, to the nearly total neglect of 'diagonal psychology', which also considers the dangers of unwarranted positive states and the benefits of negative emotions in certain situations. The situations that arise in goal pursuit contain adaptive challenges that have shaped domain-general positive and negative emotions that were partially differentiated by natural selection to cope with the more specific situations that arise in the pursuit of different kinds of goals. In cultures where large social groups give rise to specialized and competitive social roles, depression may be common because regulation systems are pushed far beyond the bounds for which they were designed. Research on the evolutionary origins of the capacities for positive and negative emotions is urgently needed to provide a foundation for sensible decisions about the use of new mood-manipulating technologies.

  17. Comparison of place attachment influence on the level of happiness of people living near residential parks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nurhakim, I.; Kurniawan, E. B.; Wardhani, D. K.

    2018-05-01

    Several studies have shown that living close to a park is associated with high levels of happiness. However, there is a possible difference in the level of happiness between living close to a park (0-400 meters radius) compared to living far from the park (400-1.000 meters radius). Therefore, this study aims to compare the influence of Place Attachment on the level of happiness for people living near a park, especially residential parks in some housing areas in Malang City. Place Attachment in this study defined as a bond between an individual and a particular setting. The study demonstrates a positive influence of Place Attachment on the level of happiness of people living near the park. Respondents who live close to a park (R = 0.441; Happiness Level = 97.8%; Average Happiness = 6.833) tend to have a higher level of happiness compared to respondents who live far from a park (R = 0.326; Happiness Level = 69.9%; average Happiness = 4.148). This result shows the urgency to reconsider the provision standard of residential parks in Indonesia which only suggests one residential park for every 1,000 meters radius.

  18. The influence of regional deprivation index on personal happiness using multilevel analysis

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Kil Hun; Chun, Jin-Ho; Sohn, Hae Sook

    2015-01-01

    OBJECTIVES: The objective of the present study was to identify the factors that influence the happiness index of community residents, by considering personal and regional aspects, and to use as evidence of efforts for improvement of the happiness index. METHODS: The study was conducted based on information from 16,270 participants who met the data requirement among those who participated in the 2011 South Gyeongsang Community Health Survey. Of the factors that can influence the happiness index, socioeconomic characteristics, health behavior, morbidity, and healthcare use, social contact, and participation in social activities were classified as personal factors; for regional factors, data from the 2010 census were used to extrapolate the regional deprivation indices at the submunicipal-level (eup, myeon, and dong) in South Gyeongsang Province. The happiness index for each characteristic was compared to that for others via t-test and ANOVA, and multilevel analysis was performed, using four models: a basic model for identification of only random effects, model 1 for identification of personal factors, model 2 for identification of regional factors, and model 3 for simultaneous consideration of both personal and regional factors. RESULTS: The mean happiness index was 63.2 points (64.6 points in males and 62.0 points in females), while the mean deprivation index was -1.58 points. In the multilevel analysis, the regional-level variance ratio of the basic model was 10.8%, confirming interregional differences. At the personal level, higher happiness indices were seen in groups consisting of males with high educational level, high income, high degree of physical activity, sufficient sleep, active social contact, and participation in social activities; whereas lower happiness indices were seen in people who frequently skipped breakfast, had unmet healthcare needs, and had accompanying diseases, as well as those with higher deprivation index. CONCLUSIONS: The study confirmed

  19. The influence of regional deprivation index on personal happiness using multilevel analysis.

    PubMed

    Kim, Kil Hun; Chun, Jin-Ho; Sohn, Hae Sook

    2015-01-01

    The objective of the present study was to identify the factors that influence the happiness index of community residents, by considering personal and regional aspects, and to use as evidence of efforts for improvement of the happiness index. The study was conducted based on information from 16,270 participants who met the data requirement among those who participated in the 2011 South Gyeongsang Community Health Survey. Of the factors that can influence the happiness index, socioeconomic characteristics, health behavior, morbidity, and healthcare use, social contact, and participation in social activities were classified as personal factors; for regional factors, data from the 2010 census were used to extrapolate the regional deprivation indices at the submunicipal-level (eup, myeon, and dong) in South Gyeongsang Province. The happiness index for each characteristic was compared to that for others via t-test and ANOVA, and multilevel analysis was performed, using four models: a basic model for identification of only random effects, model 1 for identification of personal factors, model 2 for identification of regional factors, and model 3 for simultaneous consideration of both personal and regional factors. The mean happiness index was 63.2 points (64.6 points in males and 62.0 points in females), while the mean deprivation index was -1.58 points. In the multilevel analysis, the regional-level variance ratio of the basic model was 10.8%, confirming interregional differences. At the personal level, higher happiness indices were seen in groups consisting of males with high educational level, high income, high degree of physical activity, sufficient sleep, active social contact, and participation in social activities; whereas lower happiness indices were seen in people who frequently skipped breakfast, had unmet healthcare needs, and had accompanying diseases, as well as those with higher deprivation index. The study confirmed that the happiness index of community

  20. Subjective happiness among mothers of children with disabilities: The role of stress, attachment, guilt and social support.

    PubMed

    Findler, Liora; Klein Jacoby, Ayelet; Gabis, Lidia

    2016-08-01

    Parenting a child with disabilities might affect the happiness of the mothers. Hence we adapted Wallander, Varni, Babani, Banis, and Wilcox's (1989) disability-stress-coping model to examine the impact of risk factors (specific stressors related to the child's disability) on the mother's adaptation (happiness). Intrapersonal factors (attachment) and social-ecological factors (social support) were hypothesized to predict adaptation. Both constitute 'risk-resistant' factors, which are mediated by the mother's perceived general stress and guilt. 191 mothers of a child with a developmental disability (ages 3-7) answered questionnaires on happiness, specific and general stress, attachment, guilt and social support. Attachment avoidance was directly and negatively associated with mothers' happiness. General stress was negatively associated with happiness, and mediated the association between anxious attachment, support, and specific stress with happiness. Guilt was negatively associated with happiness, and served as a mediator between attachment anxiety and support and happiness. The findings of the current research show direct and indirect associations of risk factors with happiness and the role of general stress and feelings of guilt as mediators. This study stresses the importance of attachment and social support to happiness and sheds light on the unique role of guilt in promoting or inhibiting happiness. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. The Pursuit of Happiness and Its Relationship to the Meta-experience of Emotions and Culture

    PubMed Central

    Hofmann, Stefan G.

    2012-01-01

    In this commentary, I provide a brief background of the meta-experience of emotions, the philosophical and psychological literature on happiness, and further discuss the influence of culture on happiness. The meta-experience of emotions implies that there are primary and secondary emotions (i.e., emotions about emotions), similar to the concept of meta-cognitions. Primary and secondary emotions are closely associated with one’s cultural background and happiness. Most scholars throughout history believe that happiness per se cannot be taught. However, it is possible to teach practices that lead to the path toward happiness. Promising strategies include loving-kindness and compassion meditation. These strategies are based on Buddhist teachings, which are deeply rooted in a collectivistic culture. This illustrates the close association between emotions, approaches towards happiness, and cultural background. PMID:23794745

  2. The Pursuit of Happiness and Its Relationship to the Meta-experience of Emotions and Culture.

    PubMed

    Hofmann, Stefan G

    2013-04-01

    In this commentary, I provide a brief background of the meta-experience of emotions, the philosophical and psychological literature on happiness, and further discuss the influence of culture on happiness. The meta-experience of emotions implies that there are primary and secondary emotions (i.e., emotions about emotions), similar to the concept of meta-cognitions. Primary and secondary emotions are closely associated with one's cultural background and happiness. Most scholars throughout history believe that happiness per se cannot be taught. However, it is possible to teach practices that lead to the path toward happiness. Promising strategies include loving-kindness and compassion meditation. These strategies are based on Buddhist teachings, which are deeply rooted in a collectivistic culture. This illustrates the close association between emotions, approaches towards happiness, and cultural background.

  3. Contribution of job satisfaction to happiness of Asian Americans.

    PubMed

    Weaver, C N

    2001-08-01

    Many demographic and labor force characteristics, such as family income, educational attainment, and occupation, correlated with job satisfaction. Since Asian Americans are more like Euro-Americans than African Americans in most of these characteristics, it seems reasonable to predict that their job satisfaction would be high as for Euro-Americans rather than low as for African Americans. Yet research of Weaver and Hinson showed that the opposite is true. One explanation for this unexpected result is that Asians do not think of jobs as a source of happiness but simply as a means of earning money to underwrite other aspects of their lives, such as the well-being of their families, which are the main sources of their happiness. The hypothesis was tested that job satisfaction does not contribute to the happiness of Asian Americans in comparison to satisfaction from other domains of their lives. Analysis was conducted of the attitudes of Asian-American (n = 160), African-American (n = 602), and Euro-American (n = 6,477) workers who responded to 22 surveys drawn from 1972 to 1998, each of which was representative of the labor force of the USA. The hypothesis was supported by the finding that the partial correlation of job satisfaction and global happiness with satisfaction in seven other domains of life (marriage, financial condition, community, nonwork activities, family, health and physical condition, and friendships) held constant was significant for Euro-American women and men but not for Asian Americans or African Americans of either sex. And, the same result occurred when global happiness was regressed on job satisfaction net the effects of satisfaction in other seven domains.

  4. Identification of Domains for Malaysian University Staff Happiness Index Development

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yassin, Sulaiman Md.

    2014-01-01

    Without any doubt happiness among staff in any organization is pertinent to ensure continued growth and development. However, not many studies were carried out to determine the domains that will be able to measure the level of happiness among staff in universities. Thus, the aim of this study is to elicit the domains that explain the overall…

  5. Is University Education a Golden Key for a Happy Life?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Jeong-Kyu

    2008-01-01

    This article explores what the ultimate purpose of university education is, and whether a university is indeed a golden key for a happy life. Two research questions are addressed as follows: for what the young study in a university?; and a university, is it a golden key for happiness? To defend the research questions systematically, the author…

  6. Selection of Compositions in Ti-Cr-C-Steel, Ti-B, Ti-B-Me Systems and Establishing Synthesis Parameters for Obtaining Product by “SHS-Electrical Rolling”

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aslamazashvili, Zurab; Tavadze, Giorgi; Chikhradze, Mikheil; Namicheishvili, Teimuraz; Melashvili, Zaqaria

    2017-12-01

    For the production materials by the proposed Self-propagating High-Temperature Synthesis (SHS) - Electric Rolling method, there are no limitations in the length of the material and the width only depends on the length of rolls. The innovation method enables to carry out the process in nonstop regime, which is possible by merging energy consuming SHS method and Electrical Rolling. For realizing the process it is mandatory and sufficient, that initial components, after initiation by thermal pulse, could interaction with the heat emission, which itself ensures the self-propagation of synthesis front in lieu of heat transfer in the whole sample. Just after that process, the rolls instantly start rotation with the set speed to ensure the motion of material. This speed should be equal to the speed of propagation of synthesis front. The synthesized product in hot plastic condition is delivered to the rolls in nonstop regime, simultaneously, providing the current in deformation zone in order to compensate the energy loses. As a result by using the innovation SHS -Electrical Rolling technology we obtain long dimensional metal-ceramic product. In the presented paper optimal compositions of SHS chasms were selected in Ti-Cr-C-Steel, Ti-B and Ti-B-Me systems. For the selection of the compounds the thermodynamic analysis has been carried out which enabled to determine adiabatic temperature of synthesis theoretically and to determine balanced concentrations of synthesized product at synthesis temperature. Thermodynamic analysis also gave possibility to determine optimal compositions of chasms and define the conditions, which are important for correct realization of synthesis process. For obtaining non porous materials and product by SHS-Electrical Rolling, it is necessary to select synthesis and compacting parameters correctly. These parameters are the pressure and the time. In Ti-Cr-C-Steel, Ti-B and Ti-B-Me systems the high quality (nonporous or low porosity <2%) of materials

  7. Resting-state functional connectivity of the default mode network associated with happiness.

    PubMed

    Luo, Yangmei; Kong, Feng; Qi, Senqing; You, Xuqun; Huang, Xiting

    2016-03-01

    Happiness refers to people's cognitive and affective evaluation of their life. Why are some people happier than others? One reason might be that unhappy people are prone to ruminate more than happy people. The default mode network (DMN) is normally active during rest and is implicated in rumination. We hypothesized that unhappiness may be associated with increased default-mode functional connectivity during rest, including the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and inferior parietal lobule (IPL). The hyperconnectivity of these areas may be associated with higher levels of rumination. One hundred forty-eight healthy participants underwent a resting-state fMRI scan. A group-independent component analysis identified the DMNs. Results indicated increased functional connectivity in the DMN was associated with lower levels of happiness. Specifically, relative to happy people, unhappy people exhibited greater functional connectivity in the anterior medial cortex (bilateral MPFC), posterior medial cortex regions (bilateral PCC) and posterior parietal cortex (left IPL). Moreover, the increased functional connectivity of the MPFC, PCC and IPL, correlated positively with the inclination to ruminate. These results highlight the important role of the DMN in the neural correlates of happiness, and suggest that rumination may play an important role in people's perceived happiness. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  8. Religious Commitment and its Relation to Happiness among Muslim Students: The Educational Level as Moderator.

    PubMed

    Achour, Meguellati; Mohd Nor, Mohd Roslan; Amel, Bouketir; Bin Seman, Haji Mohammad; MohdYusoff, Mohd Yakub Zulkifli

    2017-10-01

    This study examines the relationship between religiosity and level of happiness in an Islamic context among Muslim students studying at Malaysian universities. The determinants of happiness included in this research are positive attitudes, self-esteem, and other-esteem. Religiosity has long been considered as the main determinant in increasing happiness, and educational level strengthens its relationship. For this purpose, the researchers sampled 230 Muslim students aged 17-40 years studying at Malaysian universities in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The study found a positive and significant correlation between religious commitment and level of happiness. Religious commitment also shows positive and significant correlations with positive attitudes, self-esteem, and other-esteem. The study also concludes that educational attainment moderates the relationship between religious commitment and happiness. Thus, religious commitment plays a very important role in increasing levels of happiness.

  9. The joyful, yet balanced, amygdala: moderated responses to positive but not negative stimuli in trait happiness

    PubMed Central

    Kirkland, Tabitha

    2014-01-01

    Although much is known about the neural dynamics of maladaptive affective styles, the mechanisms of happiness and well-being are less clear. One possibility is that the neural processes of trait happiness are the opposite of those involved in depression/anxiety: ‘rose-colored glasses’ cause happy people to focus on positive cues while remaining oblivious to threats. Specifically, because negative affective styles have been associated with increased amygdala activation to negative stimuli, it may be happy people will not show this enhanced response, and may even show reduced amygdala activation to negative stimuli. Alternatively, if well-being entails appropriate sensitivity to information, happy people may process any relevant cues—positive or negative—to facilitate appropriate responding. This would mean that happiness is associated with increased amygdala activation to both positive and negative stimuli. Forty-two participants viewed affective stimuli during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. Happier participants showed greater amygdala responses to positive stimuli. Moreover, no significant relationships were found between happiness and responses to negative stimuli. In other words, for happy people, a tuning toward positive did not come at the cost of losing sensitivity to negativity. This work suggests that trait happiness is associated with a balanced amygdala response to positivity and negativity. PMID:23563851

  10. Electromyographically assessed empathic concern and empathic happiness predict increased prosocial behavior in adults.

