Happiness: Its Meaning, Measurement and Importance Dan Weijers.

Happiness: Its Meaning, Measurement and

Importance

Dan Weijers

Overview

• L1 (today): – Happiness and the meaning of life

• L2 (Thurs 19 July): – Measuring happiness

• L3 (Thurs 26 July): – Happiness and public policy

Main Goal

Introductions

• Name?• Why have you come along?• The key to happiness in your opinion?

Happiness: Its Meaning, Measurement and

Significance

L1: Happiness and the Meaning of Life

Objective

• Understanding what’s really important in life

What (Really) Matters?

• What advice would you give a child?

What (Really) Matters?

WellbeingThe good

life

HappinessThe

meaning of life

Theories of Wellbeing…

• Explain what ultimately makes a person’s life go better for them

One Thing or Many?

• One simple thing:– Just pleasure

• One complex thing:– Informed, authentic, and morally based

positive feelings• A list of things:

– Happiness, friendship and truth

Subjective vs Objective

• Does just our personal opinion matter?

• Or can we be wrong?

Who Are We to Say What is Objectively Good for Us?

Theories of Wellbeing

Mental State

(Hedonism)

Desire/Life SatisfactionFlourishing

Objective List

Mental State Theories

• Folk: get pleasure now!• Philosophers: maximise pleasure over your entire

life• Key: All that matters is how you feel (your mental

states)

Well-being Happiness +ve net balance of good over bad mental states

Especially hedonism

What about Truth & Freedom?• Compare two lives

– Same experiences– Different reality

• Double agent partner• Sponsored children all died

• Whose life is better?

• What should we do about a happy slave?

Desire Satisfaction Theories

• Based on desire/preference-satisfaction• Informed: adequately informed desires only• Ideal: desires that fit some objective criteria only • Key: All that matters is getting what you want (or

should want)

Well-beingHappinessHaving most or more of your desires satisfied

Sometimes

Is the Satisfaction of Our Desires Good for us?

• How would “omniscient you” advise yourself?

• Having a desire satisfied does not seem valuable unless it is the right desire

Objective List

• E.g. W.D. Ross’ account:– Knowledge, Pleasure, Virtue and the proper

apportionment of pleasure to virtue

• Can’t we explain knowledge with pleasure or desire-satisfaction?

Flourishing Theories

• Developing one or all of your species’ fundamental traits

• Aristotle: Flourishing is the soul expressing virtue• E.g. cowardice – courage - rashness

• Key: All that matters is being the best

you can be (given that you’re a human)

Well-being Flourishing Developing & expressing natural capacities

Why is Fulfilling Our Natural Capacities Good?

• Is excellence in reasoning or long-distance running better for us?

• Unnatural things can be good for us too!– E.g. Pacemakers, wings etc.

Best Theory of Wellbeing?

Mental State

(Hedonism)

Desire/Life Satisfaction

Flourishing

Objective List

Next Week

• How to measure wellbeing• Special guest for first half

Happiness: Its Meaning, Measurement and

Importance

L2: Measuring Happiness

Objectives

• Show how various types of happiness are measured

• Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the approaches

• Understand the limitations of measurements

Are you Happy?

• A simple and a complicated question

• How we go about answering it depends on what we take ‘happiness’ to mean

• Or, it depends on how the question is asked

How Can I Find Out How Happy You Are?

• Indirectly– Look at your wealth/income– Look at your capabilities or your quality of

life indicators

• (More) Directly– Observe your behaviour– Brain scans– Ask you

Looking at Your Income• Used by:

– Some economists & politicians– Most of us as an indicator of ‘national

progress’

• Income is an indicator of ability to satisfy preferences (and thereby make yourself happy)

Margin of Discontent

• Gap between what we have and what we want

• Two solutions:1) ‘Sages’ solution:

• “Give up wanting” – Hard & boring?

2) ‘Economic growth solution:• “People satisfy their wants by increasing

their possessions, thus becoming happier”

Looking at Your Income• Used by:

– Some economists & politicians– Most of us as an indicator of ‘national

progress’• Income is an indicator of ability to

satisfy preferences (and thereby make yourself happy)

• Benefits: Easy to calculate and compare on large scale

• Problems…

Does $$ Make Us Happy?

1) Reducing the margin of discontent makes people happier

2) Economic growth helps consumers to reduce their margin of discontent

• If 1. and 2. are both true, then why have we gotten richer…but not happier?

• Evidence?

Materialism Doesn’t Pay

Very High

Adaptation

• Lottery winners return to pretty much the same level of happiness after 1 year (contested)

• The more we have:– The more we want and – The more we think we need

• Evidence?

