Human Happiness Psychology 162

Dacher Keltner University of California, Berkeley www.greatergood.berkeley.edu

Syllabus and Requirements

Course involvement
Reflection, narrative

Read
Two empirical books, one from philosophy

Exams
Cumulative, essay, short ID

What is happiness?

A Myriad of Things
Jen Moderation Virtue Eudamonia Justice Financial Well-being WellDemocracy Laughter Being in love Friends Good grades Delicious burrito Reunion with family Giving Hiking in the Sierras Understanding self Standing out from others Fulfilling duties

Why Study Happiness?

(Lyubomirsky, King, & Diener, 2005) Experimental, Cross-sectional, Longitudinal data CrossHealth Happy Marriages: 5 to 1 ratio Happy Children Happy Neighborhoods: Happy individuals more likely to engage in community service It ll be good for our culture

Happiness and Health

Happy nuns at 22 2.5 times less likely to die between 80 and 90 Happy about aging adds 7.5 years to life Happy at 70 adds 20 months to life Happiness associated with
Fewer health symptoms Fewer strokes Fewer fatal accidents Reduced cardiovascular disease Reduced allergic reaction

Happiness at work
Most cheerful college students make $25,000/year compared to least cheerful Happy workers more productive, better job performance Happiness leads to boost in creative thought, problem solving Happiness makes for more integrative negotiators Emotionally intelligent managers have more satisfied teams

Children's well-being 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0

Our culture needs it

Ho ll Sw and e De d en nm a Fin rk lad Sw Spa i tz i n er la No nd rw ay Ita Ire ly l Be an d lg Ge ium rm a Ca ny na Gr da ee Po ce lan Cz d e Fra ch Po nce rtu g Au a l s Hu tria ng ar y US UK

A right to the pursuit of happiness

For economic systems For political systems For ethical systems

Virtue Ethics in Classical Thought

Aristotle and moderation (Nichomachean ethics) (Nichomachean ethics)
Anybody can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy Bring your desires down to your present means. Increase them only when your increased means permit

Eudamonia: Flourishing expression of core passions, strengths The feeling of virtue at the end of life

Hedonism
Happiness is the sum of our sensory pleasures

Utilitarianism: J.S.Mill, Bentham

Happiness is found in actions that promote happiness for the greatest number of people Happiness is an individual right: Thomas Jefferson and The Declaration of Independence on inalienable rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Happiness in the afterlife

JudeoJudeo-Christian Thought To love is to suffer. To avoid suffering, one must not love. But then, one suffers from not loving. Therefore, to love is to suffer; not to love is to suffer; to suffer is to suffer. To be happy is to love. To be happy, then, is to suffer, but suffering makes one unhappy. Therefore, to be happy, one must love or love to suffer or suffer from too much happiness. Happiness = impossible to attain Happiness is found in the release from the body, passion
Tomkins: positive emotion arises in cessation of negative Solomon: Opponent process theory: pleasure the antithesis of pain

Happiness is a set of practices

Giving Social connection Play Exercise Meditation/contemplation Nature Forgiveness

Would you choose the happiness device? (Robert Nozick, 1974)

Buddhism
Nirvana and the eightfold path 1. Life as we live it is suffering, frustration 2. Cause of suffering, clinging, grasping, ignorance 3. Release: nirvana, disengage from grasping 4. 8 fold practice/path: action, thought

Tibetan If you want others to be happy, practice compassion, if you want to be happy practice compassion. His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Confucianism and Jen

(Confucius, Analects, 551 BC 479 BC )

A person of jen, Confucius observes, jen, wishing to establish his own character, also establishes the character of others. A person of jen brings the good things of others to completion and does not bring the bad things of others to completion.
Happiness found in respect and reverence, social harmony (Kitayama)

Taoism and the mysterious way

(Lao Tzu: Tao Te Ching) Ching)
When man is born, he is tender and weak At death he is stiff and hard All things, the grass as well as trees, are tender and subtle while alive When dead, they are withered and dried Therefore the stiff and the hard are companions of death The tender and weak are the companions of life If the tree is stiff, it will break The strong and the great are inferior, while the tender and the weak are superior -happiness not grasped with rational mind and categories -return to nature, not intentional striving -happiness is contradictory, paradoxical (Opposite of a great truth is a great truth) - happiness in natural unfolding of being (Wu-Wei: Not acting) (Wu-

Big Insights
Happiness is the central question in many philosophical discussions Happiness is many things Insight into your
own profile

Predecessors to a Science of Happiness

Darwin: Happy nonhumans? Freud: pleasure principle, catharsis Marx: Alienation Humanistic movements: self-actualization selfMaslow, Rogers

New Science of Happiness

(Positive Psychology: Seligman, Peterson)
Uncharted territory:
Anger over gratitude Fear over compassion Divorce over long-term marriages longDisease over positive health

WellWell-funded Psychological Science: -lifting people from -5 to +1

What lifts people from +7 to +8

Clarifying the Conceptual Domain (Kahneman, 1999)

WellWell-being: Overall my life is going well Traits: I am an enthusiastic person Emotions:
I feel reverence and gratitude

Sensations:
skin

This February sun feels good on my

Canonical Research Traditions

Subjective Well-being WellHappy people, traits Positive Emotion Predicting happiness

Overall Well-being Well(Diener, Myers)

SelfSelf-report: Overall how satisfied are you with your life (Diener)

Measurement: Domains and the nuances of happiness (Carol Ryff)

Autonomy Environmental mastery Personal growth Positive relations with others Purpose in life SelfSelf-acceptance

Other measures
Face and voice

The Jen ratio

The Good brought out in others/The bad brought out in others

Money? Money?

Percent saying being wealthy a primary goal in life 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 0 Year: 1970 Year: 1993

Activities done for more money

Long commutes Leave community for higher paying job Long distance relationships Long hours

Money and Happiness (Myers, Diener)

Wealth of country correlates with happiness r = .67 Wealth correlates with happiness in poor countries Wealth in US correlates .12 with happiness 37% of Forbes wealthiest less happy than average American Between 1957 and 1995 wealth of Americans doubled, happiness unchanged Lottery winners not more happy than accident victims (Brickman)

ess

5 4

3.82 2.96

ed Ha Se - e

3 2 1 0 Lotte y Winne s Cont ols

Pa aplegics

Age: Stormy youth? Mid Life crisis? (Myers & Diener, 1995)
100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 15-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 Series1

1.