    PubMed

    Light, Sharee N; Moran, Zachary D; Swander, Lena; Le, Van; Cage, Brandi; Burghy, Cory; Westbrook, Cecilia; Greishar, Larry; Davidson, Richard J

    2015-01-01

    The relation between empathy subtypes and prosocial behavior was investigated in a sample of healthy adults. "Empathic concern" and "empathic happiness", defined as negative and positive vicarious emotion (respectively) combined with an other-oriented feeling of "goodwill" (i.e. a thought to do good to others/see others happy), were elicited in 68 adult participants who watched video clips extracted from the television show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Prosocial behavior was quantified via performance on a non-monetary altruistic decision-making task involving book selection and donation. Empathic concern and empathic happiness were measured via self-report (immediately following each video clip) and via facial electromyography recorded from corrugator (active during frowning) and zygomatic (active during smiling) facial regions. Facial electromyographic signs of (a) empathic concern (i.e. frowning) during sad video clips, and (b) empathic happiness (i.e. smiling) during happy video clips, predicted increased prosocial behavior in the form of increased goodwill-themed book selection/donation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Electromyographically Assessed Empathic Concern and Empathic Happiness Predict Increased Prosocial Behavior in Adults

    PubMed Central

    Light, Sharee N.; Moran, Zachary D.; Swander, Lena; Le, Van; Cage, Brandi; Burghy, Cory; Westbrook, Cecilia; Greishar, Larry; Davidson, Richard J.

    2016-01-01

    The relation between empathy subtypes and prosocial behavior was investigated in a sample of healthy adults. "Empathic concern" and "empathic happiness," defined as negative and positive vicarious emotion (respectively) combined with an other-oriented feeling of “goodwill” (i.e. a thought to do good to others/see others happy), were elicited in 68 adult participants who watched video clips extracted from the television show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Prosocial behavior was quantified via performance on a non-monetary altruistic decision-making task involving book selection and donation. Empathic concern and empathic happiness were measured via self-report (immediately following each video clip) and via facial electromyography recorded from corrugator (active during frowning) and zygomatic (active during smiling) facial regions. Facial electromyographic signs of (a) empathic concern (i.e. frowning) during sad video clips, and (b) empathic happiness (i.e. smiling) during happy video clips, predicted increased prosocial behavior in the form of increased goodwill-themed book selection/donation. PMID:25486408

  12. Understanding Latina/o Students' Meaning in Life, Spirituality, and Subjective Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cavazos Vela, Javier; Castro, Veronica; Cavazos, Leticia; Cavazos, Michelle; Gonzalez, Stacey Lee

    2015-01-01

    One-hundred nineteen Latina/o college students provided perceptions of presence of meaning in life, search for meaning in life, daily spiritual experiences, and subjective happiness. Perceptions of meaning in life and daily spiritual experiences were significant predictors of subjective happiness. A discussion regarding the importance of these…

  13. Developmental trajectories of marital happiness in continuously married individuals: a group-based modeling approach.

    PubMed

    Anderson, Jared R; Van Ryzin, Mark J; Doherty, William J

    2010-10-01

    Most contemporary studies of change in marital quality over time have used growth curve modeling to describe continuously declining mean curves. However, there is some evidence that different trajectories of marital quality exist for different subpopulations. Group-based trajectory modeling provides the opportunity to conduct an empirical investigation of the variance in marital quality trajectories. We applied this method to analyze data from continuously married individuals from the Marital Instability over the Life Course Study (N = 706). Instead of a single continuously declining trajectory of marital happiness, we found 5 distinct trajectories. Nearly two thirds of participants reported high and stable levels of happiness over time, and the other one third showed either a pattern of continuous low happiness, low happiness that subsequently declined, or a curvilinear pattern of high happiness, decline, and recovery. Marital problems, time spent in shared activities, and (to a lesser degree) economic hardship were able to distinguish trajectory group membership. Our results suggest that marital happiness may have multiple distinct trajectories across reasonably diverse populations. Implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.

  14. Associations of relative income deprivation with perceived happiness and self-rated health among the Hong Kong Chinese population.

    PubMed

    Chan, Chee Hon; Wong, Ho Kit; Yip, Paul Siu Fai

    2017-07-01

    To investigate the association of relative income deprivation (RID) with perceived happiness and self-rated health in Hong Kong. We measured RID on Yitzhaki indices constructed using multiple reference groups and used multilevel ordinal logistic regression models to assess its linkages with the two outcomes, using data from 6272 respondents from a large-scale representative household survey. Among the overall population, increased RID was found to be consistently associated with reduced perceived happiness, even after adjusting for respondents' level of absolute income and other socio-demographic covariates; however, there were no consistent associations between RID and self-rated health. In subgroup analysis, we observed significant linkages between RID and self-rated health only among men, the middle and older age ranges, and among those with less education and those not engaged in economic activities. Our findings suggest that RID is adversely associated with perceived happiness. However, its negative linkage with self-rated health is less clear. The weak tie between RID and self-rated health may relate to the Hong Kong context, where the public health system is relatively equitable and has multiple pro-poor health policies.

  15. Laughter exaggerates happy and sad faces depending on visual context.

    PubMed

    Sherman, Aleksandra; Sweeny, Timothy D; Grabowecky, Marcia; Suzuki, Satoru

    2012-04-01

    Laughter is an auditory stimulus that powerfully conveys positive emotion. We investigated how laughter influenced the visual perception of facial expressions. We presented a sound clip of laughter simultaneously with a happy, a neutral, or a sad schematic face. The emotional face was briefly presented either alone or among a crowd of neutral faces. We used a matching method to determine how laughter influenced the perceived intensity of the happy, neutral, and sad expressions. For a single face, laughter increased the perceived intensity of a happy expression. Surprisingly, for a crowd of faces, laughter produced an opposite effect, increasing the perceived intensity of a sad expression in a crowd. A follow-up experiment revealed that this contrast effect may have occurred because laughter made the neutral distractor faces appear slightly happy, thereby making the deviant sad expression stand out in contrast. A control experiment ruled out semantic mediation of the laughter effects. Our demonstration of the strong context dependence of laughter effects on facial expression perception encourages a reexamination of the previously demonstrated effects of prosody, speech content, and mood on face perception, as they may be similarly context dependent.

  16. Laughter exaggerates happy and sad faces depending on visual context

    PubMed Central

    Sherman, Aleksandra; Sweeny, Timothy D.; Grabowecky, Marcia; Suzuki, Satoru

    2012-01-01

    Laughter is an auditory stimulus that powerfully conveys positive emotion. We investigated how laughter influenced visual perception of facial expressions. We simultaneously presented laughter with a happy, neutral, or sad schematic face. The emotional face was briefly presented either alone or among a crowd of neutral faces. We used a matching method to determine how laughter influenced the perceived intensity of happy, neutral, and sad expressions. For a single face, laughter increased the perceived intensity of a happy expression. Surprisingly, for a crowd of faces laughter produced an opposite effect, increasing the perceived intensity of a sad expression in a crowd. A follow-up experiment revealed that this contrast effect may have occurred because laughter made the neutral distracter faces appear slightly happy, thereby making the deviant sad expression stand out in contrast. A control experiment ruled out semantic mediation of the laughter effects. Our demonstration of the strong context dependence of laughter effects on facial expression perception encourages a re-examination of the previously demonstrated effects of prosody, speech content, and mood on face perception, as they may similarly be context dependent. PMID:22215467

  17. Happiness, Pain Intensity, Pain Interference, and Distress in Individuals with Physical Disabilities.

    PubMed

    Müller, Rachel; Terrill, Alexandra L; Jensen, Mark P; Molton, Ivan R; Ravesloot, Craig; Ipsen, Catherine

    2015-12-01

    The aim of this study was to examine how the construct of happiness is related to pain intensity, pain interference, and distress in individuals with physical disabilities. This study involves cross-sectional analyses of 471 individuals with a variety of health conditions reporting at least mild pain. The first hypothesis that happiness mediates the relationship between pain intensity and two outcomes, pain interference and distress, was not supported. The second hypothesis was supported by a good fitting model (χ2(10) = 12.83, P = 0.23, root-mean-square error of approximation = 0.025) and indicated that pain intensity significantly mediated the effect of happiness on pain interference (indirect effect: β = -0.13, P < 0.001) and on distress (indirect effect: β = 0.10, P = 0.01). Happiness showed a significant direct effect on pain intensity (β = -0.20, P < 0.001). A third model exploring the happiness components meaning, pleasure, and engagement fitted well (χ2(4) = 9.65, P = 0.05, root-mean-square error of approximation = 0.055). Pain intensity acted as a significant mediator but only mediated the effect of meaning on pain interference (indirect effect: β = -0.07, P = 0.05) and on distress (indirect effect via pain interference: β = -0.04, P = 0.05). Only meaning (β = -0.10, P = 0.05), but neither pleasure nor engagement, had a significant direct effect on pain intensity. Participants who reported greater happiness reported lower pain interference and distress through happiness' effects on pain intensity. Experiencing meaning and purpose in life seems to be most closely (and negatively) associated with pain intensity, pain interference, and distress. Findings from this study can lay the groundwork for intervention studies to better understand how to more effectively decrease pain intensity, pain interference, and distress.

  18. Avowed Happiness in Confucian Asia: Ascertaining Its Distribution, Patterns, and Sources

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shin, Doh Chull; Inoguchi, Takashi

    2009-01-01

    This study reviewed three philosophical accounts of happiness, and then tested those accounts with the Asiabarometer surveys conducted in six Confucian societies during the summer of 2006. Statistical analyses of these surveys reveal that East Asians tend to experience happiness to a greater extent when they experience enjoyment together with…

  19. The joyful, yet balanced, amygdala: moderated responses to positive but not negative stimuli in trait happiness.

    PubMed

    Cunningham, William A; Kirkland, Tabitha

    2014-06-01

    Although much is known about the neural dynamics of maladaptive affective styles, the mechanisms of happiness and well-being are less clear. One possibility is that the neural processes of trait happiness are the opposite of those involved in depression/anxiety: 'rose-colored glasses' cause happy people to focus on positive cues while remaining oblivious to threats. Specifically, because negative affective styles have been associated with increased amygdala activation to negative stimuli, it may be happy people will not show this enhanced response, and may even show reduced amygdala activation to negative stimuli. Alternatively, if well-being entails appropriate sensitivity to information, happy people may process any relevant cues-positive or negative-to facilitate appropriate responding. This would mean that happiness is associated with increased amygdala activation to both positive and negative stimuli. Forty-two participants viewed affective stimuli during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. Happier participants showed greater amygdala responses to positive stimuli. Moreover, no significant relationships were found between happiness and responses to negative stimuli. In other words, for happy people, a tuning toward positive did not come at the cost of losing sensitivity to negativity. This work suggests that trait happiness is associated with a balanced amygdala response to positivity and negativity. © The Author (2013). Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  20. The effects of happiness and sadness on Children's snack consumption.

    PubMed

    Tan, Cin Cin; Holub, Shayla C

    2018-04-01

    Children appear to engage in emotional eating (i.e., eating in response to negative and positive emotions), but existing research has predominantly relied on parent-report and child-report, which may not necessarily reflect children's actual emotional eating behaviors. This study examined the effects of happiness and sadness on children's observed snack consumption and examined whether child characteristics (i.e., weight, gender, and age) interact with mood to predict snack consumption. To elicit mood, children (N = 91; M ages  = 6.8 years; 48 boys) were randomly assigned to one of the three mood induction conditions (happy, sad, or neutral); children's snack consumption was observed and measured after mood induction. Findings showed that children in the sad condition consumed more energy from chocolate, followed by children in the happy condition, and then the neutral condition. However, the reverse pattern was observed for goldfish crackers: children in the neutral condition consumed more energy from this savory snack than children in the happy condition, followed by children in sad condition. Child weight status and gender did not interact with mood to predict snack consumption. Child age did interact with mood: older children consumed more chocolates in the sad condition compared to younger children. Child age was not related to snack consumption in the happy and neutral conditions. This study suggests that emotional eating in response to positive and negative emotions is evident during early childhood, but that this is behavior is developing during this period. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Smallest Coins of Marital Happiness.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kalyan-Masih, V.; And Others

    People tend to have such lofty conceptions of love and marital happiness that little day-to-day simple acts of kindness are seldom considered. This study investigated specific, repetitive, small daily acts that strengthen marriage, and little acts that disturb a stable relationship. Participants (N=57) were individuals who had been happily married…

  2. THE EFFECT OF GAMBLING ACTIVITIES ON HAPPINESS LEVELS OF NURSING HOME RESIDENTS

    PubMed Central

    Dixon, Mark R; Nastally, Becky L; Waterman, Amber

    2010-01-01

    The current study evaluated the effect of participating in simulated gambling activities on happiness levels of 3 nursing home residents. A 4-component analysis was used to measure objective responses associated with happiness during baseline, varying durations of engagement in simulated gambling activities, and 2 follow-up periods. Results indicated that all residents exhibited a higher percentage of happiness levels while engaged in simulated gambling activities compared with baseline. Follow-up assessment took place 10 min and 30 min following the intervention; no lasting effects were observed. PMID:21358915

  3. Happiness in the neonatal intensive care unit: merits of ethnographic fieldwork.

    PubMed

    Einarsdóttir, Jónína

    2012-12-12

    Research has focused on the destructive effects of distress on professionals who work in ethically complex wards such as neonatal intensive units (NICUs). This article examines the accounts of health professionals, including nurses, pediatricians and assistant nurses, of their work at a NICU in Iceland. The aim is to understand how health professionals, who work under stressful conditions in an ethically sensitive ward, can counteract the negative sides of work too such a degree that they experience happiness. The collection of data was based on the ethnographic fieldwork, and the methods used were participant observation and semi-structured interviews. The professionals evaluated their wellbeing in line with conventional definitions of happiness. Working with children and opportunities to help others, engage in social relations and experience professional pride contributed to their happiness at work. Nonetheless, they did not dismiss the difficult experiences, and when confronted with these the professionals negotiated their meanings and the goals and priorities of work. In contrast to the findings of much quantitative and survey-based research, the professionals attributed constructive meanings to stress and argued that the positive experiences at work buffered the negative ones. Research on happiness would benefit from multifaceted methodological and theoretical perspectives. Thanks to its openness to the unforeseen, controversial, contradictory, and ambiguous aspects of human life, ethnography can contribute to happiness research and research on job satisfaction.

  4. Why is happy-sad more difficult? Focal emotional information impairs inhibitory control in children and adults.

    PubMed

    Kramer, Hannah J; Lagattuta, Kristin Hansen; Sayfan, Liat

    2015-02-01

    This study compared the relative difficulty of the happy-sad inhibitory control task (say "happy" for the sad face and "sad" for the happy face) against other card tasks that varied by the presence and type (focal vs. peripheral; negative vs. positive) of emotional information in a sample of 4- to 11-year-olds and adults (N = 264). Participants also completed parallel "name games" (direct labeling). All age groups made more errors and took longer to respond to happy-sad compared to other versions, and the relative difficulty of happy-sad increased with age. The happy-sad name game even posed a greater challenge than some opposite games. These data provide insight into the impact of emotions on cognitive processing across a wide age range. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

  5. The social context of marital happiness in urban Indian couples: interplay of intimacy and conflict.

    PubMed

    Sandhya, Shaifali

    2009-01-01

    This research examines the happiness of 182 married, urban Hindu husbands and wives. Prior research emphasizes that the processes mediating well-being diverge across cultures with personal desires not impacting the happiness of non-Western couples. However, with globalization as self needs become important, barometers of happiness such as intimacy and conflict in a relationship assume a critical role in the quality and longevity of marriage, even for non-Western marriages in a contemporary India. Participants were 91 Indian couples, married an average of 11 years, from three socioeconomic classes, three family structures, and arranged and love marriages. Results reveal that happy couples, compared with unhappy couples, reported agreement, empathy, validation, support, and fulfilled expectations. Couples' experience and expression of intimacy, affected by social context, also predicted enhanced levels of happiness in marriage while conflict had a negative effect on marital happiness. This research suggests how personal desires may be transforming cultural practices.

