A "Guide to Happiness" worth tens of millions

◎ Wang Wei

From the perspective of medical level, material standards, average life expectancy and other aspects, the present is the most ideal and suitable period in human history. On World Happiness Day, the United Nations released the World Happiness Report, conducted by a Gallup poll, which ranked first in finland and Afghanistan last out of more than 150 countries around the world. High welfare, high social trust, personal income, employment, family status and security are undoubtedly important factors affecting national happiness. But there's also a daily experience in Gallup's survey, with Panama at the top of the list and Costa Rica at the top of the list, two countries whose economies are far worse than those of the Nordic countries, but whose citizens are happy. Why is there such a contrast? What determines happiness?

The scholar of happiness, Daniel M. M. Hebrun received a research grant of about 35 million yuan to spend three years studying how to live happier in the contemporary world. Prior to this, he was invited by Oxford University Press to write a short little book, "Happiness", which dug deep into the study of happiness in philosophy, psychology, and ethics, aiming to provide ordinary people with a guide to the construction of a happy life.

Happiness needs a clearer new definition

"Are you happy?" A reporter once randomly threw this question to passers-by to investigate the happiness of the people, in addition to receiving many laughable answers, such as, "I am not surnamed Fu, the surname is Zeng." Most people give a standard answer when answering – "happiness." This answer makes the show go smoothly, but does it really reflect that the person asked lives a happy life?

In Daniel M. M. Hebrun seems to be the "most ineffective type of survey," and the people who asked the question didn't figure out what happiness really was, or they simply equated "life satisfaction" with "happiness." After deconstructing the definition of happiness, Hebrun suggests simplifying the abstract discussion of happiness in its daily life, understanding it as a psychological state, so that it encompasses the three basic theories of "emotional state theory", "hedonism theory", and "life satisfaction theory".

In English, both "happiness" and "happiness" use the word happy, which intuitively explains the "emotional state theory" - happiness is to have good emotions, when a person behaves energetically, immerses himself in the things he loves, has no anxiety, and smiles often, this is the state of happiness. There are also three basic indicators for obtaining this emotional state, the first is the basic sense of security, not the wariness of the world, which in Hebrun's words is "harmony between man and his own life"; the second is the degree of participation in life, which can be more fully described by the positive psychologist Mikhari Chiksen Mikhalay's "flow" doctrine, that is, to devote oneself to an activity and achieve a state of forgetting both things and myself; and the third is whether one subjectively approves of one's life.

From the point of view of emotional well-being, as long as it is not a state of anxiety and depression, happiness is obtained. Moreover, this happiness is not equivalent to the short-lived experience of happiness in the "hedonistic theory", but refers to a continuous state, a "most ideal way of being". Life satisfaction reflects the subjective judgment of individuals on the state of life, and there is a big deviation from the standard of happiness, many people say that they are very satisfied with their lives, but they may not be happy.

Distinguishing between hedonistic pleasures, subjective satisfaction with life, and happiness can help us better understand what happiness constitutes, and thus find simpler ways to achieve happiness.

The elements needed for happiness are not complicated

Since Hebrun let us know that happiness is a positive emotional state, a good psychology that can be maintained in the long run, where does happiness come from? Can genes determine the ability to perceive happiness? Is it easier to feel happy the more money you have? Can we determine our own happiness?

Scholars who study happiness have done a variety of studies and surveys to answer these questions. Genetic determinism has been abandoned, the heritability of happiness is no match for height or double eyelid genes, and humans have amazing adjustments and adaptability. Hebrun compiled a list of five "sources of happiness" that happiness researchers agree on: security, attitude toward life, autonomy, relationships, and activities that require skills and meaning. In addition, there is a sixth item , nature , although there is a lack of strong research evidence to support this source.

Hebrun points out that two of the most important of these are relationships, which exemplifies our nature as "social animals." We need the company of friends, our loved ones, and the support of a strong community. The fifth item, "activities that require skills and meaning," reflects the essence of our need to do practical things as "performers." This article is directly related to the definition of happiness " sense of participation " , and it also illustrates the relationship between modern people and work. A bad job has a profound impact on people, and if the work does not bring about a flow experience, it will undoubtedly make people passive wage slaves. It is also difficult for a person to work only for money to achieve happiness. Working in a job that gives people emotional satisfaction and a sustained experience of flow is the right way to get out of wage slavery.

From this point of view, to get a happy experience is not particularly complicated, only need to look at life against this list, you can add to the deficiencies.

To have happiness is to go beyond happiness

In Hebrun's pen, happiness has been reduced from an abstract and complex concept to a psychological state, and even formed the above-mentioned simplified "formula table", providing a quick guide for people who build a happy life. But in addition to getting this psychologically positive experience, there are also more important things in life, as Hebrun says: "A good life should consist of remarkable activities that focus on what you actually do, not the state you're trying to achieve." ”

Socrates proposed more than two thousand years ago: "If a person is very itchy, he can scratch it as much as he wants, and he will scratch it all his life. "In the science fiction movie "The Matrix", the human experience is simulated by machines. However, even if you can have an endless feeling of happiness for a lifetime, this fraudulent experience of life is not enviable.

Therefore, to achieve a more complete life, it is also necessary to focus on the higher dimensions of happiness and examine the values behind experiences and activities. This higher level of well-being, known by researchers as "well-being," adds the practice of virtue and self-actualization to the formula for a full life. The most influential doctrine of the Practice of Virtue in the West comes from Aristotle, who listed 11 virtues in the Nicomaco Ethics: courage, temperance, generosity, flamboyance, grandeur, patience, honesty, wit, friendliness, shame, and justice. By following these virtues, you can attain a good life that thrives. These qualities of excellence are rooted in the commonalities of human nature and are typical human virtues that we need to express. Hebrun added: "If a person's superior qualities are reflected in their ability to collect bottle caps or sell assets from unknown sources, they are not included." ”

Hebrun also used the children's story "Bull Ferdinand" as an example to explain the meaning of "self-actualization". Bull Ferdinand is reluctant to do what other bulls do, preferring to smell the flowers rather than participate in the bullfighting show. What you take for granted to other people may not be good for your self-actualization, just as what matters is not the habits of the average bull, but the true colors of Ferdinand.

From this point of view, the standard of well-being for a better life is not difficult to meet, the key lies in each person's own choice. One may not always be able to attain emotional pleasure, but in the process of observing these virtues and striving to realize one's true colors, one will undoubtedly gain a very positive sense of satisfaction.

Daniel M. M. Hebrun begins Happiness by arguing: "The main way in which people in many countries today pursue happiness is not only inefficient, but also destructive and often counterproductive." I believe that people who have read this little book will look at the position of happiness in life with a new perspective, and can also create their own happiness more purposefully according to the advice he provides."