22. July 2010 by John Schinnerer.

Happiness is … being healthy, wealthy and wise

Adrian White, Analytic Social Psychologist at the University of Leicester produces first ever global projection of international differences in subjective well-being; the first ever World Map of Happiness.

UK 41st out of 178 countries for happiness.

Happiness is found to be most closely associated with health, followed by wealth and then education.

A University of Leicester psychologist has produced the first ever ‘world map of happiness.’

Adrian White, an analytic social psychologist at the University’s School of Psychology, analysed data published by UNESCO, the CIA, the New Economics Foundation, the WHO, the Veenhoven Database, the Latinbarometer, the Afrobarometer, and the UNHDR, to create a global projection of subjective well-being: the first world map of happiness.

The projection, which is to be published in a psychology journal this September, will be presented at a conference later in the year. Participants in the various studies were asked questions related to happiness and satisfaction with life. The meta-analysis is based on the findings of over 100 different studies around the world, which questioned 80,000 people worldwide. For this study data has also been analysed in relation to health, wealth and access to education.

Whilst collecting data on subjective well-being is not an exact science, the measures used are very reliable in predicting health and welfare outcomes. It can be argued that whilst these measures are not perfect they are the best we have so far, and these are the measures that politicians are talking of using to measure the relative performance of each country.

The researchers have argued that regular testing as a collaboration between academics in different countries would enable us to track changes in happiness, and what events may cause that. For example what effect would a war, or famine, or national success have on a country’s members’ happiness. .

Adrian White said: “The concept of happiness, or satisfaction with life, is currently a major area of research in economics and psychology, most closely associated with new developments in positive psychology. It has also become a feature in the current political discourse in the UK.

“There is increasing political interest in using measures of happiness as a national indicator in conjunction with measures of wealth. A recent BBC survey found that 81% of the population think the Government should focus on making us happier rather than wealthier.

“It is worth remembering that the UK is doing relatively well in this area, coming 41st out of 178 nations.

“Further analysis showed that a nation’s level of happiness was most closely associated with health levels (correlation of .62), followed by wealth (.52), and then provision of education (.51).

“The three predictor variables of health, wealth and education were also very closely associated with each other, illustrating the interdependence of these factors.

“There is a belief that capitalism leads to unhappy people. However, when people are asked if they are happy with their lives, people in countries with good healthcare, a higher GDP per captia, and access to education were much more likely to report being happy.

“We were surprised to see countries in Asia scoring so low, with China 82nd, Japan 90th and India 125th. These are countries that are thought as having a strong sense of collective identity which other researchers have associated with well-being.

“It is also notable that many of the largest countries in terms of population do quite badly. With China 82nd, India 125th and Russia 167th it is interesting to note that larger populations are not associated with happy countries.”

“The frustrations of modern life, and the anxieties of the age, seem to be much less significant compared to the health, financial and educational needs in other parts of the World. The current concern with happiness levels in the UK may well be a case of the ‘worried well’.”

The 20 happiest nations in the World are:

1. Denmark 
2. Switzerland 
3. Austria 
4. Iceland 
5. The Bahamas 
6. Finland 
7. Sweden 
8. Bhutan 
9. Brunei 
10. Canada 
11. Ireland 
12. Luxembourg 
13. Costa Rica 
14. Malta 
15. The Netherlands 
16. Antigua and Barbuda 
17. Malaysia 
18. New Zealand 
19. Norway 
20. The Seychelles

Other notable results include:

23. USA 
35. Germany 
41. UK 
62. France 
82. China 
90. Japan 
125. India 
167. Russia

The three least happy countries were:

176. Democratic Republic of the Congo 
177. Zimbabwe 
178. Burundi

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To view an interactive version of the map, download a .EPS format for publication, or to view extra information visit:http://www.le.ac.uk/pc/aw57/world/sample.html. High Definition Formats are available from University of Leicester press office: email pressoffice@le.ac.uk

Use of the map is subject to the credit line “Adrian White, Analytic Social Psychologist, University of Leicester. The data used to construct the map were extracted from a meta-analysis published by the New Economics Foundation (Marks, N. et al. (2006). The Happy Planet Index. London: New Economics Foundation).”

 From EurekAlert!

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20. July 2010 by John Schinnerer.

I spent my day Sunday creating an uplifting, elevating, and inspiring video which shares a bit that studies have shown about happiness, success and life satisfaction.

I was all pumped up after finishing this video last night. And I showed it to my wife.

After watching it, she turns to me and says, ‘In that case, SHOULDN’T you be happier?!’