  6. Happiness among Adolescent Students in Thailand: Family and Non-Family Factors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gray, Rossarin Soottipong; Chamratrithirong, Aphichat; Pattaravanich, Umaporn; Prasartkul, Pramote

    2013-01-01

    This paper explores family and non-family factors contributing to happiness among students aged 15-18 in Thailand. Data come from the Social and Cultural Situation and Mental Health Survey (n = 905). Based on regression analysis, family factors are more important than non- family factors in explaining the variations in adolescents' happiness.…

  7. Up, not down: The age curve in happiness from early adulthood to midlife in two longitudinal studies.

    PubMed

    Galambos, Nancy L; Fang, Shichen; Krahn, Harvey J; Johnson, Matthew D; Lachman, Margie E

    2015-11-01

    Happiness is an important indicator of well-being, and little is known about how it changes in the early adult years. We examined trajectories of happiness from early adulthood to midlife in 2 Canadian longitudinal samples: high school seniors followed from ages 18-43 and university seniors followed from ages 23-37. Happiness increased into the 30s in both samples, with a slight downturn by age 43 in the high school sample. The rise in happiness after high school and university remained after controlling for important baseline covariates (gender, parents' education, grades, self-esteem), time-varying covariates known to be associated with happiness (marital status, unemployment, self-rated physical health), and number of waves of participation. The upward trend in happiness runs counter to some previous cross-sectional research claiming a high point in happiness in the late teens, decreasing into midlife. As cross-sectional designs do not assess within-person change, longitudinal studies are necessary for drawing accurate conclusions about patterns of change in happiness across the life span. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. Eating breakfast, fruit and vegetable intake and their relation with happiness in college students.

    PubMed

    Lesani, Azadeh; Mohammadpoorasl, Asghar; Javadi, Maryam; Esfeh, Jabiz Modaresi; Fakhari, Ali

    2016-12-01

    Nutrition plays a major role in physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationships between happiness and fruit and vegetable intake as well as eating breakfast in students. In this cross-sectional web-based study, all students of Qazvin University of Medical Sciences in Iran who attended course classes were invited to participate in the study. Five hundred forty-one students filled out the web-based questionnaire which included questions related to measurement of happiness, breakfast, fruit and vegetable consumption and socio-economic and demographic information. Analysis of covariance was used to assess the relationship between happiness and breakfast, fruit and vegetable consumption by adjustments for covariates. Measure of happiness was positively associated with eating breakfast, number of meals eaten daily and the amount of fruit and vegetable consumption (P values were <0.001, 0.008, 0.02, and 0.045 respectively). Students who ate breakfast every day, more than 8 servings of fruit and vegetables daily, and had 3 meals in addition to 1-2 snacks per day had the highest happiness score. Healthier behavior pattern was associated with higher happiness scores among medical students.

  9. Gaze-fixation to happy faces predicts mood repair after a negative mood induction.

    PubMed

    Sanchez, Alvaro; Vazquez, Carmelo; Gomez, Diego; Joormann, Jutta

    2014-02-01

    The present study tested the interplay between mood and attentional deployment by examining attention to positive (i.e., happy faces) and negative (i.e., angry and sad faces) stimuli in response to experimental inductions of sad and happy mood. Participants underwent a negative, neutral, or positive mood induction procedure (MIP) which was followed by an assessment of their attentional deployment to emotional faces using eye-tracking technology. Faces were selected from the Karolinska Directed Emotional Faces (KDEF) database (Lundqvist, Flykt, & Öhman, 1998). In the positive MIP condition, analyses revealed a mood-congruent relation between positive mood and greater attentional deployment to happy faces. In the negative MIP condition, however, analyses revealed a mood-incongruent relation between increased negative mood and greater attentional deployment to happy faces. Furthermore, attentional deployment to happy faces after the negative MIP predicted participants' mood recovery at the end of the experimental session. These results suggest that attentional processing of positive information may play a role in mood repair, which may have important clinical implications. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

  10. Happiness Disabled: Sensory Disabilities, Happiness and the Rise of Educational Expertise in the Nineteenth Century

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Verstraete, Pieter; Söderfeldt, Yva

    2014-01-01

    To date, the historical entanglement of disability and happiness has not been considered an object worth of historical inquiry. Nor has the intersection of disability and emotions been used as a lens to examine the history of disability. Our paper aims at filling this academic void by analysing a wide range of philosophical, anthropological,…

  11. Strategic Planning for Employee Happiness: A Business Goal for Human Service Organizations.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Howard, Beth; Gould, Karen E.

    2000-01-01

    This paper reviews evidence that employee happiness can substantially affect an organization's performance by influencing employee retention, absenteeism, and work performance. It reviews the workforce and environmental characteristics involved in planning for employee happiness and the steps needed to create an organizational culture in which…

  12. Happy@feet application for the management of diabetic foot osteomyelitis.

    PubMed

    Fiquet, S; Desbiez, F; Tauveron, I; Mrozek, N; Vidal, M; Lesens, O

    2016-12-01

    We aimed to develop and implement an application that could improve the management of patients presenting with diabetic foot osteomyelitis. Physicians from the multidisciplinary diabetic foot infection team and a software engineer first assessed the needs required for the infection management and application. An experimental version was then designed and progressively improved. A final version was implemented in clinical practice in 2013 by the multidisciplinary diabetic foot infection team of our university hospital. The application, known as Happy@feet, helps gather and allows access to all required data for patient management, dispenses prescriptions (antibiotics, nursing care, blood tests), and helps follow the evolution of the wound. At the end of the consultation, a customizable letter is generated and may be directly sent to the persons concerned. This application also facilitates clinical and economic research. In 2014, Happy@feet was used to follow 83 patients during 271 consultations, 88 of which were day care hospitalizations. The Happy@feet application is useful to manage these complex patients. Once the learning period is over, the time required for data collection is compensated by the rapid dispense of prescriptions and letters. Happy@feet can be used for research projects and will be used in a remote patient management project. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier SAS.

  13. Promoting health and happiness in the Brazilian Amazon.

    PubMed

    Scannavino, Caetano; Anastácio, Rui

    2007-01-01

    With the motto "Health, happiness of the body. Happiness, health of the soul", the Health & Happiness Project (PSA) works to promote integrated and sustainable community development in parts of the Brazilian Amazon. PSA grew out of local workers' personal experience in collaborating with communities and the need for sustainable actions for their future development. PSA was established as a not-for-profit organization in 1987 It started off by implementing strategies that would increase the health status of the population, which was identified as the biggest challenge, to then extend to other areas of development. Education, training and community participation were key elements of the project's actions, which included basic sanitation, reproductive health and child health, technical assistance in agricultural practices and youth empowerment through communications, among others. Once the health structure was established, the work moved on to new priorities related to education, economic production, protection of the environment and community management in the medium and long terms. The project's success has helped to institutionalize the practices and today it reaches a total of approximately 5,000 families distributed across 150 rural communities in the mid- and low-Amazon region.

  14. Are informal caregivers less happy than noncaregivers? Happiness and the intensity of caregiving in combination with paid and voluntary work.

    PubMed

    van Campen, Cretien; de Boer, Alice H; Iedema, Jurjen

    2013-03-01

    Informal caregivers are one of the pillars of home health care. In the Netherlands, the free help they provide to sick or disabled family members, acquaintances or friends exceeds the number of hours of home care provided by professionals. While the government welcomes their contribution, there is concern about the potential burden their work imposes on them. On the one hand, there is concern that informal caregiving could be experienced as a burden and diminish subjective well-being; on the other, helping others as a meaningful activity might increase their subjective well-being. Happiness ratings (as an indicator of subjective well-being) of persons whose involvement in informal caregiving, voluntary work and paid work ranged from none to full time were analysed using multivariate regression models, which also took into account levels of physical disability and socio-economic characteristics (age, sex, household composition, education level). The sample consisted of 336 informal caregivers and 1765 noncaregivers in the Dutch population. In line with the subjective well-being assumption, the results suggest that caregivers are happier than noncaregivers when they provide care for <6 hours a week; and in line with the burden assumption, the results show that providing care for more than 11 hours a week is associated with lower levels of happiness. Other results contradicted the burden assumption that combining caregiving with paid or voluntary work is associated with more time burden and less happiness. The result that combining caregiving with paid employment or volunteering is related to higher rates of happiness confirms the subjective well-being assumption. It is concluded that these cross-sectional results open ways to longitudinal research that can inform governments in the development of policies to support informal caregivers. © 2012 The Authors. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences © 2012 Nordic College of Caring Science.

  15. Can alcohol make you happy? A subjective wellbeing approach.

    PubMed

    Geiger, Ben Baumberg; MacKerron, George

    2016-05-01

    There are surprisingly few discussions of the link between wellbeing and alcohol, and few empirical studies to underpin them. Policymakers have therefore typically considered negative wellbeing impacts while ignoring positive ones, used gross overestimates of positive impacts via a naïve 'consumer surplus' approach, or ignored wellbeing completely. We examine an alternative subjective wellbeing method for investigating alcohol and wellbeing, using fixed effects analyses of the associations between drinking and wellbeing within two different types of data. Study 1 examines wave-to-wave changes in life satisfaction and past-week alcohol consumption/alcohol problems (CAGE) from a representative cohort of people born in Britain in 1970, utilising responses at ages 30, 34 and 42 (a sample size of 29,145 observations from 10,107 individuals). Study 2 examines moment-to-moment changes in happiness and drinking from an iPhone-based data set in Britain 2010-13, which is innovative and large (2,049,120 observations from 31,302 individuals) but unrepresentative. In Study 1 we find no significant relationship between changing drinking levels and changing life satisfaction (p = 0.20), but a negative association with developing drinking problems (-0.18 points on a 0-10 scale; p = 0.003). In contrast, Study 2 shows a strong and consistent moment-to-moment relationship between happiness and drinking events (+3.88 points on a 0-100 scale; p < 0.001), although associations beyond the moment in question are smaller and more inconsistent. In conclusion, while iPhone users are happier at the moment of drinking, there are only small overspills to other moments, and among the wider population, changing drinking levels across several years are not associated with changing life satisfaction. Furthermore, drinking problems are associated with lower life satisfaction. Simple accounts of the wellbeing impacts of alcohol policies are therefore likely to be misleading. Policymakers must

  16. Predicting South Korean University Students' Happiness through Social Support and Efficacy Beliefs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lee, Diane Sookyoung; Padilla, Amado M.

    2016-01-01

    This study investigated the adversity and coping experiences of 198 South Korean university students and takes a cultural lens in understanding how social and individual factors shape their happiness. Hierarchical linear regression analyses suggest that Korean students' perceptions of social support significantly predicted their happiness,…

  17. Happiness and age in European adults: The moderating role of gross domestic product per capita.

    PubMed

    Morgan, Jessica; Robinson, Oliver; Thompson, Trevor

    2015-09-01

    Studies of happiness levels across the life span have found support for two rival hypotheses. The positivity effect states that as people get older, they increasingly attend to positive information, which implies that happiness remains stable or increases with age, whereas the U-shaped hypothesis posits a curvilinear shape resulting from a dip during midlife. Both have been presented as potentially universal hypotheses that relate to cognitive and/or biological causes. The current study examined the happiness-age relationship across 29 European nations (N = 46,301) to explore whether it is moderated by national wealth, as indexed by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. It was found that eudaimonic and hedonic happiness remained relatively stable across the life span only in the most affluent nations; in poorer nations, there was either a fluctuating or steady age-associated decline. These findings challenge the cultural universality of the happiness-age relationship and suggest that models of how age relates to happiness should include the socioeconomic level of analysis. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  18. Happiness and health behaviors in South Korean adolescents: a cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    Kye, Su Yeon; Kwon, Jeong Hyun; Park, Keeho

    2016-01-01

    We examined the associations between happiness and a wide range of health behaviors in South Korean adolescents. Study data were derived from the ninth Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey administered from June to July 2013. In addition to happiness levels, the questionnaire included items on sociodemographics and health-related lifestyle factors (smoking, drinking, eating breakfast, fruit and vegetable consumption, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and hours of sleep). The multivariate analysis revealed that higher levels of happiness were associated with not smoking or drinking, eating breakfast, eating fruits daily, vegetable consumption, participating in at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day, avoiding sedentary behavior, and hours of sleep. Additionally, sex differences were found in relationships between happiness and eating fruit daily, participation in physical activity, and sedentary behavior. These results encourage public health professionals to consider the psychological aspects of adolescent life in working to improve their health behaviors and outcomes.

  19. Happiness and health behaviors in South Korean adolescents: a cross-sectional study

    PubMed Central

    2016-01-01

    OBJECTIVES: We examined the associations between happiness and a wide range of health behaviors in South Korean adolescents. METHODS: Study data were derived from the ninth Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey administered from June to July 2013. In addition to happiness levels, the questionnaire included items on sociodemographics and health-related lifestyle factors (smoking, drinking, eating breakfast, fruit and vegetable consumption, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and hours of sleep). RESULTS: The multivariate analysis revealed that higher levels of happiness were associated with not smoking or drinking, eating breakfast, eating fruits daily, vegetable consumption, participating in at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day, avoiding sedentary behavior, and hours of sleep. Additionally, sex differences were found in relationships between happiness and eating fruit daily, participation in physical activity, and sedentary behavior. CONCLUSIONS: These results encourage public health professionals to consider the psychological aspects of adolescent life in working to improve their health behaviors and outcomes. PMID:27283139

  20. Happy guys finish last: the impact of emotion expressions on sexual attraction.

    PubMed

    Tracy, Jessica L; Beall, Alec T

    2011-12-01

    This research examined the relative sexual attractiveness of individuals showing emotion expressions of happiness, pride, and shame compared with a neutral control. Across two studies using different images and samples ranging broadly in age (total N = 1041), a large gender difference emerged in the sexual attractiveness of happy displays: happiness was the most attractive female emotion expression, and one of the least attractive in males. In contrast, pride showed the reverse pattern; it was the most attractive male expression, and one of the least attractive in women. Shame displays were relatively attractive in both genders, and, among younger adult women viewers, male shame was more attractive than male happiness, and not substantially less than male pride. Effects were largely consistent with evolutionary and socio-cultural-norm accounts. Overall, this research provides the first evidence that distinct emotion expressions have divergent effects on sexual attractiveness, which vary by gender but largely hold across age. (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved.

  1. Between Pleasure and Contentment: Evolutionary Dynamics of Some Possible Parameters of Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Gao, Yue; Edelman, Shimon

    2016-01-01

    We offer and test a simple operationalization of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being (“happiness”) as mediating variables that link outcomes to motivation. In six evolutionary agent-based simulation experiments, we compared the relative performance of agents endowed with different combinations of happiness-related traits (parameter values), under four types of environmental conditions. We found (i) that the effects of attaching more weight to longer-term than to momentary happiness and of extending the memory for past happiness are both stronger in an environment where food is scarce; (ii) that in such an environment “relative consumption,” in which the agent’s well-being is negatively affected by that of its neighbors, is more detrimental to survival when food is scarce; and (iii) that having a positive outlook, under which agents’ longer-term happiness is increased by positive events more than it is decreased by negative ones, is generally advantageous. PMID:27144982

  2. Porous NiTi shape memory alloys produced by SHS: microstructure and biocompatibility in comparison with Ti2Ni and TiNi3.

    PubMed

    Bassani, Paola; Panseri, Silvia; Ruffini, Andrea; Montesi, Monica; Ghetti, Martina; Zanotti, Claudio; Tampieri, Anna; Tuissi, Ausonio

    2014-10-01

    Shape memory alloys based on NiTi have found their main applications in manufacturing of new biomedical devices mainly in surgery tools, stents and orthopedics. Porous NiTi can exhibit an engineering elastic modulus comparable to that of cortical bone (12-17 GPa). This condition, combined with proper pore size, allows good osteointegration. Open cells porous NiTi was produced by self propagating high temperature synthesis (SHS), starting from Ni and Ti mixed powders. The main NiTi phase is formed during SHS together with other Ni-Ti compounds. The biocompatibility of such material was investigated by single culture experiment and ionic release on small specimen. In particular, NiTi and porous NiTi were evaluated together with elemental Ti and Ni reference metals and the two intermetallic TiNi3, Ti2Ni phases. This approach permitted to clearly identify the influence of secondary phases in porous NiTi materials and relation with Ni-ion release. The results indicated, apart the well-known high toxicity of Ni, also toxicity of TiNi3, whilst phases with higher Ti content showed high biocompatibility. A slightly reduced biocompatibility of porous NiTi was ascribed to combined effect of TiNi3 presence and topography that requires higher effort for the cells to adapt to the surface.