2. Mexico 3. Denmark 4. Colombia 5. Ireland 6. Iceland 7. N. Ireland 8. Switzerland 9. Netherlands 10. Canada 11. Austria 12. El Salvador 13. Venezuela 14. Luxembourg 15. U.S. 16. Australia 17. New Zealand 18. Sweden 19. Nigeria 20. Norway 21. Belgium 22. Finland 23. Singapore 24. W. Germany 25. France 26. Argentina 27. Vietnam 28. Chile 29. Indonesia 30. Philippines 31. Taiwan 32. Brazil 33. Spain 34. Israel

Puerto Rico

35. Italy 36. Portugal 37. E. Germany 38. Slovenia 39. Japan 40. Czech Rep 41. S. Africa 42. Croatia 43. Greece 44. Peru 45. China 46. Morocco 47. S. Korea 48. Iran 49. Poland 50. Turkey 51. Bosnia 52. Uganda 53. Algeria 54. Bangladesh 55. Egypt 56. Kyrgyzstan

57. Hungary 58. Slovakia 59. Jordan 60. Estonia 61. Serbia 62. Tanzania 63. Azerbaijan 64. Montenegro 65. India 66. Lithuania 67. Macedonia 68. Pakistan 69. Latvia 70. Albania 71. Bulgaria 72. Belarus 73. Georgia 74. Romania 75. Moldova 76. Russia 77. Armenia 78. Ukraine 79. Zimbabwe

Countries and Happiness

Democracy r = .85 Equality
Inequality kills (Kawachi, Harvard University)

Happiness East, West

East Contradictory Emotion Social engagement Calmness Roles West Positive emotion Disengagement Excitement Emotions

Kitayama Mesquita Tsai Suh

The Big 2: Relationships, Work

Relationship literatures
Friendships extremely powerful Loneliness Marriage effects Social networks

Gender, marriage and happiness (Myers, Diener, 1995)

ing they're very happy 45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Men Women Married Unmarried

Percent

Happy people?

Table 11.5. Positive emotionality, as assessed in the magnitude of the smile shown in a photograph at age 20, 11.5. predicts adult personality, relationship satisfaction, and personal well being over the next 30 years. MeasurePositive MeasurePositive Emotionality Negative Emotionality Age 21 -.37** Age 27 -.21* Age 43 -.21* Age 52 -.27** Affiliation Age 21 .33* Age 43 .18+ Competence Age 27 .19+ Age 43 .20* Age 52 .29** WellWell-being Age 21 .20* 21.20* Age 27 .25* Age 43 .18+ Age 52 .28** Marital Well-being WellAge 52 .20* Source: Source: Harker & Keltner, 2001. Note: ** = p < .01, * = p < .05, + = p < .10.

Traits and Happiness

Correlations Between Twins' Personality Traits Ex tra ve rsi on

Temporal stability: .6 correlation between estimates separated by 6 months to 6 years Heritability of happiness 50% of happiness is temperament
40% is cultivated

0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0

0.51 0.18

0.48 0.2 Monozygotic Dizygotic

Ne ur oti

cis m

Characteristics of Happy People

Optimism Extraversion:
Sociable, outgoing, energetic Heritable

Control Less Neuroticism Spiritual faith

Negative Emotion Bias in field

Negative more prominent in taxonomies Negative assumed to be more evolved, more rooted in physiology Negative assumed to have stronger impact upon adjustment

Positive Emotions Broaden and Build (Fredrickson, 1998, 2001)

Negative emotions narrow thought action Positive emotions
Broaden thought repertoires Build relationships

Positive emotions
More creative word associations More integrative negotiations More overlap with outgroup members Greater similarity to romantic partner Better problem solving Greater donation to strangers

POSITIVE EMOTION: A language

for the 3 to 1 (own life) and 5 to 1 ratios (Marriage)
Resources Enthusiasm Contentment Social Relations Love Desire Compassion Pride Gratitude Awe Distress Reduction Relief Knowledge Interest Amusement Learning Transformation/Insight Approach Goal Satiation

Attachment Reproduction Nurturance Elevated Status Reciprocity/Friendship Leaders

Happiness is unknowable (Dan Gilbert)

Affective Forecasting and mispredicting happiness
Satisfaction

Tenure decisions don t alter happiness as predicted Romantic breakups don t either Ignore psychological immune system

6 5 4 3 2 1 0

5.44

5.27 3.89

"Lucki s"

Actual "Leftovers"

Predicted "Leftovers"

Ignore Psychological Immune System

Amazing reslience of humans in face of stress, trauma
Diener: events 3 months or greater in past minor effect on well-being wellBonanno: for many, traumas have minor effects on well-being, adjustment well-

Immune neglect

Elements of an evolutionary analysis

Gene replication Selection pressures
Natural Sexual
Intrasexual Intersexual

Group

Adaptations Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness

Examples of Adaptations: Efficient solutions to survival, reproduction related problems

Trait Startle response Sweet preference Jealousy Pregnancy sickness Baby s similarity to dad Problem Physical threat Identify nutrition Mate guarding Fetus vulnerability Paternal uncertainty

Origins of Happiness: Are we designed to be happy?

Evolution of our Ultrasociality Hunter gatherers Archeology Primate predecessors

Dimensions to our Ultrasociality

CareCare-taking Flattened Hierarchies Conflict and Reconciliation Coordination Fragile Monogamy

Take care or die

The Amygdala as Preconscious Evaluator

Anatomical description
Input from sensory systems prior to hippocampus

Evidence from animals with amygdala lesions. Evidence from fMRI research
Responds to threat, affective salience of stimuli Shut down during love

Nucleus Accumbens
Rich with dopamine receptors Dopamine: Wanting Opiates: Liking Activated by:
pretty faces food, musice Pleasurable scenes winning money heroin, amphetamines, cocaine The Dopamine, Opiate interplay (DePue)

The Frontal Lobes and Executive Control

Anatomy Patient work: Orbitofrontal Patients fMRI Work Emotion Regulation, appraisal Empathy: mPFC Secondary rewards: social status, touch Emotions in Decision Making

Oxytocin and Trust

Functions of Oxytocin Faithful and frisky voles Oxytocin and love The Neuroeconomics of Trust

Oxytocin and Trust

Oxytocin and Trust
60 % Who Give Away Maximum 50 40 30 20 10 0 Oxytocin Control

Happiness and Hemispheric Asymmetry

The Left Frontal Cortex and Positive Emotion Emotion Studies: approach related positive emotion trait happiness Studies of Buddhist Monks Studies of Meditation

Vagal Tone
Increased positive emotion More resilient response to bereavement More sympathetic prosocial children Trusted more in interactions with strangers

Compassion as A Master Emotion?