So, Does $$ Make Us Happy?

• So, unless you are materialistic, more $$ makes very little difference to our happiness – much less than:

– A loving relationship– Volunteering– A rewarding job

• But materialistic people seem to have a pretty strange idea of happiness

• Having said all this… who would not want to win lotto?

Discussion

• Can money not buy happiness or are we just spending it on the wrong things?

• Is it possible to avoid adapting to new things that bring us happiness?

• Has anyone sacrificed money for happiness? How did it go?

Looking at Your Capabilities/QoL Indicators

• Used by: – Some economists & politicians– Often encouraged by NGOs

• Income, access to education, healthcare, clean environment, employment, political freedoms etc.

• Benefits: Not too hard to calculate and compare on large scale

• Problems…

Aren’t We all Capable of Happiness?

• People from all walks of life report themselves as happy, even those whose circumstances look dire to us

• Adaptation (again)• Relativity of happiness• Determinants of happiness

– Evidence?

Determinants of Happiness

Discussion

• What is more important, freedom, education, or happiness?

• Which is better, a long life of medium happiness or a medium life of great happiness?

• Should we focus on genetic technology and cognitive behavioural therapy instead of circumstances?

Observe Your Behaviour• Used by:

– A few academics– Just about all of us!

• By observing body language and behaviour we can tell how happy someone is

• Benefits: easy to do, especially with people you know well

• Problems: impractical on large scale and…

Smile!

• Smiling is the main way to tell if someone’s happy… but only if they are real smiles

• Duchenne (real) smiles can be noticed by the ‘sparkle’ in the eyes

Scanning Your Brain• Used by:

– A few academics

• Activity in specific areas of the brain are measured and compared to the other direct measures of happiness

Cute baby = Left side

Deformed baby = Right side

Causing (Ratty) Pleasure

Scanning Your Brain• Used by:

– A few academics• Activity in specific areas of the brain

are measured and compared to the other direct measures of happiness

• Benefits: becoming increasingly accurate

• Problems: very impractical on large scale and still mysterious

Discussion• If happiness has a biological cause in

the brain, then we will be able to influence it with drugs, surgery, bionics etc… but should we?

• If our brains show equal ‘happiness activity’, then are we equally happy? How can we know this?

Asking You

• Used by: – Psychologists– Occasionally by economics academics

• You think about and answer a question regarding your happiness. After all, who could be better than you at judging how happy you are?

• Benefits: Not too hard to calculate and (possibly) compare on large scale

• Problems… depend on the question…

3 Types of Questions I Can Ask You (3 Levels of Happiness)

1) How are you feeling right now (from 1 to 7)?

– Introspection

2) All things considered, how happy are you these days (from 1 to 7)?

– Introspection, comparative judgement

3) On the whole, how good do you think your life is (from 1 to 7)?

– Introspection, comparative judgement, relative to conception of ‘the good life’

Level One Happiness: Feeling Happy in the Moment

• How are you feeling right now?– Introspection

• Level One Happiness (Nettle)– Mood– Pleasure– Joy– Absence of pain and suffering (negative

feelings)• Fear, Anger, Sadness, Disgust, Pain

Level One Happiness: Feeling Happy in the Moment

• Is there really such a thing?

• How good are we at getting it right?– Introspection– Smiling.– Brain scans

• How good is it to have?

Level Two Happiness: Judging Your Happiness

• All things considered, how happy are you these days?– Introspection, comparative judgement

• Level Two Happiness (Nettle)– Total net Level One happiness (Kahneman)– Well-being– Satisfaction– Judgement about feelings

• Can be distorted by biased judgements

Level Two Happiness: Judging Your Happiness

• Is there really such a thing?

• How good are we at getting it right?– Appraisal biases– Aspirational biases

• How good is it to have?

Level Three Happiness: Thinking You Have a Good Life

• On the whole, how good do you think your life is?– Introspection, comparative judgement, relative

to conception of ‘the good life’

• Level Three Happiness (Nettle)– Eudaimonia– Fulfilling potential– Quality of life

• Doesn’t always require Level 1 or 2 happiness

Level Three Happiness: Thinking You Have a Good Life

• Is there really such a thing?– Subjectively: yes– Objectively:

interesting question

• How good are we at getting it right?

• How good is it to have?

Happiness ‘Continuum’

Level 1- Momentary

feelings- Mood- Pleasure or

joy- Not suffering

Level 2- Judgements

about feelings- Net level 1

happiness- Well-being- satisfaction

Level 3- Holistic

evaluation of value of life

- Flourishing- Needn’t

include happiness

More emotional, sensual, and reliable

More cognitive, moral, and easily biased

Discussion• When (if ever) are our judgments

about how we feel accurate enough to make decisions by?