  3. A functional MRI study of happy and sad affective states induced by classical music.

    PubMed

    Mitterschiffthaler, Martina T; Fu, Cynthia H Y; Dalton, Jeffrey A; Andrew, Christopher M; Williams, Steven C R

    2007-11-01

    The present study investigated the functional neuroanatomy of transient mood changes in response to Western classical music. In a pilot experiment, 53 healthy volunteers (mean age: 32.0; SD = 9.6) evaluated their emotional responses to 60 classical musical pieces using a visual analogue scale (VAS) ranging from 0 (sad) through 50 (neutral) to 100 (happy). Twenty pieces were found to accurately induce the intended emotional states with good reliability, consisting of 5 happy, 5 sad, and 10 emotionally unevocative, neutral musical pieces. In a subsequent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, the blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signal contrast was measured in response to the mood state induced by each musical stimulus in a separate group of 16 healthy participants (mean age: 29.5; SD = 5.5). Mood state ratings during scanning were made by a VAS, which confirmed the emotional valence of the selected stimuli. Increased BOLD signal contrast during presentation of happy music was found in the ventral and dorsal striatum, anterior cingulate, parahippocampal gyrus, and auditory association areas. With sad music, increased BOLD signal responses were noted in the hippocampus/amygdala and auditory association areas. Presentation of neutral music was associated with increased BOLD signal responses in the insula and auditory association areas. Our findings suggest that an emotion processing network in response to music integrates the ventral and dorsal striatum, areas involved in reward experience and movement; the anterior cingulate, which is important for targeting attention; and medial temporal areas, traditionally found in the appraisal and processing of emotions. Copyright 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  4. Happiness and Depression in the Traditionally Bullied and Cyberbullied 12-Year-Old

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uusitalo-Malmivaara, Lotta; Lehto, Juhani E.

    2016-01-01

    This study investigated the overall happiness, school-related happiness, and depression of traditionally bullied and cyberbullied 12-year-old Finnish students. Among the more than 700 participants, traditional bullying (26%) was more frequent than cyberbullying (18%). Receiving insulting text messages or being the subject of offensive comments on…

  5. Lay Definitions of Happiness across Nations: The Primacy of Inner Harmony and Relational Connectedness.

    PubMed

    Delle Fave, Antonella; Brdar, Ingrid; Wissing, Marié P; Araujo, Ulisses; Castro Solano, Alejandro; Freire, Teresa; Hernández-Pozo, María Del Rocío; Jose, Paul; Martos, Tamás; Nafstad, Hilde E; Nakamura, Jeanne; Singh, Kamlesh; Soosai-Nathan, Lawrence

    2016-01-01

    In well-being research the term happiness is often used as synonymous with life satisfaction. However, little is known about lay people's understanding of happiness. Building on the available literature, this study explored lay definitions of happiness across nations and cultural dimensions, analyzing their components and relationship with participants' demographic features. Participants were 2799 adults (age range = 30-60, 50% women) living in urban areas of Argentina, Brazil, Croatia, Hungary, India, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, and United States. They completed the Eudaimonic and Hedonic Happiness Investigation (EHHI), reporting, among other information, their own definition of happiness. Answers comprised definitions referring to a broad range of life domains, covering both the contextual-social sphere and the psychological sphere. Across countries and with little variation by age and gender, inner harmony predominated among psychological definitions, and family and social relationships among contextual definitions. Whereas relationships are widely acknowledged as basic happiness components, inner harmony is substantially neglected. Nevertheless, its cross-national primacy, together with relations, is consistent with the view of an ontological interconnectedness characterizing living systems, shared by several conceptual frameworks across disciplines and cultures. At the methodological level, these findings suggest the potential of a bottom-up, mixed method approach to contextualize psychological dimensions within culture and lay understanding.

  6. Pilot-scale steam explosion for xylose production from oil palm empty fruit bunches and the use of xylose for ethanol production.

    PubMed

    Duangwang, Sairudee; Ruengpeerakul, Taweesak; Cheirsilp, Benjamas; Yamsaengsung, Ram; Sangwichien, Chayanoot

    2016-03-01

    Pilot-scale steam explosion equipments were designed and constructed, to experimentally solubilize xylose from oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) and also to enhance an enzyme accessibility of the residual cellulose pulp. The OPEFB was chemically pretreated prior to steam explosion at saturated steam (SS) and superheated steam (SHS) conditions. The acid pretreated OPEFB gave the highest xylose recovery of 87.58 ± 0.21 g/kg dried OPEFB in the liquid fraction after explosion at SHS condition. These conditions also gave the residual cellulose pulp with high enzymatic accessibility of 73.54 ± 0.41%, which is approximately threefold that of untreated OPEFB. This study has shown that the acid pretreatment prior to SHS explosion is an effective method to enhance both xylose extraction and enzyme accessibility of the exploded OPEFB. Moreover, the xylose solution obtained in this manner could directly be fermented by Candida shehatae TISTR 5843 giving high ethanol yield of 0.30 ± 0.08 g/g xylose. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Happiness and Social Exclusion of Indigenous Peoples in Taiwan - A Social Sustainability Perspective

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Jiun-Hao

    2015-01-01

    Introduction Happiness and social inclusion are important indicators of social sustainability, as recommended in the Sustainable Development Goals; however, little is known about the social sustainable development of ethnic minorities. To fill this knowledge gap, special attention is paid to understanding the issues of social exclusion and happiness in relation to the indigenous peoples in Taiwan. Methods Data used were drawn from a nationwide representativeness survey of the Taiwanese Indigenous People in 2007; it included 2,200 respondents. This study employed binary logistic regression to examine the effects of different domains of social exclusion on the likelihood of perceiving happiness; other exogenous factors, were controlled. Results The results show that among the respondents, mountain indigenous peoples, females, the elderly and those who are healthier, wealthier, highly educated, possessing western beliefs, and are more likely to be happy, compared to their counterparts. As expected, the results reveal that the likelihood of being happy is higher for those who have received medical benefits, as well as those persons without housing problems or financial difficulties, compared to their excluded counterparts. However, no significant association is found between happiness and some social exclusion domains, such as child and youth benefits, and unemployment benefits. Conclusions The disengagement of the indigenous peoples in mainstream society, with respect to the accessibility of welfare provisions, is a crucial element in regard to social exclusion and happiness. Several policy implications for the social sustainability of indigenous peoples can be inferred from these findings. For example, providing a mobile clinical tour, on-site health counseling, or homecare service can contribute to the removal of institutional and geographic barriers to medical welfare provisions for the mountain indigenes. Moreover, the government may devote more welfare resources

  8. Happiness and social exclusion of indigenous peoples in Taiwan--a social sustainability perspective.

    PubMed

    Wang, Jiun-Hao

    2015-01-01

    Happiness and social inclusion are important indicators of social sustainability, as recommended in the Sustainable Development Goals; however, little is known about the social sustainable development of ethnic minorities. To fill this knowledge gap, special attention is paid to understanding the issues of social exclusion and happiness in relation to the indigenous peoples in Taiwan. Data used were drawn from a nationwide representativeness survey of the Taiwanese Indigenous People in 2007; it included 2,200 respondents. This study employed binary logistic regression to examine the effects of different domains of social exclusion on the likelihood of perceiving happiness; other exogenous factors, were controlled. The results show that among the respondents, mountain indigenous peoples, females, the elderly and those who are healthier, wealthier, highly educated, possessing western beliefs, and are more likely to be happy, compared to their counterparts. As expected, the results reveal that the likelihood of being happy is higher for those who have received medical benefits, as well as those persons without housing problems or financial difficulties, compared to their excluded counterparts. However, no significant association is found between happiness and some social exclusion domains, such as child and youth benefits, and unemployment benefits. The disengagement of the indigenous peoples in mainstream society, with respect to the accessibility of welfare provisions, is a crucial element in regard to social exclusion and happiness. Several policy implications for the social sustainability of indigenous peoples can be inferred from these findings. For example, providing a mobile clinical tour, on-site health counseling, or homecare service can contribute to the removal of institutional and geographic barriers to medical welfare provisions for the mountain indigenes. Moreover, the government may devote more welfare resources to assist indigenous families and tribal

  9. Evaluation of a seven-week web-based happiness training to improve psychological well-being, reduce stress, and enhance mindfulness and flourishing: a randomized controlled occupational health study.

    PubMed

    Feicht, T; Wittmann, M; Jose, G; Mock, A; von Hirschhausen, E; Esch, T

    2013-01-01

    Background. As distress in society increases, including work environments, individual capacities to compete with stress have to be strengthened. Objective. We examined the impact of a web-based happiness training on psychological and physiological parameters, by self-report and objective means, in an occupational health setting. Methods. Randomized controlled trial with 147 employees. Participants were divided into intervention (happiness training) and control groups (waiting list). The intervention consisted of a seven-week online training. Questionnaires were administered before, after, and four weeks after training. The following scales were included: VAS (happiness and satisfaction), WHO-5 Well-being Index, Stress Warning Signals, Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory, Recovery Experience Questionnaire, and Flourishing Scale. Subgroup samples for saliva cortisol and alpha-amylase determinations were taken, indicating stress, and Attention Network Testing for effects on attention regulation. Results. Happiness (P = 0.000; d = 0.93), satisfaction (P = 0.000; d = 1.17), and quality of life (P = 0.000; d = 1.06) improved; perceived stress was reduced (P = 0.003; d = 0.64); mindfulness (P = 0.006; d = 0.62), flourishing (P = 0.002; d = 0.63), and recovery experience (P = 0.030; d = 0.42) also increased significantly. No significant differences in the Attention Network Tests and saliva results occurred (intergroup), except for one saliva value. Conclusions. The web-based training can be a useful tool for stabilizing health/psychological well-being and work/life balance.

  10. Evaluation of a Seven-Week Web-Based Happiness Training to Improve Psychological Well-Being, Reduce Stress, and Enhance Mindfulness and Flourishing: A Randomized Controlled Occupational Health Study

    PubMed Central

    Feicht, T.; Wittmann, M.; Jose, G.; Mock, A.; von Hirschhausen, E.; Esch, T.

    2013-01-01

    Background. As distress in society increases, including work environments, individual capacities to compete with stress have to be strengthened. Objective. We examined the impact of a web-based happiness training on psychological and physiological parameters, by self-report and objective means, in an occupational health setting. Methods. Randomized controlled trial with 147 employees. Participants were divided into intervention (happiness training) and control groups (waiting list). The intervention consisted of a seven-week online training. Questionnaires were administered before, after, and four weeks after training. The following scales were included: VAS (happiness and satisfaction), WHO-5 Well-being Index, Stress Warning Signals, Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory, Recovery Experience Questionnaire, and Flourishing Scale. Subgroup samples for saliva cortisol and alpha-amylase determinations were taken, indicating stress, and Attention Network Testing for effects on attention regulation. Results. Happiness (P = 0.000; d = 0.93), satisfaction (P = 0.000; d = 1.17), and quality of life (P = 0.000; d = 1.06) improved; perceived stress was reduced (P = 0.003; d = 0.64); mindfulness (P = 0.006; d = 0.62), flourishing (P = 0.002; d = 0.63), and recovery experience (P = 0.030; d = 0.42) also increased significantly. No significant differences in the Attention Network Tests and saliva results occurred (intergroup), except for one saliva value. Conclusions. The web-based training can be a useful tool for stabilizing health/psychological well-being and work/life balance. PMID:24489588

  11. 8 CFR 316.11 - Attachment to the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... disposition towards the good order and happiness. 316.11 Section 316.11 Aliens and Nationality DEPARTMENT OF... the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness. (a) General. An... favorably disposed toward the good order and happiness of the United States. Attachment implies a depth of...

  12. 8 CFR 316.11 - Attachment to the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... disposition towards the good order and happiness. 316.11 Section 316.11 Aliens and Nationality DEPARTMENT OF... the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness. (a) General. An... favorably disposed toward the good order and happiness of the United States. Attachment implies a depth of...

  13. 8 CFR 316.11 - Attachment to the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... disposition towards the good order and happiness. 316.11 Section 316.11 Aliens and Nationality DEPARTMENT OF... the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness. (a) General. An... favorably disposed toward the good order and happiness of the United States. Attachment implies a depth of...

  14. 8 CFR 316.11 - Attachment to the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... disposition towards the good order and happiness. 316.11 Section 316.11 Aliens and Nationality DEPARTMENT OF... the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness. (a) General. An... favorably disposed toward the good order and happiness of the United States. Attachment implies a depth of...

  15. 8 CFR 316.11 - Attachment to the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... disposition towards the good order and happiness. 316.11 Section 316.11 Aliens and Nationality DEPARTMENT OF... the Constitution; favorable disposition towards the good order and happiness. (a) General. An... favorably disposed toward the good order and happiness of the United States. Attachment implies a depth of...

  16. Happiness and Satisfaction with Work Commute.

    PubMed

    Olsson, Lars E; Gärling, Tommy; Ettema, Dick; Friman, Margareta; Fujii, Satoshi

    2013-03-01

    Research suggests that for many people happiness is being able to make the routines of everyday life work, such that positive feelings dominate over negative feelings resulting from daily hassles. In line with this, a survey of work commuters in the three largest urban areas of Sweden show that satisfaction with the work commute contributes to overall happiness. It is also found that feelings during the commutes are predominantly positive or neutral. Possible explanatory factors include desirable physical exercise from walking and biking, as well as that short commutes provide a buffer between the work and private spheres. For longer work commutes, social and entertainment activities either increase positive affects or counteract stress and boredom. Satisfaction with being employed in a recession may also spill over to positive experiences of work commutes. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11205-012-0003-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

  17. Who Expressed What Emotion? Men Grab Anger, Women Grab Happiness

    PubMed Central

    Neel, Rebecca; Becker, D. Vaughn; Neuberg, Steven L.; Kenrick, Douglas T.

    2011-01-01

    When anger or happiness flashes on a face in the crowd, do we misperceive that emotion as belonging to someone else? Two studies found that misperception of apparent emotional expressions – “illusory conjunctions” – depended on the gender of the target: male faces tended to “grab” anger from neighboring faces, and female faces tended to grab happiness. Importantly, the evidence did not suggest that this effect was due to the general tendency to misperceive male or female faces as angry or happy, but instead indicated a more subtle interaction of expectations and early visual processes. This suggests a novel aspect of affordance-management in human perception, whereby cues to threat, when they appear, are attributed to those with the greatest capability of doing harm, whereas cues to friendship are attributed to those with the greatest likelihood of providing affiliation opportunities. PMID:22368303

  18. Staff happiness and work satisfaction in a tertiary psychiatric centre.

    PubMed

    Baruch, Y; Swartz, M; Sirkis, S; Mirecki, I; Barak, Y

    2013-09-01

    Mental health professionals are at a high risk of burnout. Positive psychology outcomes of staff in acute in-patient psychiatric wards are poorly researched and unclear. To quantify the satisfaction with life and work-life satisfaction of mental health staff at a large university-affiliated tertiary psychiatric centre. We utilized the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) and the Work-Life Satisfaction Questionnaire (WLSQ). Two hundred and nine out of 450 staff members (46%) participated; mean age 48.2 + 9.9 years; 63% were male. On average the participants had been practising their speciality for 21.1 + 9.8 years (range: 2-48). The mean total SWLS scores differed significantly between professions (P < 0.05). The highest levels of happiness were reported by psychologists and social workers, followed by the administrative staff, the psychiatrists and finally the nursing staff. Staff scored the highest for work as a 'calling' followed by work as a 'career' and the lowest rating for work as a 'job'. The mean total WLSQ score differed between professions, (P < 0.01). The highest levels of work as a calling were reported by psychiatrists (mean 2.87 of possible 5.0), followed by psychologists and social workers, nursing staff and finally administrative staff. Satisfaction with life and work orientation do not correlate among mental health professionals. Although highly motivated and perceiving psychiatry as a 'calling' psychiatrists score low on levels of satisfaction with life. Improving staff happiness may contribute to increase in moral and counter burnout.