Karen Armstrong: Unites religions Martha Nussbaum: A Moral Emotion Kindness a Universal Virtue From Experience to Sentiment to Way of Life Enabler and outcome of many pro-social proexperiences, from art to altruism

Some Definitions
Compassion: Concern to enhance the welfare of another who suffers or is in need Empathy: mirroring or understanding of other s emotion. Mimicry: Imitation of others emotion, behavior Love of Humanity: A belief in the goodness, connectedness of others Pity: Feeling of concern for someone felt to be inferior to self

The War on Compassion

FREUDIAN MIND: The very emphasis of the commandment: Thou shalt not kill, makes it certain that we are descended from an endlessly long chain of generations of murderers, whose love of murder was in their blood as it is perhaps also in ours. Sigmund Freud ours. LIBERTARIANISM: If any civilization is to survive, it is the morality of altruism that men have to reject. Ayn Rand

POLITICAL THEORY: Of mankind we may say in general they are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy of gain. gain. Machiavelli EVOLUTIONARY SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST: The natural world is grossly immoral . Natural selection can honestly be described as a process for maximizing short sighted selfishness George Williams MORAL THEORY: Sympathy as a good natured emotion is always blind and weak. Immanuel weak. Kant

Compassion as Opponent (In Western Thought)

Compassion belittles recipients Compassion entails a loss of freedom Compassion is inherently subjective, unreliable as an ethical principle Compassion as enemy to achievement

Compassion deficits?
US only culture to practice solitary confinement (Gawande) US harshest prison sentences (2 million in prison)

Empathy deficits: Autism Spectrum

Parallel Play and Tim Page Deficits in pretense, teasing, voice modulation, irony, social relationships Egocentrism: Difficulty understanding other independent of self Mind in Eyes (Baron-Cohen) (Baron

Mi d i Eyes core (36 Maximum)

35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

IQ

atched c ntr ls

Asper ers

Darwin: Survival of the Kindest

sympathy, he argued, will have been increased through natural selection; for those communities, which included the greatest number of the most sympathetic members, would flourish best, and rear the greatest number of offspring (Darwin, 1871/2004, p.130).

Emergence of Pro-social Emotion ProReliable Identification Contagious Compassion Shift Costs and Benefits of Giving It Pays to Be Good

It s not in the face

Accurac (chance = 9%

Am us em en t e

100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

C m pa ss io n es i re sm re st G ra tit u de Lo ve D En th us ia In e

Aw

Touch and the spread of goodness

Emotion and Touch

Frequency Choosing Correct Emotion 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

Correct Label Next choice

Co m pa s Gr sion at itu de Lo v An e ge r Fe Di ar sg us t

Contagious Compassion
Neonate distress reactions Emotional, Physiological Convergence in Friends Compassion inspires elevation Gratitude spreads through networks Positive Emotion spreads through communities Collective Joys

Reversing Cost-Benefit Analyses: CostCompassion promotes Common Humanity with those in need
Increase the Gains of Giving
Cooperation activates reward regions of the brain (Rilling et al) Giving produces more enduring pleasure than receiving

Increase sense of common humanity

Expanded circle: Peter Singer Compassion correlates with policy attitudes that enhance young, sick, elderly

Singer: Evolving Circle of Care

Bequeath(ed) humans with a sense of empathy an ability to treat other people s interests as comparable to one s own. Unfortunately, by default we apply it only to a very serious narrow circle of friends and family. People outside that circle were treated as subhuman and can be exploited with impunity. But over history the circle has expanded from village to the clan to the tribe to the nation to other races to other sexes and to other species.

Singer: Evolving Circle of Care

Bequeath(ed) humans with a sense of empathy an ability to treat other people s interests as comparable to one s own. Unfortunately, by default we apply it only to a very serious narrow circle of friends and family. People outside that circle were treated as subhuman and can be exploited with impunity. But over history the circle has expanded from village to the clan to the tribe to the nation to other races to other sexes and to other species.

Compassion promotes sense of similarity to the weak (Oveis et al., 0.4 2009)
0.3 0.2 Beta correlations between trait affect and similarity ratings 0.1 Compassion 0 Low Vulnerability Moderate Vulnerability High Vulnerability Pride

-0.1 -0.2 -0.3 -0.4

Vagal Superstars in a Trust Tournament

50 participants played in internet trust game Give between 1 and 20 raffle tickets to 12 different individuals Viewed individuals for 20 seconds on video Gift tripled in value, value to be returned later

It Pays to Be Good
T = 4.69, p < .01 Trust T = 17.01, p < .001

Vagal Tone T = 4.19, p < .01 (T = 1,59, ns)

Resources Received

Compassion as an Adaptation Shaped by Natural Selection

= in ispensable)

Health of offspring Sexual Selection Social Selection

3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 Fi ci l ros ect Beauty Ki dness Women en

Im

rtance as mate

The Compassionate Brain

Pain, other s pain: Anterior Cingulate Empathy: Prefrontal cortex, Temporal Parietal Junction Maternal Love: Lateral Orbitofrontal cortex Romantic Love: Reduced Amygdala, Ventral Striatum Compassion: Amygdala, Prefrontal cortex

The Compassionate Nervous System

Brain: Amygdala, Anterior cingulate, Pre-frontal Precortex, Lateral Orbitofrontal cortex Vagus Nerve Immune system Oxytocin, Dopamine Genes
Dopamine DR4 predicts self-reported altruism selfAVPR1A (vasopressin) predicts generosity in ultimatum game

Altruism
Compassion is a motive of altruism; distress/anxiety predicts more egoistic action Predicts altruism in children Greater helping, altruism in rural areas

t kly with J .

. tw

Anonymous Seen by others

Hour

0. 0 B Obj tiv m i

Caregiving
Volunteerism = Uncompensated assistance given to those in need 31% of US in any year Guided by compassion, empathic concern CareCare-givers who care 14 hours/week 36% reduced chance of dying in 7 year period (Stephanie Brown)

Emotional disorders as deficits in SelfSelf-compassion

SelfSelf-compassion
See failures kindly See self as part of larger humanity Hold pains in mindful attentiveness

SelfSelf-compassion predicts
Reduced Reduced Reduced Reduced anxiety depression rumination neurotic perfectionism

Cultivation
Meditation Family Narratives Developmental progression Giving

Moral Emotions (Haidt, Greene)

Emotions = Moral Intuitions Chicken example Trolleyology: flip switch vs. push Compassion Disgust Anger Elevation, gratitude Suffering, Harm Purity Autonomy Others goodness

Reflection and Practice

Write down something you re grateful for Expressions of gratitude in everyday life

Gratitude as a Moral Emotion

Feeling of appreciation, reverence for what is given Historical Background
Adam Smith: Social glue of economic culture R. Trivers (1971): Motive of reciprocal altruism amongst non-kin nonWoodruff: Reverence for what is given

Gratitude as guide to good life (Emmons, McCullough)

