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Global Happiness

Global Happiness . Rhonda Winters Hsp 406 Spring 2104. What is Happiness? Can happiness be measured?.

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Global Happiness

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  1. Global Happiness Rhonda Winters Hsp 406 Spring 2104

  2. What is Happiness? Can happiness be measured? • According to Weiner (2008), researchers have found the brain can associate with good and bad moods, this is done by showing a series of pictures, pleasant pictures show prefrontal lobe activity. When shown unpleasant images the more primitive part of the brain lights up. So in other words, happy feelings register in the regions of the brain that have evolved most recently. • To promote happiness we must measure it and identify the many factors other than Gross National Product that can raise or lower well-being (Sachs, 2014). • National governments could use a variety of assessments at appropriate intervals to directly measure people’s subject well-being: • Experiences • Feelings • Perceptions of life

  3. Five levels of Subject Well-being can be explained by the fulfillment of universal needs If needs are indeed universal, they should apply to all individuals in all cultures. Inherent in the idea of universal needs is that fulfillment explains some portion of variance in Subject Well-being. The needs should have a degree of independence from each other, with each making a contribution to Subject Well-being beyond the effects of others. If the social context influences the importance of need fulfillment on Subject Well-being. If the needs are fulfilled in the order predicted by Maslow’s motivational theory (Tay & Deiner, 2011).

  4. Six Basic Needs of Happiness Basic needs for food and shelter Safely and security Social support and love Feeling respected and pride in activities Mastery Self-direction and autonomy These six basic needs were examined in relation to the three types of Subject Well-being: life evaluations, positive feelings and negative feelings. According to Tay & Diener (2011), the hypothesis here is that feeling unsafe could produce negative emotions but being safe might not produce long lasting positive feelings.

  5. Why We Need to Practice with a Happiness and Wellness Index 3 Key Reasons It would be a new way of assessing societal progress, how people view and measure national progress, success, and values. Instead of economic approach, it would multidisciplinary and an ethical evidence approach to policy making. It could galvanize global institutions, national governments, and the public to address issues (Ratzan 2009).

  6. Economics…is this a true measure of Happiness? • According to (The World Happiness Report, 2013), Economics is a crude way to measure happiness. • Negative transaction (gun sales). • Positive things (educational spending). • Researchers have found that measuring happiness more systematically through one study is nearly impossible.

  7. What other measures can we use… Gross Domestic Product per head Healthy life expectancy Someone to count one Freedom of choice Freedom from corruption Prevalence of generosity Gross National Happiness measures the quality of a country in a more holistic way and believes that the beneficial development of human society takes place when material and spiritual development occurs side by side to complement and reinforce each other (Sachs 2014).

  8. What is Global Happiness A large body of evidence does indicate that the subjective well-being levels of given countries are stable (Haybron 2014). According to Ratzan (2009), Happiness should be the goal of policy, and the progress of national happiness should be measured and analyzed as closely as the growth of Gross National Product. According to Inglehart et al…(2008), findings that happiness can change for individuals do not necessarily mean that the happiness levels of given societies change.

  9. In Search of Global Happiness • I’m taking you on a journey to other countries in the pursuit of happiness. How do they measure happiness… • The Netherlands • Bhutan • Moldova • Iceland • United States

  10. Happiness in the Netherlands Gross National Product currently is at 731 billion dollars The Netherlands is the world’s fourth happiest Nation.

  11. So how are people from the Netherlands happy… • According to Weiner (2008), The Dutch will tolerate anything, even intolerance. Dutch tolerance consists of … • Drugs-served in coffee houses or also known as “drug dens” • Prostitution • Cycling • The Government gives families money every month to help with expenses. • They have Oma day, where grandmothers take pride in helping out with their children.

  12. Happiness in Bhutan Bhutan gross National product is at 4.67 Bhutan is not on the top fifty of happiest nations

  13. How happy are people from Bhutan… • They look for a deeper level of happiness, rather than fleeting feel good moments. • Spirituality which is measured on four factors: • Self supported spirituality • Karma • Prayer • Mediation

  14. MoldovaHappiness Moldova’sGross National Product is at 13 billion. Moldovais the World’s forty-fourthhappiest nation.

  15. So arepeople from Moldovahappy?According to Weiner (2008), the are not… Life was sweet until the Berlin wall came down, the Soviet Union collapsed. People form Moldova have been reduced to scrimping for food. They belittle the values of trust and friendship. They reward mean spiritedness and deceit. They have a Moldovan Scowl, a frozen, vacant expression.

  16. Iceland Happiness Iceland’s Gross National Product is at 12 billion Iceland is the world’s ninth happiest nation

  17. So how are Icelanders happy… • When Icelandic's are faced with a brutal climate and utter isolation, they could easily chose despair and drunkenness, but instead they choose happiness and drunkenness (Weiner 2008). • When communal bond and relative are stripped away, happiness is a choice. • If unemployment reaches 5% it is considered a national scandal. • They possess a deep love for… • Chess • Loyalty to friends • Getting on the map • High tolerance for idiosyncrasy

  18. United States of Happiness • The United states gross national product is at 15.89 trillion • The United states is the world’s twenty-third happiest nation

  19. So how happy are we in the United States… According to Weiner (2008), America’s fixation with finding happiness is material prosperity. Rising expectations, comparing ourselves to others with money We work longer hours and commute greater distances then virtually any other people in the world. We spend less time visiting family and friends We buy things to make us happy, sadly we suffer with disappointment when they do not. We are on the move, every year forty million Americans move.

  20. Conclusion “Happiness requires livable conditions, but not paradise.” “We humans are imminently adaptable. We survived an Ice Age. We can survive anything. We find happiness in a variety of places and, places can change. Any atlas of bliss must be etched in pencil” Weiner (2008). I know how I am happy, it is with family, friends and health. I have been very fortunate in life, and try to share the wealth of happiness.

  21. Chekola, M. (2007). Happiness, Rationality, Autonomy and the Good Life. Journal Of Happiness Studies, 8(1), 51-78. doi:10.1007/s10902-006-9004-7 Diener, E., Sapyta, J. J., & Suh, E. (1998). Subjective Well-Being Is Essential To Well-Being. Psychological Inquiry, 9(1), 33-37. Haybron, D. (2011). The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy . Happiness, FAll 2001, 1-10. Retrieved April 26, 2014 from http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/happiness/ Inglehart, R., Foa, R., Peterson, C., & Welzel, C. (2008). Development, Freedom, and Rising Happiness: A Global Perspective (1981–2007). Perspectives On Psychological Science (Wiley-Blackwell), 3(4), 264-285. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6924.2008.00078. Ratzan, S. C. (2009, April). In Pursuit of Health and Happiness with Global Health Diplomacy. Journal of Health Communication. pp. 207-209. doi:10.1080/10810730902852319 Sach, J.(n.d). The Earth Institute-Columbia University. The Earth Institute – Columbia University. Retrieved April 26, 2014, form http://www.earth institute.columbia.edu Tay, L., & Diener, E. (2011). Needs and subjective well-being around the world. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 101(2), 354-365. doi:10.1037/a0023779 Weiner, E. (2008). The geography of bliss: one grump's search for the happiest places in the world. New York, New York: Twelve.

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