  19. Nudging socially isolated people towards well-being with the 'Happiness Route': design of a randomized controlled trial for the evaluation of a happiness-based intervention.

    PubMed

    Weiss, Laura A; Westerhof, Gerben J; Bohlmeijer, Ernst T

    2013-09-20

    The Happiness Route is an innovative intervention that uses a happiness-based approach for people with an accumulation of risk factors for low well-being: socially isolated people with health impairments and a low socioeconomic status. The goal of this intervention is to improve well-being by engaging participants in intrinsically motivated activities with methods from positive psychology. We hypothesize that the primary outcome measure, emotional, social and psychological well-being of participants of the Happiness Route, will increase in comparison to the traditional and commonly-used problem-based approach. Secondary outcome measures are health-related quality of life, psychosocial functioning and health care consumption. Participants will be socially isolated people with health problems and a low socioeconomic status. Participants will be recruited in ten Dutch communities and candidates will be signed up by intermediaries, professionals from the health and social sector. Randomly assigned, half of the participants will follow the Happiness Route and half of the participants will follow the active, problem-focused control group 'Customized Care'. In total, 256 participants will be included. In both conditions, participants will receive counseling sessions from trained counselors. In the control group, participants will talk about their problems and the care they get and counselors help to optimize their care. In the Happiness Route, the counselor ask questions such as "How do you want to live your life?". The intervention helps people to find their 'passion', i.e., a positive goal-engaged and intrinsically motivated activity. It enables them to follow their passion through by a once-only personal happiness budget (maximal €500). We use well-validated and reliable questionnaires to measure primary and secondary outcome measures at baseline, directly after the intervention and at a nine-month follow-up. Shortcomings of earlier intervention studies in positive

  20. Determinants of happiness and quality of life in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a structural equation modelling approach.

    PubMed

    Santos, Eduardo José Ferreira; Duarte, Cátia; Ferreira, Ricardo J O; Pinto, Ana Margarida; Geenen, Rinie; da Silva, Jose A P

    2018-04-06

    Besides increasing longevity, the ultimate goal of medical care is to improve patients' enjoyment of life, a concept akin to happiness. This study examined the determinants of happiness and quality of life (QoL) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In this observational, cross-sectional study, patients were assessed on disease activity, disease impact, personality, QoL and happiness. Structural equation modelling estimation was used to analyse the associations between these dimensions, pursuing three hypotheses: H 1 -disease activity and perceived impact of disease are negatively associated with overall QoL and happiness in patients with RA; H 2 -'positive' personality traits are related to happiness both directly and indirectly through perceived disease impact; H 3 -happiness has a mediating effect in the relation between impact of disease and QoL. Data from 213 patients were analysed. Results supported all driving hypotheses. Happiness was positively related to 'positive' personality and, to a lesser extent, negatively related to impact of disease. Impact of disease, in turn, was positively related to disease activity and mitigated by 'positive' personality traits. Impact of disease had a much stronger relation with QoL than with happiness. Happiness mitigated the negative effect of disease impact on QoL. Optimisation of QoL and happiness of people with RA requires effective control of the disease process and also improvement of the disease impact domains. Personality seems to play a pivotal mediating role in these relations. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  1. Meanings of happiness among two ethnic groups living with advanced cancer in south London: a qualitative study.

    PubMed

    Koffman, Jonathan; Morgan, Myfanwy; Edmonds, Polly; Speck, Peter; Siegert, Richard; Higginson, Irene J

    2013-05-01

    Happiness is a central component in quality of life but little is known about its meanings among people living with an advanced disease and those from diverse communities. This study explores and compares, for the first time, the centrality and interpretations of happiness across two cultural groups living with advanced cancer. Semi-structured interviews among 26 Black Caribbean and 19 White British cancer patients were conducted in hospital and home settings. Thirty eight participants volunteered views on happiness, which were related to four main themes: empty lives, a theme associated with lives devoid of contentment; happiness and the physical form principally, associated with the absence of distressing symptoms; 'love and affection' associated with family and friends; and 'realising personal meaning in life', most common among the Black Caribbean participants and related to God, prayer and the sacred world. The presence of cancer pain even when refractory did not preclude manifestations of happiness in this domain. We identified that happiness was central to many patients' quality of life during advanced cancer. Moreover, happiness was multidimensional and at times culturally patterned. We recommend that health and social care professionals increase their awareness and skills-set in relation to exploring happiness. Further, we recommend greater efforts are invested in cultural relativism to service the physical, psychological, social and spiritual issues that contribute towards moments of happiness among diverse communities. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  2. Child implant users' imitation of happy- and sad-sounding speech

    PubMed Central

    Wang, David J.; Trehub, Sandra E.; Volkova, Anna; van Lieshout, Pascal

    2013-01-01

    Cochlear implants have enabled many congenitally or prelingually deaf children to acquire their native language and communicate successfully on the basis of electrical rather than acoustic input. Nevertheless, degraded spectral input provided by the device reduces the ability to perceive emotion in speech. We compared the vocal imitations of 5- to 7-year-old deaf children who were highly successful bilateral implant users with those of a control sample of children who had normal hearing. First, the children imitated several happy and sad sentences produced by a child model. When adults in Experiment 1 rated the similarity of imitated to model utterances, ratings were significantly higher for the hearing children. Both hearing and deaf children produced poorer imitations of happy than sad utterances because of difficulty matching the greater pitch modulation of the happy versions. When adults in Experiment 2 rated electronically filtered versions of the utterances, which obscured the verbal content, ratings of happy and sad utterances were significantly differentiated for deaf as well as hearing children. The ratings of deaf children, however, were significantly less differentiated. Although deaf children's utterances exhibited culturally typical pitch modulation, their pitch modulation was reduced relative to that of hearing children. One practical implication is that therapeutic interventions for deaf children could expand their focus on suprasegmental aspects of speech perception and production, especially intonation patterns. PMID:23801976

  3. Temporal Patterns of Happiness and Information in a Global Social Network: Hedonometrics and Twitter

    PubMed Central

    Dodds, Peter Sheridan; Harris, Kameron Decker; Kloumann, Isabel M.; Bliss, Catherine A.; Danforth, Christopher M.

    2011-01-01

    Individual happiness is a fundamental societal metric. Normally measured through self-report, happiness has often been indirectly characterized and overshadowed by more readily quantifiable economic indicators such as gross domestic product. Here, we examine expressions made on the online, global microblog and social networking service Twitter, uncovering and explaining temporal variations in happiness and information levels over timescales ranging from hours to years. Our data set comprises over 46 billion words contained in nearly 4.6 billion expressions posted over a 33 month span by over 63 million unique users. In measuring happiness, we construct a tunable, real-time, remote-sensing, and non-invasive, text-based hedonometer. In building our metric, made available with this paper, we conducted a survey to obtain happiness evaluations of over 10,000 individual words, representing a tenfold size improvement over similar existing word sets. Rather than being ad hoc, our word list is chosen solely by frequency of usage, and we show how a highly robust and tunable metric can be constructed and defended. PMID:22163266

  4. Temporal patterns of happiness and information in a global social network: hedonometrics and Twitter.

    PubMed

    Dodds, Peter Sheridan; Harris, Kameron Decker; Kloumann, Isabel M; Bliss, Catherine A; Danforth, Christopher M

    2011-01-01

    Individual happiness is a fundamental societal metric. Normally measured through self-report, happiness has often been indirectly characterized and overshadowed by more readily quantifiable economic indicators such as gross domestic product. Here, we examine expressions made on the online, global microblog and social networking service Twitter, uncovering and explaining temporal variations in happiness and information levels over timescales ranging from hours to years. Our data set comprises over 46 billion words contained in nearly 4.6 billion expressions posted over a 33 month span by over 63 million unique users. In measuring happiness, we construct a tunable, real-time, remote-sensing, and non-invasive, text-based hedonometer. In building our metric, made available with this paper, we conducted a survey to obtain happiness evaluations of over 10,000 individual words, representing a tenfold size improvement over similar existing word sets. Rather than being ad hoc, our word list is chosen solely by frequency of usage, and we show how a highly robust and tunable metric can be constructed and defended.

  5. Effects of Sad and Happy Music on Mind-Wandering and the Default Mode Network.

    PubMed

    Taruffi, Liila; Pehrs, Corinna; Skouras, Stavros; Koelsch, Stefan

    2017-10-31

    Music is a ubiquitous phenomenon in human cultures, mostly due to its power to evoke and regulate emotions. However, effects of music evoking different emotional experiences such as sadness and happiness on cognition, and in particular on self-generated thought, are unknown. Here we use probe-caught thought sampling and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the influence of sad and happy music on mind-wandering and its underlying neuronal mechanisms. In three experiments we found that sad music, compared with happy music, is associated with stronger mind-wandering (Experiments 1A and 1B) and greater centrality of the nodes of the Default Mode Network (DMN) (Experiment 2). Thus, our results demonstrate that, when listening to sad vs. happy music, people withdraw their attention inwards and engage in spontaneous, self-referential cognitive processes. Importantly, our results also underscore that DMN activity can be modulated as a function of sad and happy music. These findings call for a systematic investigation of the relation between music and thought, having broad implications for the use of music in education and clinical settings.

  6. Humor, Laughter & Happiness in the Daily Lives of Recently Bereaved Spouses

    PubMed Central

    Lund, Dale A.; Utz, Rebecca; Caserta, Michael S.; de Vries, Brian

    2008-01-01

    The positive psychology movement has created more interest in examining the potential value of experiencing positive emotions (e.g. humor, laughter and happiness) during the course of bereavement. This study of 292 recently widowed (5-24 weeks) men (39%) and women (61%) age 50 and over examined both the perceived importance of and actual experience of having positive emotions in their daily lives and how they might impact bereavement adjustments. We found that most of the bereaved spouses rated humor and happiness as being very important in their daily lives and that they were also experiencing these emotions at higher levels than expected. Experiencing humor, laughter and happiness was strongly associated with favorable bereavement adjustments (lower grief and depression) regardless of the extent to which the bereaved person valued having these positive emotions. PMID:19227000

  7. Neural correlates of improved recognition of happy faces after erythropoietin treatment in bipolar disorder.

    PubMed

    Miskowiak, K W; Petersen, N A; Harmer, C J; Ehrenreich, E; Kessing, L V; Vinberg, M; Macoveanu, J; Siebner, H R

    2018-06-07

    Bipolar disorder is associated with impairments in social cognition including the recognition of happy faces. This is accompanied by imbalanced cortico-limbic response to emotional faces. We found that EPO improved the recognition of happy faces in patients with bipolar disorder. This randomized, controlled, longitudinal fMRI study explores the neuronal underpinnings of this effect. Forty-four patients with bipolar disorder in full or partial remission were randomized to eight weekly erythropoietin (EPO; 40 000 IU) or saline (NaCl 0.9%) infusions in a double-blind, parallel-group design. Participants underwent whole-brain fMRI at 3T, mood ratings and blood tests at baseline and week 14. During fMRI, participants viewed happy and fearful faces and performed a gender discrimination task. Thirty-four patients had complete pre- and post-treatment fMRI data (EPO: N = 18, saline: N = 16). Erythropoietin vs. saline increased right superior frontal response to happy vs. fearful faces. This correlated with improved happiness recognition in the EPO group. Erythropoietin also enhanced gender discrimination accuracy for happy faces. These effects were not influenced by medication, mood, red blood cells or blood pressure. Together with previous findings, the present observation suggests that increased dorsal prefrontal attention control is a common mechanism of EPO-associated improvements across several cognitive domains. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  8. Lay Definitions of Happiness across Nations: The Primacy of Inner Harmony and Relational Connectedness

    PubMed Central

    Delle Fave, Antonella; Brdar, Ingrid; Wissing, Marié P.; Araujo, Ulisses; Castro Solano, Alejandro; Freire, Teresa; Hernández-Pozo, María Del Rocío; Jose, Paul; Martos, Tamás; Nafstad, Hilde E.; Nakamura, Jeanne; Singh, Kamlesh; Soosai-Nathan, Lawrence

    2016-01-01

    In well-being research the term happiness is often used as synonymous with life satisfaction. However, little is known about lay people's understanding of happiness. Building on the available literature, this study explored lay definitions of happiness across nations and cultural dimensions, analyzing their components and relationship with participants' demographic features. Participants were 2799 adults (age range = 30–60, 50% women) living in urban areas of Argentina, Brazil, Croatia, Hungary, India, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, and United States. They completed the Eudaimonic and Hedonic Happiness Investigation (EHHI), reporting, among other information, their own definition of happiness. Answers comprised definitions referring to a broad range of life domains, covering both the contextual-social sphere and the psychological sphere. Across countries and with little variation by age and gender, inner harmony predominated among psychological definitions, and family and social relationships among contextual definitions. Whereas relationships are widely acknowledged as basic happiness components, inner harmony is substantially neglected. Nevertheless, its cross-national primacy, together with relations, is consistent with the view of an ontological interconnectedness characterizing living systems, shared by several conceptual frameworks across disciplines and cultures. At the methodological level, these findings suggest the potential of a bottom-up, mixed method approach to contextualize psychological dimensions within culture and lay understanding. PMID:26858677

  9. Efficacy of Rajayoga Meditation on Positive Thinking: An Index for Self-Satisfaction and Happiness in Life

    PubMed Central

    M.G., Ramesh; B., Sathian; E., Sinu; S. Rai, Kiranmai

    2013-01-01

    Objectives: Psychological studies have shown that brief period of mindfulness meditation significantly improves critical cognitive skills. But, there are no studies which have assessed the effects of Brahma Kumaris Rajayoga Meditation (BKRM) practice on positive thinking and happiness in life. The present study was designed to test the hypothesis is BKRM enhances positive thinking and that essential to attain higher levels of self-satisfaction and happiness in life. Material and Methods: This study is a cross sectional comparative study which was done between Rajayoga meditators and non-meditators. This study was conducted at BKRM Centres at Manipal and Udupi in Karnataka, India. Fifty subjects were selected for this study, which included those practising BKRM in their normal routine life (n=25) and non-meditators (n=25) who were aged 42.95+/15.29 years. Self-reported Oxford happiness questionnaire (OHQ) was administered to all subjects and their happiness scores and status were assessed and compared. Items related to self-satisfaction in life were selected from the OHQ and compared between meditators and non-meditators. Participants completed self-reported OHQ, from which data of happiness status and self-satisfaction in relation to meditation duration and frequency were analyzed by descriptive statistics and test of hypothesis. Results: Mean happiness scores of BKRM were significantly higher (p<0.001) in meditators as compared to those in non-meditators. The number of meditators experiencing happiness status were significantly higher (p<0.05) in comparison with non-meditators. Additionally, meditators scored significantly higher on self-satisfaction items (p<0.001) as compared to non-meditators. There was no correlation between age and years of meditation practice with happiness score and self-satisfaction score. Conclusion: BKRM helps in significantly increasing self-satisfaction and happiness in life by enhancing positive thinking. Irrespective of age and years

  10. Psychometric Analysis of the Orientations to Happiness Questionnaire in Taiwanese Undergraduate Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Lung Hung; Tsai, Ying-Mei; Chen, Mei-Yen

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Orientations to Happiness Questionnaire (OHQ; Peterson et al. in "J Happiness Stud" 6(1):25-41, 2005) in Taiwanese students. The participants were 578 undergraduate students (M[subscript age] = 18.64, SD = 1.02) and completed the OHQ, satisfaction with life scale…

  11. "Happiness Education": A Pedagogical-Political Commitment

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guilherme, Alex; Souza de Freitas, Ana Lucia

    2017-01-01

    The topic of "happiness education" has received considerable attention in recent years in educational discourse, not just in academia but also in the public sphere. This movement understands that there is a "widespread incidence of psychological harm caused by damage to the child's sense of self-worth" (Smith (2008) "The…

  12. Schooling for Happiness: Bhutan's Big Dream

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bicknell, Kent

    2012-01-01

    In December 2009, the author traveled to the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for a week-long workshop, "Educating for Gross National Happiness." At the invitation of the royal government, international participants joined with local teachers, principals, and students to discover ways that Bhutanese schools could better support the country's…

  13. Teaching Hemingway's "The Short Happy Life."

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stacy, Gerald

    2000-01-01

    Considers many ways to teach Hemingway's "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber." Explores the ironic implications of Macomber's experience and compares it with the experience of Sammy in another initiation story, John Updike's "A&P." Describes how he leads the discussion about this story, and ends the discussion by…

  14. Kindheit - Gluck - Kommerz (Childhood - Happiness - Commerce).

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oelkers, Jurgen

    2002-01-01

    Discusses changes in the history of childhood. Argues that the change was not caused by reform pedagogics, but by a movement to popular culture. Describes the functioning of a commercialized children's culture and its definition of happiness. Analyzes possible concepts of education within the framework of such learning environments. (CAJ)

  15. Prediction of Happy-Sad Mood from Daily Behaviors and Previous Sleep History

    PubMed Central

    Sano, Akane; Yu, Amy; McHill, Andrew W.; Phillips, Andrew J. K.; Taylor, Sara; Jaques, Natasha; Klerman, Elizabeth B.; Picard, Rosalind W.