Barometer
Tracks generosity in relationships

Motive
Clark: thanked participants more likely to help Kurzban (2001): touched participants more likely to cooperate with stranger

Reward
thank you on bill: 11% higher tips Volunteers in adolescent home
Baseline return: 43% Sent thank you notes: 80%l

Gratitude/Appreciation/Reverence
Appreciation for loved ones uniquely relates to social wellwellbeing in relationships Expressing appreciation at work

Increase in r
50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 23%

ucti it
43%

Gratitude Diaries
McCullough: Expressions of gratitude, better health 3 weeks later Lyubomirsky: 1 time a week write down what you re grateful for, boosts in happiness

Forgiveness
Universality of conflict
Sibling conflict Romantic (20% infidelity rates)
Unhappy couples: 1.5 hours of conflict a day

Parent child (even in womb) Step relations Political, tribal

Evolution of reconciliation
De Waal: Chimpanzee Politics
In contrast to dispersal hypothesis: Conflict reconciliation One animal: bowing, exposure of vulnerable parts of body, open-handed gestures, openOther: groom, embrace

Human reconciliation
WWII: Japanese, Germans mortal enemies Rwanda: Hutus, Tutsis: reconciliation commission Biehl reconciliation project Alternative to legal punishment

Everyday reconciliation, forgiveness

Embarrassment as appeasement device
Show display, punished less Blush: punished less Greeting gestures Opening doors

Forgiveness

Forgiveness of transgressions
Definition: Accepting transgression, decline in punitive tendency, decline in avoidance, increase in compassion toward partner Hold grudge vs. release: decline in fight of flight physiology Tsang, McCullough, & Fincham, 2006: couples who forgive happier 9 weeks later

Narrative reflection
Write about an experience of awe, when you felt you were in the presence of something greater than the self

Beauty, Awe, and the Sacred

A Family of Awe Experiences Beauty Awe Reverence Sacred

John Muir
June 5 A magnificent section of the Merced Valley at what is called Horseshoe Bend came full in sight --a glorious wilderness that seemed to be calling with a thousand songful voices. Bold, downdownsweeping slopes, feathered with pines and clumps of manzanita with sunny open spaces between then, make up most of the foreground, the middle and background present fold beyond fold of finely modeled hills and ridges rising into mountain-like masses in the distance The whole mountainlandscape showed design, like man s noblest sculptures. How wonderful the power of its beauty! Gazing awestricken, I might have left everything for it. Beauty beyond thought everywhere, beneath, above, made and being made forever. The next day Muir s meandering immersion in the boundless beauty of the Sierras yielded the following: June 6 We are now in the mountains and they are in us, kindling enthusiasm, making every nerve quiver, filling every pore and cell of us. Our flesh-and-bone tabernacle seems transparent as flesh-andglass to the beauty about us, as if truly an inseparable part of it, thrilling with the air and trees, streams, and rocks, in the waves of the sun a part of all nature, neither old nor young, sick nor well, but immortal How glorious a conversion, so complete and wholesome it is, scarce a memory enough of the old bondage days left as a standpoint to view it from.

Emerson
In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life-- no disgrace, no life-calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground, my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space, all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eyeball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or parcel of God. The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and accidental; to be brothers, to be acquaintances, master or servant, is then a trifle and a disturbance. I am the lover of uncontained and immortal beauty. ( Nature (1836/1982), p.39).

Darwin in the forest

It creates a feeling of wonder that so much beauty should be apparently created for so little purpose. The forest was a temple filled with varied productions of the God or Nature

A Family of Awe experiences

Exper. w/ God Leader Elevation Tornado Cathedral Music Aesthetics Vast X X Accom X X X X X X X Threat Beauty Virtuey X X X Supernatural X

X X X

X X X X ? ?

Beauty
Golden ratios
A + B is to A as A is to B

Prototypical faces

Wilson: Biophilia (love of nature)

Preferences for resource rich environments

The benefits of Green

Frances Kuo (2001)
In green regions of Chicago Housing project, 48% fewer property crimes, 56% fewer violent crimes Girls with green views score higher on self-discipline, selfdelay of gratification, impulse control, concentration ADHD symptoms drop after walking in park compared to quiet urban area In regions of Chicago project with more trees and grass, neighbors felt greater community, knew each other, safer

Green and Health

Ulrich, 1991
Green scenes de-activation heart rate, blood depressure Heart surgery patients exposed to green scenes, need less strong pain medications

Natyasastra (3rd- 5th centuries A.D.) (3rdAesthetic emotion (Rasa emotion: Without Ego)
SthayiSthayi-bhava Rasa sexual passion love amusement amusement sorrow compassion anger anger fear terror perseverance, dynamic energy heroic disgust horror wonder awesome, wonder serenity calm

A Brief History of Awe

Early conversion experiences, being in presence of God Burke s revolution (1757): secular awe
Patterns light, dark Ox vs. cow Not smells Power, obscurity

Weber: political awe Emerson: Transcendent self

An Evolutionary story
Hierarchical species Peaceful hierarchies require respect Attaching to powerful figures Subordinate self interest for hierarchy

A mammalian display
Table 1: Darwin s observations of emotions related to awe _____________________________________________________________________ Admiration eyes opened, eyebrows raised, eyes bright, smile, Astonishment eyes open, mouth open, eyebrows raised, hands placed over mouth Devotion (reverence) face upwards, eyelids upturned, fainting, pupils upwards and inwards, humbling kneeling posture, hands upturned _____________________________________________________________________

Awe and the Sacred

Awe promotes expanded self Awe and vagal response Awe and goosebumps
Per ent ge of people reporting goo ebump 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Awe Com ssion Gr itude Love

The individual prone to awe

High vagal tone predicts increased spiritual experience Prone to chills at music Open to experience: art, culture Decorates room with books, art, weird sayings

Reverence (Woodruff)
Experiences of awe trigger common humanity, small self and feeling of reverence, respect Managers, judges who hand out decisions with respect judged to be more fair Young men should be filial when at home and respectful to their elders when away from home. They should be earnest and faithful. They should love all extensively and be intimate with men of humanity. When they have any energy to spare after the performance of moral duties, they should use it to study literature and the arts.

