Journal of Happiness Studies最新文献

We tested the efficacy of engaging in two novel randomized interventions based on character strengths and engaging with nature on boosting nature connectedness and well-being. In Study 1 (N = 134, international community adults) and Study 2 (N = 106, Canadian university students), participants were tasked with noticing how their character strengths were displayed in nature (CinN intervention). In Study 3 (N = 99, Canadian university students), participants were tasked with using their highest character strength in a new way each day to connect with nature (CSwithN intervention). A no treatment control condition was used for comparison. Both interventions significantly boosted nature connectedness (ds = 0.48, 0.66, 0.67). With respect to well-being, the CSinN intervention significantly boosted transcendent connectedness (ds = 053, 0.57), elevation (d = 0.40), and harmony in life (d = 0.48). The CSwithN intervention also significantly boosted transcendent connectedness (d = 0.43), elevation (d = 0.48), and harmony in life (d = 0.50), along with satisfaction of basic need of relatedness (d = 0.58), flourishing (d = 0.57), satisfaction with life (d = 0.44), and positive affect (d = 0.43). Beneficial effects on nature connectedness and well-being were evident despite there being no significant difference in time spent in nature compared to controls. These findings present a unique contribution to the current literature. To our knowledge, the CSinN and CSwithN interventions are the first interventions developed and tested that incorporate character strengths and engagement with nature with the dual goal of boosting nature connectedness and individual well-being.

Individuals’ daily positive life experiences, from having a good conversation to taking a relaxing bath, may be thought of as mundane, but when added together they may be key contributors to making life meaningful and enjoyable. Some individuals, however, may have more frequent access to positive life experiences or may be able to enjoy them more. We used data from the Midlife Development in the US Study to examine disparities in overall frequency and enjoyment of positive life experiences across socioeconomic status (SES), race, and sexual orientation (with consideration of gender and age), as well as whether positive experiences may mediate associations between sociodemographic characteristics and psychological health and well-being (life satisfaction, positive affect, depressive and anxiety symptomatology), as measured concurrently with positive experiences (Study 1; N = 2,118). We then extended these analyses to 3 indicators of well-being (positive and negative affect, life satisfaction) measured 7 years later (Study 2; N = 1,182). We found that people of lower SES, Black people, other people of color, and gay/bisexual people had a lower frequency of positive experiences. Similar patterns were seen for enjoyment, but with smaller effect sizes. Racial associations with positive experiences were attenuated after adjustment for SES. In mediation analyses, positive experiences mediated associations between greater SES and better psychological health and well-being. Positive experiences also appeared to play a role in the lower life satisfaction observed in gay/bisexual participants. Potential disparities in accessing and engaging in positive life experiences, and the role of such disparities in well-being, warrant further study.

The quiet ego reflects psychological mechanisms that enable individuals to interpret themselves and others less defensively by balancing concerns for the welfare and growth of both (Bauer & Weatherbie, 2023). Two experimental studies tested the hypothesis that listening to brief reminders of four quiet ego characteristics would reduce a common form of defensiveness: self-other bias. In Study 1, female college students (N = 112) completed surveys and then were randomly assigned to one of two conditions consisting of a 5 min audio reminding them of key ideas related to the quiet ego (self-affirmation condition) or goal setting (control condition). Immediately following the intervention participants completed the Self-versus-Other Implicit Association Test (SOI-IAT; Thorton & Aknin, 2020) where terms related to self and other, pleasant and unpleasant, are paired. As predicted, compared to controls, those who listened to the quiet ego reminders showed no self-other bias. Study 2 modified delivery of the quiet ego and control intervention materials and included of compassion-related outcomes in a sample of college women (N = 126). The primary hypothesis was supported, and compared to controls, those exposed to the quiet ego reminders reported less self-other bias, more compassion for the self, and more even-handed compassion for the self and others. Discussion focuses on the potential utility of embedding quiet ego content into brief interventions to reduce excessively self-focused related psychological processes.

An experiential perspective on identity development is presented here and focuses on the importance of flow experiences for developing abiding interests, or long-term interests that form the core of a person’s identity. The perspective shares similarities with the exploration/commitment dynamic incorporated in much identity research but suggests how experiences like flow can help regulate and motivate identity growth. The selection, optimization, and compensation (SOC) model of aging is applied within this experiential framework to illustrate how healthy identity maintenance and development in later life can occur by prioritizing abiding interests. Finally, when the search for meaning is magnified by existential circumstances in later life and cognition changes, a person’s abiding interests can be interpreted in new ways that lead beyond the individual self. Absorbing experiences like flow result in a momentary unselfconsciousness or feelings of egoless self-transcendence. Reflecting on such states in later life can enhance well-being and amplify a feeling of interconnectedness with life.

