Robert Emmons, the world’s leading expert on gratitude and professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, says that “Gratitude has been conceptualized as an emotion, a virtue, a moral sentiment, a motive, a coping response, a skill, and an attitude. It is all of these and more.” He defines gratitude in his articleContinue reading “The Science of Happiness Post 6: From Gratitude to Happiness”
Tag Archives: Well-being
The Science of Happiness Post 5: The Importance of Cooperation and Reconciliation
In the history of humanity, evidence abounds on the fact that humans have evolved to be cooperative because of its benefits for survival as individuals and as groups. Even today, Dacher Keltner asserts, neighborhoods with more social cohesion and cooperation have better child health and life expectancies, greater high school graduation rates, and less socialContinue reading “The Science of Happiness Post 5: The Importance of Cooperation and Reconciliation”
The Science of Happiness Post 4: Compassion and Kindness Are in Our Biology
Dacher Keltner defines compassion as “the feeling of concern for the welfare of others and the desire to lift them up.” In his article The Compassionate Instinct, he asserts that compassion is an evolved part of human nature, rooted in our brain and biology. According to him, research demonstrates that a unique region of theContinue reading “The Science of Happiness Post 4: Compassion and Kindness Are in Our Biology”
The Science of Happiness Post 3: Social Connections: The Role of Oxytocin and the Vagus Nerve
“I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship,” says renowned Brené Brown in her 2017 book Rising Strong. And indeed, according to Emiliana Simon-Thomas, research from across theContinue reading “The Science of Happiness Post 3: Social Connections: The Role of Oxytocin and the Vagus Nerve”
The Science of Happiness Post 2: What Is Happiness and Why Does It Matter
Sonja Lyubomirsky, a positive psychology researcher and world pioneer in the study of happiness, describes happiness in her 2008 book The How of Happiness as “the experience of joy, contentment, or positive well-being, combined with a sense that one’s life is good, meaningful, and worthwhile.” Researchers use the terms subjective well-being, positive affects, and lifeContinue reading “The Science of Happiness Post 2: What Is Happiness and Why Does It Matter”
The Science of Happiness Post 1: The Why and the What of This Blog Series
I believe we are destined to find a path of well-being and happiness for ourselves while we inhabit this Earth. I also know that this path is unique for each one, and that it might be slow and tortuous sometimes, but it doesn’t need to be. Research during the last fifteen years has established thatContinue reading “The Science of Happiness Post 1: The Why and the What of This Blog Series”
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