A New Science of Religiosity

William James: Varieties of Religious Experience Catholicism, Judaism: more social Protestantism: experiential

Spirituality (the sacred)

Experience of the sacred
Beyond self, unites, design, higher purpose, small self, common substance/humanity, self located in broader pattern/force

Spirituality and health

Myers: Spiritually oriented report higher levels of happiness Smith, McCullough, 2003: Spiritually oriented report less depression
145 studies, 98,000 participants R = -.096, greater during stress

Putnam: greater spirituality greater volunteerism, altruism McCullough et al. (2000)

Meta analysis 42 studies: religious 29% more likely to be alive at any time point

McCullough et al., 2009

Terman longitudinal study: 1523 high IQ people Three curves
Always religious: Extraverts, neurotics Always non religious Become more religious: Agreeable Religious women live longer, due to social commitments, health behaviors

Evolutionary story
David Sloan Wilson Universal Same form across cultures Unites group against other groups

The Critique of Religion

Sam Harris: divides people, causes conflict, harmful to women Richard Dawkins: faith in creationism against scientific reason Christopher Hitchens: Against progress, freedom, development

An Emotion Perspective: Summing up

3 to 1 well-being ratio well5 to 1 healthy romance ratio Generativity later in life Compassion, agape, empathy Gratitude, forgiveness, appreciation Awe, beauty, reverence, sacred

Thought Patterns and Happiness: Intellectual Precursors

Disciplining the Mind: Wisdom, judgment in Buddhism Cognitive revolution in understanding disorders
Helplessness, hopelessness and depression Cognitive tendencies and anxiety Catastrophizing

Resilience in response to disease (Taylor, 1984) Resilience in response to trauma (Bonanno, 2009) Resilience in response to physical, emotional abuse as child (Cicchetti) Stress: mind turns stress into challenges or threats

Core Assumptions
Thought patterns shape well-being wellEmpirical literature: Emotion

Can cultivate new patterns of thought

From thoughts to well-being wellStop and smell the roses Grateful The sunny side of life Optimism The little engine that could Adaptive coping The world is my oyster Approach I m king of the world Illusions

The Grateful Disposition (McCullough et al., 2002)

I have so much in life to be thankful for If I had to list everything I m thankful for, it would be a very long list When I look at the world, I don t see much to be thankful for I am grateful to a wide variety of people As I get older I find myself better able to appreciate the people, events, and situations that have been part of my life history Long amounts of time can go by before I feel grateful to someone or something

Correlates of being grateful

Grateful disposition
Life satisfaction Happiness Optimism Anxiety Depression Peer rate volunteerism Envy Possessiveness .53*** .50*** .51** -.20* -.30** .19* -.17** -.34**

Styles of Thinking: OPTIMISM

Definition: Expectations about the future that it will be socially desirable, good, pleasurable Measures: In uncertain times, I usually expect the best If something can go wrong for me it will

Optimism and Happiness

Optimistic people report higher levels of overall wellwellbeing and happiness Optimistic people report higher levels of positive emotion Optimistic people have higher resting vagal tone Optimism measured in 1945 (in men) predicts better reports of health 35 years later Optimism rated in coded acceptance speeches in 20th century presidential candidates predicted the victor 18 of 22 times Writing about best self: Greater Happiness, health

Adaptive Coping, control, agency

Adaptive coping associated with positive responses to traumas such as bereavement Measurement: I concentrate my efforts on doing something about it I do what has to be done one step at a time I try to come up with a strategy about what to do I make a plan of action I try to get advice from someone about what to do

The world is my oyster: Approach vs. Inhibition (Carver, White, 1994)

Inhibition (punishment sensitivity)
I worry about making mistakes Criticism, scolding hurt me

Approach (reward sensitivity, drive, fun)

(Dopamine, Nucleus Accumbens) When I want something, I go after it I crave excitement I do things for no other reason than fun When I m doing well at something, I love to keep at it

Approach and Inhibition

Optimism Negative affect Positive Affect Happiness BIS -.22* .42** -.06 REWARD .08 .05 .28** .24**

Explanatory Style
Success: external, transient, specific: ( This promotion was due to a good break ) Failure: Internal, stable, global ( My difficulties at work are due to character flaws

Truth or Bias in self insight? Positive Illusions and Well-being: WellTaylor & Brown, 1985
Common assumption: truthful assessment of self hallmark of psychological adjustment
Humanistic psychology therapy

The Big Three: Optimism, control, selfselfenhancement The mechanisms: Positive moods, motivation, positive relations The outcome: Well-being Well-

Unrealistic optimism
Happier people assume good events more likely to happen to them than average person, bad events less likely

Unrealistic Optimism (Weinstein, 1980)

COMPARATIVE JUDGMENT OF LIFE EVENT OWN VERSUS OTHERS CHANCES Like post graduation job 50.2 Own your own home 40.3 Live past 80 11.3 Have a mentally gifted child 6.2 Have drinking problem -58.3 Attempt suicide -55.9 Divorce after a few years of marriage -48.7 Heart attach before age 40 -38.4 Become sterile -31.2 Develop gum problems -12.2

Illusion of Control
Control random events Langner
Sell back lottery ticket given: 1.96 Sell back chose lottery ticket: 9.00

Self enhancement
Assume we have more of good traits, less of bad traits People in hospital for car accidents estimate they re better drivers

Linkages to well-being wellIllusions enhance goal pursuit Illusions enhance positive emotions Illusions enhance relations

Critiques
Pathological bias
Narcissists, bipolars Overconfident undergrads often don t study as much

Culture
West more biased in self assessments, happiness more tied to such illusions

Toxic Thoughts
Distrust Culture of fear Materialism Self Interest is path to happiness HyperHyper-competitiveness Others are out to get us Keep up with Joneses Maximize choice, pleasure Perfectionism

Toxic Thoughts: Distrust

Cynicism and the Decline of Trust (Paul Zak) High trust cultures less crime, inequality For every 15% rise in trust, a rise in $430
Trust in fellow 70 60 50 40 30 20 10

h a o u n th a

A fr i

rw a

In d ia

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U S

N o

C h

e x

h il

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il

in a e r m a n T a iw a n

ip p in e

Culture of Fear (Glassner)

Teen killers rather than teen health
Teen violence down 30%

Catholic priest pedophiles Kidnapped children Violence Road rage rather than teen drunk driving

Materialism: Basic Needs

1970 2nd car 20 2nd TV 3 More than 1 phone 2 Dishwasher 8 1990 59 45 78 44

Some facts
Richest Poorest (20%) Private consumption 86% 1.3% Meat, Fish 45% 5% Total energy 58% 4% Telephone lines 74% 1.5% Paper 84% 1.1% Vehicles 87% 1% Source: World Bank Development Indicators Child sees 300 ads a day Credit card debt
$972 billion in America Average outstanding balance: 10,679

Global Priority $ U.S. Billions Cosmetics in the United States 8 Ice cream in Europe 11 Perfumes in Europe and the United States 12 Pet foods in Europe and the United States 17 Business entertainment in Japan 35 Cigarettes in Europe 50 Alcoholic drinks in Europe 105 Narcotics drugs in the world 400 Military spending in the world 780 Global Priority$U.S. Billions Basic education for all 6 Water and sanitation for all 9 Reproductive health for all women 12 Basic health and nutrition 13 (Source: The state of human development, United Nations Human development, Development Report 1998, Chapter 1, p.37)