Ouch, called on  my own stuff. However, the idea is not an absolute happiness. The idea is relative happiness.

We all start from different places in terms of our genetic set point for happiness. It just so happens that my set point was at a 1 or a 2 on a 10 point scale when I began my journey. So the fact that I’m now at a 6 or 7 is a massive improvement. On top of the fact that we have four children which makes the journey a little more volatile as at times it feels like you are only as happy as your least happy child (line from TV show The Middle). So we all need daily reminders like this in our lives!

Please take a look and let me know your thoughts. Please leave a comment below if it resonates with you.

Cheers,

John

Inspirational, Joyous, Elevating, Positive Video to Act as Great Daily Reminder of What is Truly Important.

The goal of life is happiness. Strive for happiness despite the inevitable vicissitudes of life!

Posted in San Ramon CA, Positive emotions and job search, Executive coach, Optimal Human Functioning, Emotion & productivity, Positive expectations, Gratitude, Curiosity, Emotion & learning, Danville CA, Self-compassion, Alamo CA, Real Men Real Emotion, Pursuing Purpose, Self-help book, Happiness and Income, Men's feelings, De-escalating anger, Awe & Elevation, San Francisco Bay Area, Well-being, Hope, Mindfulness, Staying calm, Tips to help anxiety, Happiness, Guide To Self Beginners Guide To Managing Emotion, Anxiety, Emotional IQ, Dr. John Schinnerer, Creativity, Life coach, Depression, Parenting, Men's emotions, The human brain, Relationships, Resiliency, Alexithymia, Managing Sadness, Emotional mind, Managing Anxiety, Anger Management, Positive Psychology | Print | No Comments »

27. June 2010 by John Schinnerer.

‘I have become comfortably numb.’  - Pink Floyd

‘The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.’  - Henry David Thoreau

‘And I just can’t keep living this way
So starting today, I’m breaking out of this cage
I’m standing up, Imma face my demons
I’m manning up, Imma hold my ground
I’ve had enough, now I’m so fed up
Time to put my life back together right now’  - Eminem

Do you live life by running away from pain? By running away from conflict? By fleeing internal dis-ease?

Or do you live life by seeking meaning? The tireless pursuit of purpose?

Purpose is made possible by positive emotions. Without the feeling of curiosity or interest or passion or love, you may miss meaning.

So here’s a quick tip…turn one negative into a positive - shift negating nervousness into energizing excitement.

From the inside, nervousness is the same as excitement.

Both elevate the heart rate.

Both cause a sensation of butterflies in the stomach.

Both get the blood going more quickly in the body.

The only difference is HOW you interpret the bodily sensations in your mind.

So the next time you begin to get nervous, tell yourself, ‘Alright, I’m getting excited now!’

This will help reframe the situation as one in which you are growing comfortable in your discomfort.

And this is critical. It is essential that you get comfortable in your own discomfort. Because that is HOW you begin to get healthy - psychologically, emotionally, physically, financially.

You must take a risk. You must step outside your comfort zone if you want to succeed.

Pursue your purpose in life. Make a mark on meaning.

This one step will change your life.

So take the first step - tell yourself ‘I am excited now.’ 

And remember, avoiding disease is NOT the same as pursuing health.

Have a great weekend!

John

John Schinnerer, Ph.D.

Positive psychology coach

Author, speaker, trainer, bald white guy

http://drjohnsblog.wordpress.com

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26. May 2010 by John Schinnerer.

This is an small cut from a conversation between Martin Seligman and the Dalai Lama. It took place in Sydney, Australia in December 2009…

‘So people said to me you want to work on happiness? And I said ‘no, not exactly’—happiness has become over the centuries something that has very different meanings for different people and was scientifically unwieldy. And so we break into four different disciplines in positive psychology.

So the first is about happiness, it’s the study of positive emotion and so for example people interested in this look at the most catastrophic thoughts that people say when bad events happen, and how to find a realistic perspective on catastrophic thoughts. So we teach people to argue against the catastrophic and to see good possibilities; so one field is positive emotion.

The second field is meaning. Human beings ineluctably want to be part of something bigger than they are, to belong to and serve something bigger than they are. So we asked people to identify their highest strengths, their highest virtues… humour, fairness, kindness and to learn to use them more particularly in difficult tasks and to use them to be part of something larger than they are.

The third discipline that people in positive psychology work on is positive relationships, how to get along better with people. And so for example there have actually been discoveries that I didn’t know ten years ago in this area in which, if you tell me something in traditional marital therapy, what you do is you teach people to argue better with each other. So you’re trying to change insufferable marriages into being barely tolerable! But in positive psychology we teach people to celebrate together rather when something good happens. If you tell me something enormously good that happened to you the technique not of being destructive about it but of getting you to relive it and to elaborate it. So, the third discipline is positive relationships.