    2016-01-01

    We collected and analyzed subjective and objective data using surveys and wearable sensors worn day and night from 68 participants, for 30 days each, to address questions related to the relationships among sleep duration, sleep irregularity, self-reported Happy-Sad mood and other factors in college students. We analyzed daily and monthly behavior and physiology and identified factors that affect mood, including how accurately sleep duration and sleep regularity for the past 1-5 days classified the participants into high/low mood using support vector machines. We found statistically significant associations among sad mood and poor health-related factors. Behavioral factors such as the percentage of neutral social interactions and the total academic activity hours showed the best performance in separating the Happy-Sad mood groups. Sleep regularity was a more important discriminator of mood than sleep duration for most participants, although both variables predicted happy/sad mood with from 70-82% accuracy. The number of nights giving the best prediction of happy/sad mood varied for different groups of individuals. PMID:26737854

  16. Longitudinal Change in Happiness during Aging: The Predictive Role of Positive Expectancies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Holahan, Carole K.; Holahan, Charles J.; Velasquez, Katherine E.; North, Rebecca J.

    2008-01-01

    This study employed hierarchical linear modeling to document the time course of happiness across 20 years from average ages of 66 to 86 among 717 members of the Terman Study of the Gifted. In addition, the study examined the role of positive expectancies about aging, assessed at an average age of 61, in enhancing happiness in aging. The results…

  17. A Functional MRI Study of Happy and Sad Emotions in Music with and without Lyrics.

    PubMed

    Brattico, Elvira; Alluri, Vinoo; Bogert, Brigitte; Jacobsen, Thomas; Vartiainen, Nuutti; Nieminen, Sirke; Tervaniemi, Mari

    2011-01-01

    Musical emotions, such as happiness and sadness, have been investigated using instrumental music devoid of linguistic content. However, pop and rock, the most common musical genres, utilize lyrics for conveying emotions. Using participants' self-selected musical excerpts, we studied their behavior and brain responses to elucidate how lyrics interact with musical emotion processing, as reflected by emotion recognition and activation of limbic areas involved in affective experience. We extracted samples from subjects' selections of sad and happy pieces and sorted them according to the presence of lyrics. Acoustic feature analysis showed that music with lyrics differed from music without lyrics in spectral centroid, a feature related to perceptual brightness, whereas sad music with lyrics did not diverge from happy music without lyrics, indicating the role of other factors in emotion classification. Behavioral ratings revealed that happy music without lyrics induced stronger positive emotions than happy music with lyrics. We also acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging data while subjects performed affective tasks regarding the music. First, using ecological and acoustically variable stimuli, we broadened previous findings about the brain processing of musical emotions and of songs versus instrumental music. Additionally, contrasts between sad music with versus without lyrics recruited the parahippocampal gyrus, the amygdala, the claustrum, the putamen, the precentral gyrus, the medial and inferior frontal gyri (including Broca's area), and the auditory cortex, while the reverse contrast produced no activations. Happy music without lyrics activated structures of the limbic system and the right pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus, whereas auditory regions alone responded to happy music with lyrics. These findings point to the role of acoustic cues for the experience of happiness in music and to the importance of lyrics for sad musical emotions.

  18. A Functional MRI Study of Happy and Sad Emotions in Music with and without Lyrics

    PubMed Central

    Brattico, Elvira; Alluri, Vinoo; Bogert, Brigitte; Jacobsen, Thomas; Vartiainen, Nuutti; Nieminen, Sirke; Tervaniemi, Mari

    2011-01-01

    Musical emotions, such as happiness and sadness, have been investigated using instrumental music devoid of linguistic content. However, pop and rock, the most common musical genres, utilize lyrics for conveying emotions. Using participants’ self-selected musical excerpts, we studied their behavior and brain responses to elucidate how lyrics interact with musical emotion processing, as reflected by emotion recognition and activation of limbic areas involved in affective experience. We extracted samples from subjects’ selections of sad and happy pieces and sorted them according to the presence of lyrics. Acoustic feature analysis showed that music with lyrics differed from music without lyrics in spectral centroid, a feature related to perceptual brightness, whereas sad music with lyrics did not diverge from happy music without lyrics, indicating the role of other factors in emotion classification. Behavioral ratings revealed that happy music without lyrics induced stronger positive emotions than happy music with lyrics. We also acquired functional magnetic resonance imaging data while subjects performed affective tasks regarding the music. First, using ecological and acoustically variable stimuli, we broadened previous findings about the brain processing of musical emotions and of songs versus instrumental music. Additionally, contrasts between sad music with versus without lyrics recruited the parahippocampal gyrus, the amygdala, the claustrum, the putamen, the precentral gyrus, the medial and inferior frontal gyri (including Broca’s area), and the auditory cortex, while the reverse contrast produced no activations. Happy music without lyrics activated structures of the limbic system and the right pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus, whereas auditory regions alone responded to happy music with lyrics. These findings point to the role of acoustic cues for the experience of happiness in music and to the importance of lyrics for sad musical emotions

  19. The Perfection of the Teacher through the Pursuit of Happiness: Cavell's Reading of J. S. Mill

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Takayanagi, Mitsutoshi

    2016-01-01

    Drawing upon Nel Noddings' contention that, if children are to be happy in schools, their teachers should also be happy, this paper tries to explore a way in which the obviously intimate but seemingly conflicting connections between students' and teachers' happiness can be understood from the viewpoint of Stanley Cavell's reading of J. S. Mill.…

  20. Pregnancy intentions and happiness among pregnant black women at high risk for adverse infant health outcomes.

    PubMed

    Blake, Susan M; Kiely, Michele; Gard, Charlotte C; El-Mohandes, Ayman A E; El-Khorazaty, M Nabil

    2007-12-01

    Unintended pregnancy is associated with risk behaviors and increased morbidity or mortality for mothers and infants, but a woman's feelings about pregnancy may be more predictive of risk and health outcomes than her intentions. A sample of 1,044 black women who were at increased risk were enrolled at prenatal care clinics in the District of Columbia in 2001-2003. Bivariate and multivariate analyses assessed associations between pregnancy intentions or level of happiness about being pregnant and multiple psychosocial and behavioral risk factors, and identified correlates of happiness to be pregnant. Pregnancy intentions and happiness were strongly associated, but happiness was the better predictor of risk. Unhappy women had higher odds than happy women of smoking, being depressed, experiencing intimate partner violence, drinking and using illicit drugs (odds ratios, 1.7-2.6). The odds of being happy were reduced among women who had other children or a child younger than two, who were single or did not have a current partner, who had had more than one sexual partner in the past year and who reported that the baby's father did not want the pregnancy (0.3-0.6). In contrast, the odds of being happy were elevated among women who had better coping strategies (1.03), who had not used birth control at conception (1.6) and who had 1-2 household members, rather than five or more (2.1). Additional psychosocial screening for happiness about being pregnant and for partner characteristics, particularly the father's desire to have this child, may help improve prenatal care services and prevent adverse health outcomes.

  1. Role of tempo entrainment in psychophysiological differentiation of happy and sad music?

    PubMed

    Khalfa, Stéphanie; Roy, Mathieu; Rainville, Pierre; Dalla Bella, Simone; Peretz, Isabelle

    2008-04-01

    Respiration rate allows to differentiate between happy and sad excerpts which may be attributable to entrainment of respiration to the rhythm or the tempo rather than to emotions [Etzel, J.A., Johnsen, E.L., Dickerson, J., Tranel, D., Adolphs, R., 2006. Cardiovascular and respiratory responses during musical mood induction. Int. J. Psychophysiol. 61(1), 57-69]. In order to test for this hypothesis, this study intended to verify whether fast and slow rhythm, and/or tempo alone are sufficient to induce differential physiological effects. Psychophysiological responses (electrodermal responses, facial muscles activity, blood pressure, heart and respiration rate) were then measured in fifty young adults listening to fast/happy and slow/sad music, and to two control versions of these excerpts created by removing pitch variations (rhythmic version) and both pitch and temporal variations (beat-alone). The results indicate that happy and sad music are significantly differentiated (happy>sad) by diastolic blood pressure, electrodermal activity, and zygomatic activity, while the fast and slow rhythmic and tempo control versions did not elicit such differentiations. In contrast, respiration rate was faster with stimuli presented at fast tempi relative to slow stimuli in the beat-alone condition. It was thus demonstrated that the psychophysiological happy/sad distinction requires the tonal variations and cannot be explained solely by entrainment to tempo and rhythm. The tempo entrainment exists in the tempo alone condition but our results suggest this effect may disappear when embedded in music or with rhythm.

  2. Facial recognition of happiness among older adults with active and remitted major depression.

    PubMed

    Shiroma, Paulo R; Thuras, Paul; Johns, Brian; Lim, Kelvin O

    2016-09-30

    Biased emotion processing in depression might be a trait characteristic independent of mood improvement and a vulnerable factor to develop further depressive episodes. This phenomenon of among older adults with depression has not been adequately examined. In a 2-year cross-sectional study, 59 older patients with either active or remitted major depression, or never-depressed, completed a facial emotion recognition task (FERT) to probe perceptual bias of happiness. The results showed that depressed patients, compared with never depressed subjects, had a significant lower sensitivity to identify happiness particularly at moderate intensity of facial stimuli. Patients in remission from a previous major depressive episode but with none or minimal symptoms had similar sensitivity rate to identify happy facial expressions as compared to patients with an active depressive episode. Further studies would be necessary to confirm whether recognition of happy expression reflects a persistent perceptual bias of major depression in older adults. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  3. Identification of emotions in mixed disgusted-happy faces as a function of depressive symptom severity.

    PubMed

    Sanchez, Alvaro; Romero, Nuria; Maurage, Pierre; De Raedt, Rudi

    2017-12-01

    Interpersonal difficulties are common in depression, but their underlying mechanisms are not yet fully understood. The role of depression in the identification of mixed emotional signals with a direct interpersonal value remains unclear. The present study aimed to clarify this question. A sample of 39 individuals reporting a broad range of depression levels completed an emotion identification task where they viewed faces expressing three emotional categories (100% disgusted and 100% happy faces, as well as their morphed 50% disgusted - 50% happy exemplars). Participants were asked to identify the corresponding depicted emotion as "clearly disgusted", "mixed", or "clearly happy". Higher depression levels were associated with lower identification of positive emotions in 50% disgusted - 50% happy faces. The study was conducted with an analogue sample reporting individual differences in subclinical depression levels. Further research must replicate these findings in a clinical sample and clarify whether differential emotional identification patterns emerge in depression for different mixed negative-positive emotions (sad-happy vs. disgusted-happy). Depression may account for a lower bias to perceive positive states when ambiguous states from others include subtle signals of social threat (i.e., disgust), leading to an under-perception of positive social signals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Direct and indirect relationships between physical activity and happiness levels among older adults: a cross-sectional study.

    PubMed

    de Souto Barreto, Philipe

    2014-09-01

    The purposes of this study were to examine if physical activity (PA) is associated to happiness and to investigate if social functioning and health status mediate this association. Participants of this cross-sectional study were 323 men and women, age 60 or over, who were covered by the medical insurance of the French National Education System, France. They received by mail a self-report questionnaire that asked for information about general health, PA, and happiness. In multinomial logistic regressions, the total volume of PA was associated to higher levels of happiness, but this association disappeared in the presence of social functioning. A structural equation modelling (SEM) showed an indirect association between PA and happiness, which was mediated by participants' health status and social functioning; in this SEM model, social functioning was the only variable directly associated to happiness. Complex associations among PA, health status, and social functioning appear to determine happiness levels in older adults.

  5. Identifying Indices of Happiness and Unhappiness Among Adults With Autism: Potential Targets for Behavioral Assessment and Intervention

    PubMed Central

    Parsons, Marsha B; Bentley, Erik; Inman, Amy; Lattimore, L. Perry

    2012-01-01

    Research is increasingly demonstrating the importance of monitoring indices of happiness as part of behavioral programs for individuals who have severe intellectual disabilities. We evaluated a practitioner-oriented process for identifying and validating individualized indices of this private event among three adults with autism who were nonvocal or minimally vocal. Caregiver surveys were administered to obtain agreement regarding behavior displayed when the individuals were happy and unhappy, as well as situations in which they were likely to experience happiness and unhappiness. Observations corroborated caregiver opinion in that participants displayed more happiness indices in situations reported to be accompanied by happiness, and for the most part, more unhappiness indices in reported unhappiness situations. Subsequent choices by each participant supported the validity of the individualized indices. Results are discussed regarding how identifying happiness indices can be a useful component of behavioral applications, as well as guidelines and cautions regarding use of the indices in routine practice. PMID:23326627

  6. Relationship between attachment styles and happiness in medical students

    PubMed Central

    Moghadam, Marzyeh; Rezaei, Farzin; Ghaderi, Ebrahim; Rostamian, Negar

    2016-01-01

    Background: Attachment theory is one of the most important achievements of contemporary psychology. Role of medical students in the community health is important, so we need to know about the situation of happiness and attachment style in these students. Objectives: This study was aimed to assess the relationship between medical students’ attachment styles and demographic characteristics. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on randomly selected students of Medical Sciences in Kurdistan University, in 2012. To collect data, Hazan and Shaver's attachment style measure and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire were used. The results were analyzed using the SPSS software version 16 (IBM, Chicago IL, USA) and statistical analysis was performed via t-test, Chi-square test, and multiple regression tests. Results: Secure attachment style was the most common attachment style and the least common was ambivalent attachment style. Avoidant attachment style was more common among single persons than married people (P = 0.03). No significant relationship was observed between attachment style and gender and grade point average of the studied people. The mean happiness score of students was 62.71. In multivariate analysis, the variables of secure attachment style (P = 0.001), male gender (P = 0.005), and scholar achievement (P = 0.047) were associated with higher happiness score. Conclusion: The most common attachment style was secure attachment style, which can be a positive prognostic factor in medical students, helping them to manage stress. Higher frequency of avoidant attachment style among single persons, compared with married people, is mainly due to their negative attitude toward others and failure to establish and maintain relationships with others. PMID:28217589

  7. Superior Recognition Performance for Happy Masked and Unmasked Faces in Both Younger and Older Adults

    PubMed Central

    Svärd, Joakim; Wiens, Stefan; Fischer, Håkan

    2012-01-01

    In the aging literature it has been shown that even though emotion recognition performance decreases with age, the decrease is less for happiness than other facial expressions. Studies in younger adults have also revealed that happy faces are more strongly attended to and better recognized than other emotional facial expressions. Thus, there might be a more age independent happy face advantage in facial expression recognition. By using a backward masking paradigm and varying stimulus onset asynchronies (17–267 ms) the temporal development of a happy face advantage, on a continuum from low to high levels of visibility, was examined in younger and older adults. Results showed that across age groups, recognition performance for happy faces was better than for neutral and fearful faces at durations longer than 50 ms. Importantly, the results showed a happy face advantage already during early processing of emotional faces in both younger and older adults. This advantage is discussed in terms of processing of salient perceptual features and elaborative processing of the happy face. We also investigate the combined effect of age and neuroticism on emotional face processing. The rationale was previous findings of age-related differences in physiological arousal to emotional pictures and a relation between arousal and neuroticism. Across all durations, there was an interaction between age and neuroticism, showing that being high in neuroticism might be disadvantageous for younger, but not older adults’ emotion recognition performance during arousal enhancing tasks. These results indicate that there is a relation between aging, neuroticism, and performance, potentially related to physiological arousal. PMID:23226135

  8. Work happiness among teachers: a day reconstruction study on the role of self-concordance.

    PubMed

    Tadić, Maja; Bakker, Arnold B; Oerlemans, Wido G M

    2013-12-01

    Self-concordant work motivation arises from one's authentic choices, personal values, and interests. In the present study, we investigated whether self-concordant motivation may fluctuate from one work-related task to the next. On the basis of self-determination theory, we hypothesized that momentary self-concordance buffers the negative impact of momentary work demands on momentary happiness. We developed a modified version of the day reconstruction method to investigate self-concordance, work demands, and happiness during specific work-related tasks on a within-person and within-day level. In total, 132 teachers completed a daily diary on three consecutive work days as well as a background questionnaire. The daily diary resulted in 792 reported work activities and activity-related work demands, self-concordance, and happiness scores. Multilevel analysis showed that-for most work activities-state self-concordant motivation buffered the negative association of work demands with happiness. These findings add to the literature on motivation and well-being by showing that the levels of self-concordance and happiness experienced by employees vary significantly on a within-day level and show a predictable pattern. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of the findings to increase employees' well-being. © 2013.