Toxic Thought: Materialism Happiness found in consumption

No study finds associations between material gain and increased well-being wellMaterialistic values in college predict less happiness The irony of materialistic actions
commuting disrupts pleasure

An Intellectual Legacy of Cynicism

The very emphasis of the commandment: Thou shalt not kill, makes it certain that we are descended from an endlessly long chain of generations of murderers, whose love of murder was in their blood as it is perhaps also in ours. Sigmund Freud ours. If any civilization is to survive, it is the morality of altruism that men have to reject. Ayn Rand

Of mankind we may say in general they are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy of gain. gain. Machiavelli The natural world is grossly immoral . Natural section can honestly be described as a process for maiximizing short sighted selfishness George Williams

Toxic thought: Happiness found in Unbridled pursuit of Self-Interest SelfAyn Rand: To act on behalf of another person is treason Rilling 2002
Cooperation lights up Ventral Caudate
. om mo ning Chang in happin . . . .

- . - . - . - .

Giv t

rs

nd n s lf

Dunn et al. (2008)

Average American: spends 1714 on self, 146 giving

Toxic Thoughts: Cynicism (Others are competitive, adversarial)

Be avior in ltimat m game
Percentage making offer

People are selfish, competitive, aggressive: Homo Economicus Self-fulfilling prophecies Selfof competition Hostile Attribution Bias (Ken Dodge) Blame in couples

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 40--50% < 40%

Prisoner s Dilemma Game

Other Coop Comp Self Coop 3, 3 Comp 4, 1 1, 4 2, 2

It pays to cooperate
Wall Street vs. Community: threefold increase in competition Rand: Cooperators do better Kelley, Stahelski, 1970
Competitors make others competitive, see world, erroneously, as full of competitors Cooperators

Toxic Thoughts: Perfectionism

Parents who praise for being perfect rather than effort, hard work (Dweck) Priming the ideal self leads to dejection

Maximizing vs. Satisficing (Barry Schwartz)

Whenever I m faced with a choice, I try to imagine what other possibilities are, even ones that aren t present. When I am in the car listening to music, I often check other stations to see if something better is playing, even if I m satisfied with what I m listening to. I often find it difficult to shop for a gift for a friend Renting videos is really difficult. I m always struggling to pick the best one. I m a big fan of lists that attempt to rank things. I find writing is very difficult. It s so hard to get the words just right. No matter what I do, I have the highest standards for myself.

Maximizers
More regret after purchase Less satisfaction from success Less satisfied with life Less optimistic More depressed

Keeping up with the Jonses

Upward social comparisons lead to dissatisfaction, dejection Very happy people rarely compare themselves to others (Lyubomirsky)

Rumination (Nolen-Hoeksema) (NolenDwell on problems, overthink Measured by: I go to my room alone and think about my feelings I isolate myself and think about the reasons I m feeling this way Related to:
gender differences in depression ruminative style leads to depression, transforms negative moods into enduring dysphoric states rumination leads to less optimism, reduced energy, less motivation, worsened concentration, depressive emotion and though

Myths of individualism and wisdom of the ages

We adhere to individualist credo (we re separate, find truth on own) As people age, the thing the seek the most is loving friends, family; connection (Carstensen)

Losing our ultrasociality?

Divorce rate high (40% to 50%) Marital satisfaction has declined in past 30 years (Myers) Rise in loneliness (Caccioppo) Americans have lost on average 1 close friend in the past 20 years Average American child spends more time watching TV than with parents

A Need to Belong: Happiness is found between

Feral children, solitary confinement Psychopathology, violence related to loneliness Social support and immune system
Cohen: more friends, fewer colds Kiecolt-Glaser: stronger marriages, better immune Kiecoltsystems

Intimate relationship and happiness (Happiness is Between)

Myers, Diener

One friend rule for children with difficulties

Costs of Social Exclusion

Social Exclusion = Physical pain Being rejected
Increases feelings of pain Reduces performance on IQ test Activation of the anterior cingulate in ball tossing paradigm (Williams et al., 2003) Many kids who bully, school shooters are socially excluded

The Invisible Hand of Family: Attachment Theory (Bowlby)

Three Systems
caregiving: for offspring Reproductive: desire Attachment: pairbonding

Working Models: Ideas about caregivers Attachment styles

Secure: loving, warm, trusting Anxious: worried, intrusive
More likely to have experienced death of parent, divorce, abuse

Avoidant: dismissive, cold

Secure style
I find it easy to get comfortable with others and am comfortable depending on them and having them depend on me. I don t often worry about being abandoned or about others getting too close to me

Avoidant/Dismissive
I am somewhat uncomfortable being close. I find it difficult to trust completely, difficult to allow myself to depend on anyone. I am nervous when anyone gets close, and often, romantic partners want me to be more intimate than I feel comfortable being.

Anxious style
I find that others are reluctant to get as close as I would like. I often worry that my partner doesn t really love me or won t stay with me. I want to merge completely with another person, and this desire sometimes scares people away

The Attachment Perspective

The healthy lives of securely attached
Report greater life satisfaction More likely to remain in stable relations Higher positive emotions on daily basis More likely to forgive More likely to be optimistic More likely to offer social support to romantic partner

The problems of anxiously attached partners

More prone to depression, anxiety More prone to drug abuse More prone to eating disorders

Within Families: Principle of Diversification (Sulloway, Born to Rebel) Rebel)

Sibling conflict omnipresent, often violent Birth order = power structure
First borns: Extraverted, conscientious Latter Borns: Agreeable, Open to Experience Studies of 28 scientific revolutions: Latter borns more likely to accept revolutionary scientific ideas

Tesser: Highly successful parents less close to children who go into careers close to their own

Romantic Pair Bond

Human Universal: A basic relationship 9090-95% of Americans marry Marriage a universal
Although changed in forms functions Economic exchange to love based Pairbonding, serial monogamy

Not faring well

LOVE

DESIRE

HAPPY

Z.O. Par Z.O. Par Z.O. Par _______________________________________

Affiliation cues SelfSelf-report Partner Estimate Sexual Cues SelfSelf-report Partner Estimate .26* .25* .28* .21* .06 .17 -.11 .05 .17 .10 .04 .00

-.01 -.01

-.19 -.17

.30* .31*

.34** .34**

-.03 -.04

-23* -.07

_______________________________________

Affiliation Cues Contr. for Sexual Cues

Sexual Cues Contr. for

Affiliation Cues __________________________________________________ Oxytocin Reactivity .50** .11 Oxytocin Recovery .15 .12 __________________________________________________