And the fourth discipline is positive accomplishment—mastery, competence, achievement—and so we look for example of high grit, people who never give up, people with high self control and we ask ‘how do you build that?’

So those are the four things that positive psychologists do and work on. If you teach people early in life techniques of positive emotion, of engagement, of meaning, of good relationships, of accomplishment, can you prevent many of the ills of life; depression, anxiety, anger.’

-       Martin Seligman

If you want more on this topic, visit this link:   http://www.abc.net.au/rn/allinthemind/stories/2009/2766891.htm 

Have a wonderful week!

John Schinnerer Ph.D.

Guide To Self, Inc.

Danville CA

If you interested in a twelve week course on the latest in cultivating positive emotions, please send me an email at Info@GuideToSelf.com. I am looking at developing a weekly, web-based coaching course where you can view hour long presentations inthe convenience of your own home for $47 per week. Compared to the rate clients pay me hourly, this is a huge savings.

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26. May 2010 by John Schinnerer.

From EurekAlert!

Fantastic new study on using gratitude to strengthen relationships out of UNC Chapel Hill….

‘Chapel Hill (University of North Carolina), NC—Our busy lives sometimes feel like they are spinning out of control, and we lose track of the little things we can do to add meaning to our lives and make our loved ones feel appreciated. A new article in Personal Relationships points the way to the methods of gratitude we can use to give a boost to our romantic relationships, and help us achieve and maintain satisfaction with our partners.

Humans are interdependent, with people doing things for each other all the time. Simply because a person does something for another does not mean that the emotion of gratitude will be felt. In addition to the possibility of not even noticing the kind gesture, one could have many different reactions to receiving a benefit from someone else, including gratitude, resentment, misunderstood, or indebtedness.

Positive thinking has been shown to have a longstanding constructive effect on our emotional life. Extending these positive emotions and gratitude to our romantic partners can increase the benefit of positive thinking tenfold, say the authors of this new study. Lead author Dr. Sara Algoe says, “Feelings of gratitude and generosity are helpful in solidifying our relationships with people we care about, and benefit to the one giving as well as the one on the receiving end.” The authors propose that the emotion of gratitude is adaptive, and ultimately helps us to find, remind, and bind ourselves to people who seem to care about our welfare.

Events such as one partner planning a celebratory meal when the other partner gets a promotion, taking the children to the zoo so the other partner can have some quiet time, or stopping to pick up the other partner’s favorite coffee drink are each examples of gratuitous behavior that could strengthen romantic relationships, if the recipient feels grateful in response.

The study authors chose to study over sixty-five couples who were already in ongoing, satisfying, and committed relationships. They tracked the day-to-day fluctuations in relationship satisfaction and connection for each member of the relationship. These little, everyday, ups and downs in relationship quality were reliably marked by one person’s feelings of gratitude. The effects on the relationship were noticed even the day after feeling the gratitude was expressed. This research thus suggests that even everyday gratitude serves an important relationship maintenance mechanism in close relationships, acting as a booster shot to the relationship.

The authors of the study claim that this emotional response may be beneficial for relationships that are on the rocks, or in a context where people already have solid and satisfied relationships—a little gratitude may go a long way toward maintaining the connection. By temporarily changing the perspective on the relationship, everyday gratitude may work as a booster shot for ongoing romantic relationships.

However, the authors are quick to warn that the everyday emotional response of indebtedness did not facilitate relationship maintenance. Indebtedness implies a need to repay kind gestures. This may work to help to keep relationships in working order, but will not yield as many benefits or long-term growth in the relationship as an expression of gratitude. Algoe says, “Gratitude triggers a cascade of responses within the person who feels it in that very moment, changing the way the person views the generous benefactor, as well as motivations toward the benefactor. This is especially true when a person shows that they care about the partner’s needs and preferences.”

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This study is published in the June 2010 issue of Personal Relationships. Media wishing to receive a PDF of this article may contact scholarlynews@wiley.com.

Article: “It’s the Little Things: Everyday Gratitude as a Booster Shot for Romantic Relationships.” Sara Algoe, et. al. Personal Relationships.

Dr. Sara Algoe is an Assistant Professor of Research in the Psychology Department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has published multiple articles and book chapters, and has presented widely on the topics of relationships, emotional, social interaction, and gender. She can be reached for questions at algoe@unc.edu.’

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