  9. Children's Moral Emotion Attribution in the Happy Victimizer Task: The Role of Response Format.

    PubMed

    Gummerum, Michaela; López-Pérez, Belén; Ambrona, Tamara; Rodríguez-Cano, Sonia; Dellaria, Giulia; Smith, Gary; Wilson, Ellie

    2016-01-01

    Previous research in the happy victimizer tradition indicated that preschool and early elementary school children attribute positive emotions to the violator of a moral norm, whereas older children attribute negative (moral) emotions. Cognitive and motivational processes have been suggested to underlie this developmental shift. The current research investigated whether making the happy victimizer task less cognitively demanding by providing children with alternative response formats would increase their attribution of moral emotions and moral motivation. In Study 1, 93 British children aged 4-7 years old responded to the happy victimizer questions either in a normal condition (where they spontaneously pointed with a finger), a wait condition (where they had to wait before giving their answers), or an arrow condition (where they had to point with a paper arrow). In Study 2, 40 Spanish children aged 4 years old responded to the happy victimizer task either in a normal or a wait condition. In both studies, participants' attribution of moral emotions and moral motivation was significantly higher in the conditions with alternative response formats (wait, arrow) than in the normal condition. The role of cognitive abilities for emotion attribution in the happy victimizer task is discussed.

  10. Happy faces are preferred regardless of familiarity--sad faces are preferred only when familiar.

    PubMed

    Liao, Hsin-I; Shimojo, Shinsuke; Yeh, Su-Ling

    2013-06-01

    Familiarity leads to preference (e.g., the mere exposure effect), yet it remains unknown whether it is objective familiarity, that is, repetitive exposure, or subjective familiarity that contributes to preference. In addition, it is unexplored whether and how different emotions influence familiarity-related preference. The authors investigated whether happy or sad faces are preferred or perceived as more familiar and whether this subjective familiarity judgment correlates with preference for different emotional faces. An emotional face--happy or sad--was paired with a neutral face, and participants rated the relative preference and familiarity of each of the paired faces. For preference judgment, happy faces were preferred and sad faces were less preferred, compared with neutral faces. For familiarity judgment, happy faces did not show any bias, but sad faces were perceived as less familiar than neutral faces. Item-by-item correlational analyses show preference for sad faces--but not happy faces--positively correlate with familiarity. These results suggest a direct link between positive emotion and preference, and argue at least partly against a common cause for familiarity and preference. Instead, facial expression of different emotional valence modulates the link between familiarity and preference.

  11. Strategic planning for employee happiness: a business goal for human service organizations.

    PubMed

    Howard, B; Gould, K E

    2000-09-01

    Employee happiness can impact substantially on an organization's performance. It can influence employee retention, absenteeism, and work performance. Because of this importance, such happiness is inseparable from the real business of the organization and should be considered a business goal. Implementation and development of the strategic plan associated with this goal becomes the responsibility of a highly placed project team that has as its mission ensuring employee satisfaction. The strategic plan includes procedures that allow management to listen effectively to employees, assessing and responding to their values and needs. In this paper we discuss the workforce and environmental characteristics that are involved planning for employee happiness and the steps in creating an organizational culture in which this can become a business goal.

  12. Experiential or Material Purchases? Social Class Determines Purchase Happiness.

    PubMed

    Lee, Jacob C; Hall, Deborah L; Wood, Wendy

    2018-05-01

    Which should people buy to make themselves happy: experiences or material goods? The answer depends in part on the level of resources already available in their lives. Across multiple studies using a range of methodologies, we found that individuals of higher social class, whose abundant resources make it possible to focus on self-development and self-expression, were made happier by experiential over material purchases. No such experiential advantage emerged for individuals of lower social class, whose lesser resources engender concern with resource management and wise use of limited finances. Instead, lower-class individuals were made happier from material purchases or were equally happy from experiential and material purchases.

  13. Are Canadian Adolescents Happy? A Gender-Based Analysis of a Nationally Representative Survey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Weaver, Robert D.; Habibov, Nazim N.

    2010-01-01

    In this study, the authors analyzed data from a nationally representative survey of youth to study happiness amongst Canadian adolescents aged 12-17. Testing for differences in the level of happiness between female and male adolescents was conducted. Following this, multivariate analysis was employed to determine which factors were associated with…

  14. Income Inequality Explains Why Economic Growth Does Not Always Translate to an Increase in Happiness.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Shigehiro; Kesebir, Selin

    2015-10-01

    One of the most puzzling social science findings in the past half century is the Easterlin paradox: Economic growth within a country does not always translate into an increase in happiness. We provide evidence that this paradox can be partly explained by income inequality. In two different data sets covering 34 countries, economic growth was not associated with increases in happiness when it was accompanied by growing income inequality. Earlier instances of the Easterlin paradox (i.e., economic growth not being associated with increasing happiness) can thus be explained by the frequent concurrence of economic growth and growing income inequality. These findings suggest that a more even distribution of growth in national wealth may be a precondition for raising nationwide happiness. © The Author(s) 2015.

  15. Happiness and Satisfaction with Work Commute

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olsson, Lars E.; Garling, Tommy; Ettema, Dick; Friman, Margareta; Fujii, Satoshi

    2013-01-01

    Research suggests that for many people happiness is being able to make the routines of everyday life work, such that positive feelings dominate over negative feelings resulting from daily hassles. In line with this, a survey of work commuters in the three largest urban areas of Sweden show that satisfaction with the work commute contributes to…

  16. Absolute Income, Relative Income, and Happiness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ball, Richard; Chernova, Kateryna

    2008-01-01

    This paper uses data from the World Values Survey to investigate how an individual's self-reported happiness is related to (i) the level of her income in absolute terms, and (ii) the level of her income relative to other people in her country. The main findings are that (i) both absolute and relative income are positively and significantly…

  17. What Makes Super‐Aged Nations Happier? Exploring Critical Factors of Happiness Among Middle‐Aged Men and Women in Japan

    PubMed Central

    Tamiya, Nanako; Kawachi, Nobuyuki; Miyairi, Maya

    2018-01-01

    This study aimed to examine multiple factors associated with happiness from the perspective of gender difference among a middle‐aged Japanese population. A total of 865 participants (male = 344, female = 521) aged 40–64 years were divided into two groups (high and low) by their self‐reported level of happiness. Logistic regression analysis by gender was carried out. In men, high levels of happiness were significantly correlated with living with spouse, occupation, enough sleep, leading a normal life, and regular checkups; while low levels of happiness were significantly correlated with smoking and having two or more diseases. In women, low levels of happiness were significantly correlated with caring for a family member. Our data suggested that the factors relevant to happiness levels might vary between men and women among middle‐aged people in Japan. To increase the nation's level of happiness, the Japanese government must implement extended social services and policymaking, to alleviate caregivers’ burdens, especially among Japanese women. PMID:29610701

  18. Multiculturalism and subjective happiness as mediated by cultural and relational variables.

    PubMed

    Le, Thao N; Lai, Mary H; Wallen, Judy

    2009-07-01

    A diverse ethnic context and an increasing immigrant youth population will soon become the reality across the entire U.S. demographic landscape. Research has suggested that a multicultural context positively influences ethnic minority and immigrant youth by fostering ethnic identity and psychosocial development. However, it is unknown whether and how perceived multiculturalism can affect positive youth outcomes such as life satisfaction and subjective happiness. This study explored perceived school multiculturalism among 338 ethnic minority and immigrant youth, and found a positive relation between perceived school multiculturalism and subjective happiness with full mediation by ethnocultural empathy for African Americans, Asians, males, and females. Although school multiculturalism was also predictive of ethnocultural empathy for Hispanics, ethnocultural empathy in turn, was not significantly predictive of subjective happiness. Taken together, these results suggest that one way to facilitate psychological growth and flourishing among ethnic minority youth is to encourage multiculturalism in school settings.

  19. Music-evoked incidental happiness modulates probability weighting during risky lottery choices.

    PubMed

    Schulreich, Stefan; Heussen, Yana G; Gerhardt, Holger; Mohr, Peter N C; Binkofski, Ferdinand C; Koelsch, Stefan; Heekeren, Hauke R

    2014-01-07

    We often make decisions with uncertain consequences. The outcomes of the choices we make are usually not perfectly predictable but probabilistic, and the probabilities can be known or unknown. Probability judgments, i.e., the assessment of unknown probabilities, can be influenced by evoked emotional states. This suggests that also the weighting of known probabilities in decision making under risk might be influenced by incidental emotions, i.e., emotions unrelated to the judgments and decisions at issue. Probability weighting describes the transformation of probabilities into subjective decision weights for outcomes and is one of the central components of cumulative prospect theory (CPT) that determine risk attitudes. We hypothesized that music-evoked emotions would modulate risk attitudes in the gain domain and in particular probability weighting. Our experiment featured a within-subject design consisting of four conditions in separate sessions. In each condition, the 41 participants listened to a different kind of music-happy, sad, or no music, or sequences of random tones-and performed a repeated pairwise lottery choice task. We found that participants chose the riskier lotteries significantly more often in the "happy" than in the "sad" and "random tones" conditions. Via structural regressions based on CPT, we found that the observed changes in participants' choices can be attributed to changes in the elevation parameter of the probability weighting function: in the "happy" condition, participants showed significantly higher decision weights associated with the larger payoffs than in the "sad" and "random tones" conditions. Moreover, elevation correlated positively with self-reported music-evoked happiness. Thus, our experimental results provide evidence in favor of a causal effect of incidental happiness on risk attitudes that can be explained by changes in probability weighting.

  20. Happiness Unpacked: Positive Emotions Increase Life Satisfaction by Building Resilience

    PubMed Central

    Cohn, Michael A.; Fredrickson, Barbara L.; Brown, Stephanie L.; Mikels, Joseph A.; Conway, Anne M.

    2011-01-01

    Happiness – a composite of life satisfaction, coping resources, and positive emotions – predicts desirable life outcomes in many domains. The broaden-and-build theory suggests that this is because positive emotions help people build lasting resources. To test this hypothesis we measured emotions daily for one month in a sample of students (N=86) and assessed life satisfaction and trait resilience at the beginning and end of the month. Positive emotions predicted increases in both resilience and life satisfaction. Negative emotions had weak or null effects, and did not interfere with the benefits of positive emotions. Positive emotions also mediated the relation between baseline and final resilience, but life satisfaction did not. This suggests that it is in-the-moment positive emotions, and not more general positive evaluations of one’s life, that form the link between happiness and desirable life outcomes. Change in resilience mediated the relation between positive emotions and increased life satisfaction, suggesting that happy people become more satisfied not simply because they feel better, but because they develop resources for living well. PMID:19485613

  1. Unusual July 10, 1996, rock fall at Happy Isles, Yosemite National Park, California

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wieczorek, G.F.; Snyder, J.B.; Waitt, R.B.; Morrissey, M.M.; Uhrhammer, R.A.; Harp, E.L.; Norris, R.D.; Bursik, M.I.; Finewood, L.G.

    2000-01-01

    Effects of the July 10, 1996, rock fall at Happy Isles in Yosemite National Park, California, were unusual compared to most rock falls. Two main rock masses fell about 14 s apart from a 665-m-high cliff southeast of Glacier Point onto a talus slope above Happy Isles in the eastern part of Yosemite Valley. The two impacts were recorded by seismographs as much as 200 km away. Although the impact area of the rock falls was not particularly large, the falls generated an airblast and an abrasive dense sandy cloud that devastated a larger area downslope of the impact sites toward the Happy Isles Nature Center. Immediately downslope of the impacts, the airblast had velocities exceeding 110 m/s and toppled or snapped about 1000 trees. Even at distances of 0.5 km from impact, wind velocities snapped or toppled large trees, causing one fatality and several serious injuries beyond the Happy Isles Nature Center. A dense sandy cloud trailed the airblast and abraded fallen trunks and trees left standing. The Happy Isles rock fall is one of the few known worldwide to have generated an airblast and abrasive dense sandy cloud. The relatively high velocity of the rock fall at impact, estimated to be 110-120 m/s, influenced the severity and areal extent of the airblast at Happy Isles. Specific geologic and topographic conditions, typical of steep glaciated valleys and mountainous terrain, contributed to the rock-fall release and determined its travel path, resulting in a high velocity at impact that generated the devastating airblast and sandy cloud. The unusual effects of this rock fall emphasize the importance of considering collateral geologic hazards, such as airblasts from rock falls, in hazard assessment and planning development of mountainous areas.

  2. The Concept of Happiness and Moral Development of "Filipinas" in the Academic Setting

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mallari, Shedy Dee C.; Ebreo, Edleen P.; Pelayo, Jose Maria G., III.

    2015-01-01

    This study determined salient themes of female individuals who are inside the academic setting on their concept of happiness and moral development. The idea of studying the Filipina Female Concept of Happiness came from two areas of study--Female Psychology and Positive Psychology. The researchers were intrigued by the idea that since the female…

  3. Up, Not Down: The Age Curve in Happiness from Early Adulthood to Midlife in Two Longitudinal Studies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Galambos, Nancy L.; Fang, Shichen; Krahn, Harvey J.; Johnson, Matthew D.; Lachman, Margie E.

    2015-01-01

    Happiness is an important indicator of well-being, and little is known about how it changes in the early adult years. We examined trajectories of happiness from early adulthood to midlife in 2 Canadian longitudinal samples: high school seniors followed from ages 18-43 and university seniors followed from ages 23-37. Happiness increased into the…

  4. The relationship between nature connectedness and happiness: a meta-analysis

    PubMed Central

    Capaldi, Colin A.; Dopko, Raelyne L.; Zelenski, John M.