Demographic perspective
Happy romantic partnerships when
Marry at a later age SES Neuroticism

The Dynamic Interaction Style Perspective

Naturalistic methods The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse -Contempt -Criticism -Stonewalling -Defensiveness

A Need for Many kinds of Love

Compassionate care-giving careproduces secure attachments in children Compassion for partner s weaknesses, needs predicts longlong-term satisfaction Compassionate sacrifice (to enhance partner s welfare) predicts stable marriages; anxious sacrifices (to avoid problems) predicts dissatisfaction
12 10 8 6 4 2 0
Parent-Child exual Desire S Romantic For Humanity 2 10 1 0 4 4 10 1 2 5 6 9 1 3 6 8 8 1 4 7 10 7 1 5 7 12 6 1 5 8 14 5 7 6 8 16 4 8 7 9 18 5 9 8 9 2 4 66 8 10 12 14 16 9.1 20 25 10 18 20 9 25 7 9 10 9.2 Age 30 8 8 9 9.3 35 9 7 8 9.4 40 9.1 6 7 9.5 45 9.2 5 6 9.6 50 9.3 4 5 9.7 60 9.4 3 6 9.8 70 9.5 3 7 9.9 80 9.6 2 8 10 90 9.7 2 9 10

Parent-Child Sexual Desire Romantic For Humanity

Experience of Love

30 35 40 45 50 60 70 80 90

Beyond 15%: Toward the magical 5 to 1 ratio of positive to negative

Humor: playful nicknames, laughter and escapes from negative affect cascades, playful teasing Gratitude: Appreciation exercises boost happiness of couples Loving Kindness: interventions boost happiness of couples (Neff) Forgiveness: letting go of grudges calms stress-related physiology; stressforgiveness interventions boost well-being wellDisclosure: Suppressing emotion elevates stress-related physiology of stressothers Idealization (Sandra Murray)

Friendship
Evolutionary theory: Reciprocal altruism (Trivers, 1971) cooperation with non-kin nonCooperate in childrearing, defense, resource gathering

Alliance formation as a counter to alpha females, males (de Waal) Sexual selection theory: peer networks of potential reproductive partners Tend and befriend (Taylor, 2002)
Friendship and the dopamine, oxytocin interplay (dePue)
Dopamine accompanies approach (e.g., smiling, disclosure) Oxytocin rewards closeness Taylor: Oxytocin counteracts stress

Feeling social support

Table 1: Measure of Social Support (From Zimet, Dalhem, Zimet, & Farley, 1988). There is a special person who is around when I am in need. There is a special person with whom I can share my joys and sorrows. My family really tries to help me. I get the emotional help and support I need from my family. I have a special person who is a real source of comfort for me. My friends really try to help me. I can count on my friends when things go wrong. I can talk about my problems with my family. I have friends with whom I can share my joys and sorrows. There is a special person in my life who cares about my feelings. My family is willing to help me make decisions. I can talk about my problems with my friends.

Benefits of strong social support

Alameda County: Those who report weak social support 1.9 to 3.1 times more likely to have died nine years later (Berkman & Syme, 1979) Strong social support live longer (Adler, 2001) Strong support report greater happiness Strong support lower levels of cortisol (Kiecolt-Glaser) (KiecoltGive stressful speech with supportive member in audience, lower blood pressure Spiegel et al., 1989: women with breast cancer who are in supportive group therapy better life expectancy (37 vs. 18 months)

The Body, Stress, and Health

The legend of Marie Antoinette The Embodied Mind
pencil in mouth experiment and happiness Furrowed eyebrows and injustice Lifting up makes people use more uplifting metaphors Furrow brows, tighten lips: cardiovascular arousal

The Core Meaning of Stress

When demands exceed capacities, skills, coping abilities
Connection to coping, agency, efficacy, control

Stress can have many forms

Life events: abuse, divorce, disease, economic hardship Daily hassles: commuting, dishes, parking tickets Positive events: weddings, promotions, new job

Control (learned helplessness) Threats to social identity, connection (Dickerson & Kemeny, 2004) Threat mentality vs. challenge (Blascovich, Mendes) Prevention vs. promotion focus (Higgins)

The Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal (HPA) axis (Sapolsky)

Chronic stress and:
Increased feelings of vulnerability Stress, anxiety, fear, nervousness Vigilance to threats immune system compromise, ulcers, damage to DNA, damage to brain cells, shortened lives in response to disease

Chronic stress and cortisol (Adler, Sapolsky)

Ulcers Heart disease Increased rate of cancer spread Cell death in hippocampus Memory loss Shortened telomeres, parts of DNA that age (aged by 10 years): Eppel Compromised intellectual functioning

SES, stress and health (Adler et al., 2001)

Increased prevalence of depression, anxiety disorders Low birth weight Asthma Diabetes Obesity High blood pressure Diabetes Cardiovascular disease Pain: bad back, stomach Respiratory illness Quicker demise in responding to different diseases

The materialist/situationist account

Lower SES: resource impoverished environments
Fewer parks Fewer health food stores Less nature Increased pollution, pesticides Greater noise and sleep disruption Fewer health care centers Greater levels of violence, threat

Class and rank

Lower subjective rank triggers cortisol in baboons (Sapolsky) which inhibits physical development, more likely to have disease Lower rank in humans associated with increased threat, anxiety, vigilance, SANS activation (Keltner et al. 2003) British civil servants: higher ranked administrators 1.6 times less likely to die in 10 month period (Marmot et al., 1984) Each move up the class ladder, less likely to die of cardiovascular disease, and less vulnerable to all manner of ailments, holding constant access to care

Human genetics, set points, and change and cultivation

ProPro-social and stress branches of nervous system, emotional life Heritability co-efficients and happiness coTwin studies: Extraversion .5 identical twins, .2 fraternal Dopamine, oxytocin polymorphisms Dopamine DR4 predicts self-reported altruism selfAVPR1A (vasopressin) predicts generosity in ultimatum game

The equation (Lyubomirsky)

50% genetics 10% environment 40% voluntary activity

The meaning of cultivation

Skill cultivation (Lyubomirsky) Train your mind Train your body (breathing, posture, facial tension) Train the eye (look at partner in new light) Change your language Change your frame, metaphor Modest acts: gratitude, appreciation Change your physical environment Change your culture Change your nervous system

Tibetan Buddhist Meditation (Alan Wallace: Genuine Happiness) Happiness)

Attention
Breathing
Settle into relaxed posture Focus attention in between what you re looking at and eyes Breathe 21 times Attend to movements of lungs