• For self- and governmental –assessment, which method of measuring happiness:– Provides the best gauge of actual

happiness (most accurate/ reliable)?– Is the easiest to carry out?

• Or, suggest another method

How to Find Out More

• Further reading:– Happiness: The Science Behind

Your Smile• By Daniel Nettle

– Stumbling on Happiness• By Dan Gilbert

• Multimedia info:– www.danweijers.com/happiness– http://www.nationalaccountsofwel

lbeing.org/

Happiness: Its Meaning, Measurement and

Significance

L3: Happiness and Public Policy?

Objectives

• Use our previous learning (about what happiness is, how valuable it is and if we can measure it) to help us…

• Decide what we should do about happiness regarding public policy

So What Should the Government Do?

• Main goal of government?:– Happiness – Well-being – High living standards – $$$/freedom/rights

• SWB/Happiness measures/studies?– No role– Directly inform policy (alone or with others)– Use to create objective measures

Unemployment

• Raise taxes to make more public sector jobs?

• Make it harder to fire people?

Commuting

• Less time commuting could make us happier

• Should the government encourage virtual workplaces?

Advertising

• Rosser Reeves– Manager of a

successful advertising company

• While holding up two coins:– “[Making] you think

that this quarter is more valuable than that one”

The Benefits of Advertising

• Winston Churchill:• “Advertising nourishes

the consuming power of men. It creates wants for a better standard of living… It spurs individual exertion and greater production.”

• Advertising improves our well-being

Does Advertising Make Us Dissatisfied?

• Beautiful (photo-shopped) women are in adverts everywhere we look

Does Advertising Make Us Dissatisfied?

• Beautiful (photo-shopped) women are in adverts everywhere

• They make us unhappy/ dissatisfied• Should we remove tax breaks for

pictorial advertising?• Should we ban pictorial advertising?

Policy-making ↑ Well-being

(WB)

FairnessSustainability

Equality

Subjective WB Objective WB

Overall Domain-Specific

Mental state/

hedonism

Life Satisfaction

theories

Objective List/

Flourishing

Quality of Life Indicators

Traditional Economic Indicators

Health/ healthcareFreedom

TrustSafety

Environ-ment

EducationEquality

Production

IncomeEmploy-

ment

Justice

Wealth•Survey•Pager•Day reco-nstruction

•Survey•“All things considered, how satisfied are you with your life?”

•Survey•Rate agreement “I have good friends”

HAPPINESS

Happiness

Brain scan

Behav-ioural

Living Standards

• Treasury vision:– “working for higher living standards for

NZers”

• Living Standards Framework (LSF)– Explain ‘living standards’

• Living Standards Tool– “assist policy analysts to consider the

[LSF] in their day-to-day work”

Treasury’s Key Objectives

• “working for higher living standards for NZers”

1.Improved economic performance2.A high performing state sector that

supports NZ’s international competitiveness

3.A stable and sustainable macro-economic environment

Living Standards Framework

Living Standards Tool

My View

Policy-making ↑ Well-being

(WB)

FairnessSustainability

Equality

Subjective WB Objective WB

Overall Domain-Specific

Mental state/

hedonism

Life Satisfaction

theories

Objective List/

Flourishing

Quality of Life Indicators

Traditional Economic Indicators

Health/ healthcareFreedom

TrustSafety

Environ-ment

EducationEquality

Production

IncomeEmploy-

ment

Justice

Wealth•Survey•Pager•Day reco-nstruction

•Survey•“All things considered, how satisfied are you with your life?”

•Survey•Rate agreement “I have good friends”

HAPPINESS

Happiness

Brain scan

Behav-ioural

SWB as “Crosscheck”

Measuring Progress

So What Should the Government Do?

• Main goal of government?:– Happiness – Well-being – High living standards – $$$/freedom/rights

• SWB/Happiness measures/studies?– No role– Directly inform policy (alone or with others)– Use to create objective measures

How to Find Out More

• Further reading:– Happiness: Lessons from a New Science

• By Lord Richard layard

• Multimedia info:– www.treasury.govt.nz

• Search for “living standards”

– www.danweijers.com/happiness– http://www.nationalaccountsofwellbeing

.org/

Bhutan vs. New Zealand

• In Bhutan, happiness (they define it more like peaceful serenity) is the most important driver of policy– Since the late 1980’s

• In New Zealand, it’s often ‘the effect on the economy’– On jobs or per capita incomes or GDP

Other Topics

• Foreign aid• The media’s portrayal of progress• Education• Health