Greenspace exposure (including the amount of time spent, vegetation coverage, and the number of greenspace attributes) has been shown to enhance children’s well-being (including fewer emotional problems and more happiness). However, the day-to-day associations between perceived greenspace exposure and children’s emotional well-being and potential rural-urban differences remain unclear. A total of 509 children participated in this study and completed daily diaries for 14 consecutive days. Results showed that on days when children spend more time in greenspace and perceived higher vegetation coverage and more attributes in the greenspace they were exposed to, they reported greater emotional well-being on that day and the next day. Children who perceived higher vegetation coverage in greenspace they were exposed to reported greater emotional well-being than others. Furthermore, the negative associations of more greenspace attributes with same- and next-day fewer emotional problems were only significant for urban children, but not for rural children. This study revealed dynamic associations between perceived greenspace exposure and children’s daily emotional well-being, underscoring the significance of the place of residence in shaping these associations.

The main objective of this paper is to analyse the effects of culture on happiness in Sub-Saharan Africa. Based on a sample of 33 countries observed over the period from 2006 to 2020, we specify and estimate a panel data model using the system generalized method of moments (SGMM). The results show that culture significantly increases happiness in Sub-Saharan Africa. To test the robustness of the results, first we use Lewbel's instrumental variable technique, second mediation analysis to test the indirect effect of culture through the penetration of information and communication technologies and access to electricity, thirdly, we use the quasi-experimental approach of difference-in-difference propensity score and triple-difference method. After several triangulations of the analysis methods, we find that the effect of culture on happiness remains positive overall. In order to further consolidate the happiness of the populations of Sub-Saharan African countries, we suggest that political decision-makers intensify policies aimed at promoting the mixing of internal and external cultures that generates happiness.

We refer to small but certain happiness that emerges in our daily life as micro-happiness. Study 1 extracted a six-factor structure of such micro-happiness that includes contact with nature, time spent with close people, engagement with amusement media, personal relaxation, daily chores, and drinking (alcohol consumption). Such micro-happiness is driven by daily events that occur frequently and repeatedly. Study 2 examined the relationship between daily events that represent six types of micro-happiness and hedonic well-being, such as life satisfaction and emotional well-being, by comparing it to the relationship between major life events and well-being. The results showed that daily events had a stronger relationship with life satisfaction and positive emotions but a similar or weaker relationship with negative emotions.

Research has contradictory findings because of different definitions of screen time, measures of wellbeing, and the examination of different groups of teenagers. This study distinguishes four types of screen activity using time diaries of UK adolescents: social screen time, internet browsing, playing e-games and video viewing, and examines their associations with adolescents’ happiness in six domains, by gender and parental education. Any form of screen time is associated with lower happiness with looks, but worst for the former two activities. These activities are also associated with lower happiness in other domains, and excessive use equate to worse wellbeing. More screen time is worse for girls’ happiness with their looks than boys, and parental education is not a protective factor.

Social media has emerged as an important part of daily life for many people, with potential implications for subjective well-being. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated whether time spent on social media, social media stress, and social media self-regulation failure are associated with emerging adults’ subjective well-being (positive affect, negative affect, and life satisfaction) and tested whether these links depended on participants’ Big Five personality traits (extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and autonomy). A representative community sample of emerging adults (N = 343; 42.3% men; M_age = 24.82 years) completed self-report questionnaires. Consistent with the “Goldilocks hypothesis”, both too much and too little time spent on social media were associated with greater negative affect, with 45 minutes per day predicting the lowest negative affect. Moderation analyses revealed that time spent on social media was related to lower positive affect for participants low on extraversion. Social media self-regulation failure was related to lower positive and higher negative affect for participants with low agreeableness. Social media stress related to less negative affect for participants with low emotional stability, and to more negative affect for people with high emotional stability. These findings suggest that the impact of social media on emerging adults’ well-being may depend in part on their personality traits.

In recent scientific debates, eudaimonia and hedonia have been discussed as either complementary or opposing pathways to well-being. If they are opposites, a combination of the two would not have a positive effect. If they are complementary, their combination is of particular interest. Research to date has often been based on correlational designs that do not allow any conclusions to be drawn about causality. Therefore, we used randomized control designs not only to demonstrate the effectiveness of interventions for eudaimoina and hedonia but also to see whether or not a combination of hedonia and eudaimonia will lead to life satisfaction (full-life effectivity) or even outperforms single-component interventions (full-life superiority). Two randomized controlled studies were conducted with pre-, post- and follow-up measurements. In Study 1 (N = 265), we compared four groups: hedonia training, eudaimonia training, combined training and a control group. In Study 2 (N = 76), we compared three groups: eudaimonia training, combined training and a control group. Results showed positive effects on life satisfaction in the eudaimonia and hedonia groups. The combined training worked (full-life effectivity), although not more so than the single-component trainings (no full-life superiority). The expected mediating role of the art-of-living (a set of individual behavioral strategies) for training effects on life satisfaction was also supported. Results are discussed with reference to the synergetic change model, which offers further ideas to improve combined trainings.