    2014-01-01

    Research suggests that contact with nature can be beneficial, for example leading to improvements in mood, cognition, and health. A distinct but related idea is the personality construct of subjective nature connectedness, a stable individual difference in cognitive, affective, and experiential connection with the natural environment. Subjective nature connectedness is a strong predictor of pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors that may also be positively associated with subjective well-being. This meta-analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between nature connectedness and happiness. Based on 30 samples (n = 8523), a fixed-effect meta-analysis found a small but significant effect size (r = 0.19). Those who are more connected to nature tended to experience more positive affect, vitality, and life satisfaction compared to those less connected to nature. Publication status, year, average age, and percentage of females in the sample were not significant moderators. Vitality had the strongest relationship with nature connectedness (r = 0.24), followed by positive affect (r = 0.22) and life satisfaction (r = 0.17). In terms of specific nature connectedness measures, associations were the strongest between happiness and inclusion of nature in self (r = 0.27), compared to nature relatedness (r = 0.18) and connectedness to nature (r = 0.18). This research highlights the importance of considering personality when examining the psychological benefits of nature. The results suggest that closer human-nature relationships do not have to come at the expense of happiness. Rather, this meta-analysis shows that being connected to nature and feeling happy are, in fact, connected. PMID:25249992

  5. Nudging socially isolated people towards well-being with the ‘Happiness Route’: design of a randomized controlled trial for the evaluation of a happiness-based intervention

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background The Happiness Route is an innovative intervention that uses a happiness-based approach for people with an accumulation of risk factors for low well-being: socially isolated people with health impairments and a low socioeconomic status. The goal of this intervention is to improve well-being by engaging participants in intrinsically motivated activities with methods from positive psychology. We hypothesize that the primary outcome measure, emotional, social and psychological well-being of participants of the Happiness Route, will increase in comparison to the traditional and commonly-used problem-based approach. Secondary outcome measures are health-related quality of life, psychosocial functioning and health care consumption. Methods and design Participants will be socially isolated people with health problems and a low socioeconomic status. Participants will be recruited in ten Dutch communities and candidates will be signed up by intermediaries, professionals from the health and social sector. Randomly assigned, half of the participants will follow the Happiness Route and half of the participants will follow the active, problem-focused control group ‘Customized Care’. In total, 256 participants will be included. In both conditions, participants will receive counseling sessions from trained counselors. In the control group, participants will talk about their problems and the care they get and counselors help to optimize their care. In the Happiness Route, the counselor ask questions such as “How do you want to live your life?”. The intervention helps people to find their ‘passion’, i.e., a positive goal-engaged and intrinsically motivated activity. It enables them to follow their passion through by a once-only personal happiness budget (maximal €500). We use well-validated and reliable questionnaires to measure primary and secondary outcome measures at baseline, directly after the intervention and at a nine-month follow-up. Discussion

  6. Healthy Body, Happy Heart: Improve Your Heart Health

    MedlinePlus

    ... November 2017 Print this issue Healthy Body, Happy Heart Improve Your Heart Health En español Send us your comments Every moment of the day, your heart is pumping blood throughout your body. In silent ...

  7. Doing well by doing good. The relationship between formal volunteering and self-reported health and happiness.

    PubMed

    Borgonovi, Francesca

    2008-06-01

    In this paper, we examine whether engaging in voluntary work leads to greater well-being, as measured by self-reported health and happiness. Drawing on data from the USA, our estimates suggest that people who volunteer report better health and greater happiness than people who do not, a relationship that is not driven by socio-economic differences between volunteers and non-volunteers. We concentrate on voluntary labor for religious groups and organizations and using second stage least square regressions we find that religious volunteering has a positive, causal influence on self-reported happiness but not on self-reported health. We explore reasons that could account for the observed causal effect of volunteering on happiness. Findings indicate that low relative socio-economic status is associated with poor health both among those who volunteer and those who do not. Low status, however, is associated with unhappy states only among those who do not volunteer, while volunteers are equally likely to be happy whether they have high or low status. We propose that volunteering might contribute to happiness levels by increasing empathic emotions, shifting aspirations and by moving the salient reference group in subjective evaluations of relative positions from the relatively better-off to the relatively worse-off.

  8. Determinants of Happiness in Undergraduate University Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Flynn, Deborah M.; MacLeod, Stephanie

    2015-01-01

    This study explored the relationship between happiness, and six other life domains: Academic Success, Financial Security, Familial Support, Living Environment, Self-Image and Social Relations. Participants were one hundred and ninety- two students from a small undergraduate university. The purpose of the study was to determine which life domain…

  9. Students and Their Schooling: Does Happiness Matter?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Huebner, Scott

    2010-01-01

    With the increased emphasis on measuring school success primarily through academic outcomes, some might argue that school professionals cannot afford to pay much attention to students' well-being, especially to such a frivolous component as happiness. Indeed, even some positive psychologists who encourage greater attention to research and…

  10. Visual search for emotional expressions: Effect of stimulus set on anger and happiness superiority.

    PubMed

    Savage, Ruth A; Becker, Stefanie I; Lipp, Ottmar V

    2016-01-01

    Prior reports of preferential detection of emotional expressions in visual search have yielded inconsistent results, even for face stimuli that avoid obvious expression-related perceptual confounds. The current study investigated inconsistent reports of anger and happiness superiority effects using face stimuli drawn from the same database. Experiment 1 excluded procedural differences as a potential factor, replicating a happiness superiority effect in a procedure that previously yielded an anger superiority effect. Experiments 2a and 2b confirmed that image colour or poser gender did not account for prior inconsistent findings. Experiments 3a and 3b identified stimulus set as the critical variable, revealing happiness or anger superiority effects for two partially overlapping sets of face stimuli. The current results highlight the critical role of stimulus selection for the observation of happiness or anger superiority effects in visual search even for face stimuli that avoid obvious expression related perceptual confounds and are drawn from a single database.

  11. The picture of happiness in Alzheimer's disease: living a life congruent with personal values.

    PubMed

    Shell, Lynn

    2015-01-01

    It is generally understood that happiness is an important goal of dementia care, though evaluation has been challenging. Concerns about cognitive and communicative limitations have led to the use of proxy reports to assess positive affect. However, proxy reports have been shown to differ from appraisals obtained by the person with Alzheimer's disease (AD). This article reports on a qualitative study of happiness in a sample of 12 persons with mild to moderate AD using photo-elicitation and individual interviews for data collection. Results demonstrate people with mild to moderate AD can provide meaningful evaluations of happiness, and that lifelong values continue to be important in the presence of AD. This study suggests photographs may offer a novel approach to obtain a contextualized understanding of happiness and other values in this population which may lead to the development of person centered interventions aimed to improve the individual's quality of life. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Positive thinking elevates tolerance: Experimental effects of happiness on adolescents' attitudes toward asylum seekers.

    PubMed

    Tenenbaum, Harriet R; Capelos, Tereza; Lorimer, Jessica; Stocks, Thomas

    2018-04-01

    Inducing emotional reactions toward social groups can influence individuals' political tolerance. This study examines the influence of incidental fear and happiness on adolescents' tolerant attitudes and feelings toward young Muslim asylum seekers. In our experiment, 219 16- to 21-year-olds completed measures of prejudicial attitudes. After being induced to feel happiness, fear, or no emotion (control), participants reported their tolerant attitudes and feelings toward asylum-seeking young people. Participants assigned to the happiness condition demonstrated more tolerant attitudes toward asylum-seeking young people than did those assigned to the fear or control conditions. Participants in the control condition did not differ from participants in the fear condition. The participants in the happiness condition also had more positive feelings toward asylum-seeking young people than did participants in the control condition. The findings suggest that one way to increase positive attitudes toward asylum-seeking young people is to improve general emotional state.

  13. Relative preservation of the recognition of positive facial expression "happiness" in Alzheimer disease.

    PubMed

    Maki, Yohko; Yoshida, Hiroshi; Yamaguchi, Tomoharu; Yamaguchi, Haruyasu

    2013-01-01

    Positivity recognition bias has been reported for facial expression as well as memory and visual stimuli in aged individuals, whereas emotional facial recognition in Alzheimer disease (AD) patients is controversial, with possible involvement of confounding factors such as deficits in spatial processing of non-emotional facial features and in verbal processing to express emotions. Thus, we examined whether recognition of positive facial expressions was preserved in AD patients, by adapting a new method that eliminated the influences of these confounding factors. Sensitivity of six basic facial expressions (happiness, sadness, surprise, anger, disgust, and fear) was evaluated in 12 outpatients with mild AD, 17 aged normal controls (ANC), and 25 young normal controls (YNC). To eliminate the factors related to non-emotional facial features, averaged faces were prepared as stimuli. To eliminate the factors related to verbal processing, the participants were required to match the images of stimulus and answer, avoiding the use of verbal labels. In recognition of happiness, there was no difference in sensitivity between YNC and ANC, and between ANC and AD patients. AD patients were less sensitive than ANC in recognition of sadness, surprise, and anger. ANC were less sensitive than YNC in recognition of surprise, anger, and disgust. Within the AD patient group, sensitivity of happiness was significantly higher than those of the other five expressions. In AD patient, recognition of happiness was relatively preserved; recognition of happiness was most sensitive and was preserved against the influences of age and disease.

  14. Burden and happiness in head and neck cancer carers: the role of supportive care needs.

    PubMed

    Hanly, Paul; Maguire, Rebecca; Balfe, Myles; Hyland, Philip; Timmons, Aileen; O'Sullivan, Eleanor; Butow, Phyllis; Sharp, Linda

    2016-10-01

    Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between unmet supportive care needs and carer burden and happiness, in head and neck cancer (HNC). Two hundred eighty-five HNC informal carers were sent a postal questionnaire between January and June 2014, which included the supportive care needs survey for partners and caregivers of cancer survivors (SCNS-P&C) and the CarerQol, which assesses burden and happiness. Multiple regression analysis was conducted to examine the association of (i) carer characteristics, (ii) carer situation, and (iii) unmet supportive care needs, with carer burden and happiness One hundred ninety-seven carers completed the questionnaire (response rate = 69 %), 180 of whom were included in the analysis. The majority were female (76 %), not in paid employment (68 %) and caring for their spouse (67 %). On average, carers reported relatively low levels of burden and relatively high levels of happiness. Carer factors explained 42 % of variance in levels of burden and 24 % of variance in levels of happiness. Healthcare service needs were associated with carer burden (β = .28, p = .04), while psychological needs (β = -.38, p = .028), health care service needs (β = -.30, p = .049), information needs (β = .29, p = .028), carer comorbidity (β = -.18, p = .030), and gender (β = -.16, p = .045) were associated with happiness. Our results indicate that different aspects of carer characteristics and unmet needs are associated with carer burden and happiness. Efforts directed at reducing unmet healthcare service needs in particular are merited given their associations with both aspects of carer quality of life.

  15. A Blessing I Can’t Afford: Factors Underlying the Paradox of Happiness about Unintended Pregnancy

    PubMed Central

    Aiken, Abigail R.A.; Dillaway, Chloe; Mevs-Korff, Natasha

    2015-01-01

    An unresolved paradox in the measurement and interpretation of unintended pregnancy is that women frequently report feeling happy about pregnancies they also classify as unintended (i.e. they have incongruent intentions and feelings). This study explores the underlying reasons why women profess such happiness and how these relate to their motivations to avoid pregnancy. Between September 2013 and February 2014, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 27 women (8 white, 19 Latina) selected from a longitudinal study measuring prospective pregnancy intentions and feelings among 403 women in Austin, Texas. Women were selected for interview on the basis of wanting no more children and consistently professing either happiness (n=17) or unhappiness (n=10) at the prospect of pregnancy. Interviews were coded and analyzed following the principles of grounded theory. We found that it is possible for women to express happiness at the idea of pregnancy while simultaneously earnestly trying to prevent conception. Happiness at the idea of an unintended pregnancy was explained as the result of deep and heartfelt feelings about children taking precedence over practical considerations, the perception that the psychosocial stress resulting from another child would be low, and the ability to rationalize an unintended pregnancy as the result of fate or God’s plan. The major exception to the sincerity of professed happiness was that conveyed as a result of social pressure despite truly negative feelings, predominantly expressed by foreign-born Latina women. Overall, equating incongruence with ambivalence about avoiding conception may undermine the sincerity of women’s intentions and their desires for highly-effective contraception. At the same time, unintended pregnancies that are greeted with happiness may have different implications for maternal and child health outcomes compared to pregnancies that are greeted with unhappiness. Identifying which unintended

  16. AUTISTIC TRAITS INFLUENCE GAZE-ORIENTED ATTENTION TO HAPPY BUT NOT FEARFUL FACES

    PubMed Central

    Lassalle, Amandine; Itier, Roxane J.

    2017-01-01

    The relationship between autistic traits and gaze-oriented attention to fearful and happy faces was investigated at the behavioral and neuronal levels. Upright and inverted dynamic face stimuli were used in a gaze-cueing paradigm while ERPs were recorded. Participants responded faster to gazed-at than to non-gazed-at targets and this Gaze Orienting Effect (GOE) diminished with inversion, suggesting it relies on facial configuration. It was also larger for fearful than happy faces but only in participants with high Autism Quotient (AQ) scores. While the GOE to fearful faces was of similar magnitude regardless of AQ scores, a diminished GOE to happy faces was found in participants with high AQ scores. At the ERP level, a congruency effect on target-elicited P1 component reflected enhanced visual processing of gazed-at targets. In addition, cue-triggered early directing attention negativity and anterior directing attention negativity reflected, respectively, attention orienting and attention holding at gazed-at locations. These neural markers of spatial attention orienting were not modulated by emotion and were not found in participants with high AQ scores. Together these findings suggest that autistic traits influence attention orienting to gaze and its modulation by social emotions such as happiness. PMID:25222883

  17. "There Are Other Ways To Get Happy": African American Urban Folklore. Working Papers #2.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McGregory, Jerrilyn

    "There are other ways to get happy," the slogan signifying "Say no to drugs!" is gaining attention within the African American community in the Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) area. "There are other ways to get happy" comes from learning about and understanding traditional elements of African American folklore. For those…

  18. Public sector employment, relative deprivation and happiness in adult urban Chinese employees.

    PubMed

    Hu, Anning

    2013-09-01

    The decline in perceived happiness within economic prosperity in Chinese society calls for further examination. In this research, we investigate the effect of employment in public sector work units on perceived happiness through the mediation of economic and social status relative deprivations. In the reform era of China, work unit is still an important mechanism maintaining social inequality, and those working in government/Communist Party agencies and public institutions have advantages of getting access to high wage, comprehensive welfare and the manipulation of administrative public power. Such economic and social status advantages are expected to reduce their relative deprivation and further promote their perceived happiness. Using a nationwide survey data conducted in 2006, we find working in public sector can significantly reduce the odds of experiencing economic relative deprivation, which is further contributive to the improvement of subjective wellbeing.

  19. Underestimating nearby nature: affective forecasting errors obscure the happy path to sustainability.

    PubMed

    Nisbet, Elizabeth K; Zelenski, John M

    2011-09-01

    Modern lifestyles disconnect people from nature, and this may have adverse consequences for the well-being of both humans and the environment. In two experiments, we found that although outdoor walks in nearby nature made participants much happier than indoor walks did, participants made affective forecasting errors, such that they systematically underestimated nature's hedonic benefit. The pleasant moods experienced on outdoor nature walks facilitated a subjective sense of connection with nature, a construct strongly linked with concern for the environment and environmentally sustainable behavior. To the extent that affective forecasts determine choices, our findings suggest that people fail to maximize their time in nearby nature and thus miss opportunities to increase their happiness and relatedness to nature. Our findings suggest a happy path to sustainability, whereby contact with nature fosters individual happiness and environmentally responsible behavior.

  20. How Social Relations and Structures can Produce Happiness and Unhappiness: An International Comparative Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Haller, Max; Hadler, Markus

    2006-01-01

    In this paper, subjective well being, as measured by survey questions on happiness and life satisfaction, is investigated from a sociological-comparative point of view. The central thesis is that happiness and satisfaction must be understood as the outcome of an interaction process between individual characteristics and aspirations on the one…