THE SCIENCE OF
WELLBEING
THE SCIENCE OF
WELLBEING
Mental health is not the absence of mental
illness because we need something more:
sufficient levels of:
- emotional wellbeing
- psychological wellbeing
- social wellbeing
THE SCIENCE OF
WELLBEING
Wellbeing (WB) = term used in the scientific field
to refer to happiness (HAP)
which is the reason to adopt this term?
HAP has largely been addressed
since long time ago. Philosophers
already considered HAP as a main
topic of human beings to think about
• Interest in defining in what
consists a happy life and how
we can pursue it
It is a relevant topic in society, even
more than money. People tend to
wonder if we are happy or not.
?
Is wellbeing useful?
Which is the function of ‘being well’?
If it was useless..
…probably it wouldn’t
have too much importance
in our life plans or ideas
?
Is wellbeing useful?
Which is the function of ‘being well’?
adaptative function
The main function may be:
Self-regulatory mechanism
Regulate and guide our behaviour
- daily routines
- long term plans
What is wellbeing?
Definition.
Difficult task;
not an homogeneous consensus.
However…
1 Inclusion of positive elements in the study of
wellbeing
2
The goal of main interventions (medical,
psychological, economical, social…) is to
increase wellbeing
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
HEDONISM EUDAIMONIA
‘What makes life worth living?’
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
‘What makes life worth living?’
What is wellbeing?
Definition: HEDONISM
HEDONISM
‘What makes life worth living?’
Main representative author: Kahneman (1999)
Happiness= Sum of pleasant moments and the
avoidance of pain; Preponderance of positive
emotions over negative emotions
Objective= immediate satisfaction of our desires
MAXIMIZE GOOD experiences and MINIMIZE the
BAD one’s is the centre of human activities (ethics,
economics,…)
What is wellbeing?
Definition: EUDAIMONIA
EUDAIMONIA
‘What makes life worth living?’
Main representative author: Aristotle
DAIMON= true nature (potentialities for the greatest
fulfillment)
Happiness= Having a meaningful life and realizing
the human potential
Just feeling good is not good enough for a good life.
WB is placed on activities consistent to our personal
values, which evoke an engagement that make
people feel authentic
(HEDONISM)
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
Two different types of happiness/wellbeing
SUBJECTIVE WELLBEING PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING
HEDONISM EUDAIMONIA
Results Process
‘What makes life worth living?’
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
Composed by:
emotional component
Affect = PA - NA
HEDONISM
SUBJECTIVE WELLBEING
cognitive component
Life satisfaction
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
Composed by:
emotional component
Affect = PA - NA
HEDONISM
SUBJECTIVE WELLBEING - balance of positive and negative
emotions
- relates to the immediate experience
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
Composed by:
HEDONISM
SUBJECTIVE WELLBEING
cognitive component
Life satisfaction
- global evaluation of one’s life
- more stable in time
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
Carol Ryff’s WELLBEING
SUBJECTIVE scale EUDAIMONIA
PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING
Results
6 dimensions of PWB
(next lesson)
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
HEDONISM EUDAIMONIA
HAPPINESS = WELLBEING
Happiness is a popular term that could arise confusion or skepticism, so it is
not appropriate as a scientific object of study. For this reason:
—> Terms: Psychological wellbeing (PWB) or Subjective wellbeing (SWB)
—> Objects of study: mood, emotions, judgements of satisfaction,…
What is wellbeing?
Definition: Two approaches
HAPPINESS = WELLBEING
When did happiness call the attention of science?
1 After World War II —> policies to promote WB (welfare state).
Governments concerned about enhancing WB among people, so
they include policies of WB to maximize it
2 Advances in medicine —> greater life expectancy.
The science of medicine began to improve the quality of life in people,
not just treat them
3 Sociological interest in measuring the levels of WB —> a rise of surveys
and instruments to measure WB among people
Can wellbeing last
forever?
Hedonic adaptation.
Can wellbeing last
forever?
Hedonic adaptation.
Sensory adaptation
Can wellbeing last
forever?
Hedonic adaptation.
- Temporal “gains” in happiness
in people who won the lottery
- We have a “set-point” to which
we return when we have get
used to the “gains”
- It also happens with negative
events
Can wellbeing last
forever?
Hedonic adaptation.
Old vs Young people:
changes in emotions
because of life learning
process and experience