Mindfulness
Of body
Imagine attention as curved surface Move this attention up and down body Be mindful of sensations throughout body

Loving Kindness
Bring to mind a person who is dear to you Imagine person s sufferings, yearnings Wish for person s happiness Extend to another person, broadening circle of care

Hatha Yoga (Hinduism)

18 million practitioners in US
15th century: Swatmarama The ten traditional yamas are: Ahimsa: Ahimsa: Nonviolence. Abstinence from injury or harm to any living creature in thought, word, or deed. This is the "main" yama. The other nine are there in support of its accomplishment. Satya: Satya: Truthfulness in word and thought (in conformity with the facts). Asteya: Asteya: No stealing, no coveting, no entering into debt. Brahmacharya: Brahmacharya: Divine conduct, continence, celibate when single, faithful when married. Kshama: Patience, releasing time, functioning in the now. Dhriti: Steadfastness, overcoming non-perseverance, fear, and indecision; seeing each task nonthrough to completion. Daya: Daya: Compassion; conquering callous, cruel and insensitive feelings toward all beings. Arjava: Honesty, straightforwardness, renouncing deception and wrongdoing. Mitahara: Moderate appetite, neither eating too much nor too little; nor consuming
Asanas (postures) Purification procedures Pranayama (breathing) meditation

Zazen (zen) meditation

Sitting Mindful breathing Walking meditations Observing still mind, being present Koans (100 or so sayings, 12th, 13th century)
If you meet the Buddha, kill him. Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand? What is the Buddha? Three pounds of flax. What is the Buddha? Dried Dung.

Mindfulness based stress reduction program (Jon Kabat-Zinn) KabatBody scan

Imagine eating a raisin Feel sensations, relaxation in different parts of body

Sitting exercises Hatha Yoga

Evidence and applications

Applied in schools, prisons, workplace Reduction in pain for people with chronic disease 4 times quicker healing rate for people with Psoriasis Reductions in anxiety, depression (Teasdale, Williams, MBSR cognitive therapy) Increased sense of hardiness, coherence

Contemplation

(Flinders, Oman: Eight Point Program of Passage Meditation)

Passage contemplation
Favorite passage Mantra Put others first Focus attention Train senses Slow down alienation, cynicism rumination, toxic thought narcissism distraction sensory overload overhurried

Reflection
Write down a favorite passage, saying, concept you return to

A Person of Humanity, wishing to establish his own character, also establishes the character of others (Confucius) The great secret of morals is love, or a going out of our own nature, and an identification of ourselves with the beautiful which exists in thought, action or person, not our own. A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and of many others; the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own. The great instrument of moral good is the imagination (She ey)

At the most fundamental level our nature is compassionate, and that cooperation, not conflict, lies at the heart of the basic principles that govern our human existence. existence. His Holiness, the Dalai Lama the social instincts lead an animal to take pleasure in the society of his fellows, to feel a certain amount of sympathy with them, and to perform various services for them the greater strength of the social or maternal instincts than that of any other instinct or motive; for they are performed too instantaneously for reflection, or for pleasure or even misery might be felt. In a timid man, on the other hand, the instinct of self-preservation selfmight be so strong, Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man

Research on contemplation
Oman
Reductions in stress 19 weeks later Increases in efficacy

Meditation: Core principles

Core Principles
Breathing Awareness of sensations Awareness of mind Loving Kindness reduced cariovascular arousal, stimulation of vagus nerve Frontal control of limbic system, amygdala Emergence of narrative, meta cognition shift in asymmetry, challenge to cynicism, basis of gratitude, forgiveness

Empirical Evidence
Monks Kabat-Zinn, Davidson (2004): software engineers KabatTraining in MBSR led to
Enhanced immune response to flu virus Shifts in resting frontal lobe asymmetry

Fredrickson, 2008: boosts in happiness over 2 months mindful people happier, more optimistic

Exam
Exam Psychology 162 You will have 1.5 hours for the exam. The exam will require that you do one long essay on a broader topic in the class, and 10 short IDs (about 2-3 paragraphs on 2each). Grading will prioritize: 1) clarity of your definitions; 2) the sharpness and relevance of your empirical examples; 3) the coherence and originality of your analysis and thought.; 4) the relating of your ideas to big questions in the class (does money buy you happiness?) Example Essay Questions Have we evolved to be happy? Make an evolutionary case for the origins of human happiness. Rely on the empirical studies of what is known about the central determinants of happiness, and evolutionary studies of our ultrasociality? Summarize the evidence related to how wealth or SES influences happiness and physical health? What paradox do you encounter? And how might you synthesize these findings. Review the physiological underpinnings of stress. What is the core meaning of stress? Review how two toxic thought patterns might elevate levels of stress and harm physical health. For your happiness, is it wise to view the self accurately, or through the lens of different illusions?

Key Terms Cortisol cortex Rumination HPA axis Monogamy Oxytocin Nuculeus Accumbens Duchenne Smile Antiphonal laughter Biophilia Appeasement Agency

Optimism Satisficing Gratitude Empathy Sacred

Jen Awe Trust

Orbitofrontal Amygdala Fragile Vulnerable offspring

Forgiveness Illusion of control

Narrative
Freud: dream analysis, in depth narrative, and catharsis (insight) Literary Studies (Harold Bloom): Shakespeare invented awareness of self, narrated identity Jerome Bruner, 1986: Meaning Making mind
Two modalities of thought:
Scientific, rationale, linear Narrative, stories

Scripts (Tomkins, Schank)

Knowledge is represented in story like structures
Going to restaurant, first date, wedding, adolescence

Possible selves (Hazel Markus)

Self as Narrative (McAdams, 2008)

Self as narrative Tell to integrate conflicts, goals
E.g., between self-interest, compassion selfJustice versus conventionality Duty and freedom Individual and society

Often involve redemption, connection to those who suffer Contents

Settings Characters Plot twists, turns Themes Vivid images, events

Reflection
If your life is a novel, what is the book jacket version of your story?

Sources of Narratives: Parents

Parents
Bedtime stories, dinnertime conversations, tales from work Narratives about our place in the world
Capps and Agorophobia
Studied dinnertime conversations of family of mom with agroophobia Agorophobia passed from mom to child through narratives of outside world, and lack of agency and threat there

Narratives about morality (Dunn, Baumrind)

Inductive, authoritarian, laissez faire reasoning) Inductive parenting tells stories about harm, conflict Inductive parenting predicts better social adjustment, well-being, wellincreased empathy, moral development (Dunn)

Sources of Narratives: In rituals

Scheff: social rituals embody narratives
Weddings, funerals, proms, Thanksgiving, liturgies

Eating dinner together (Carter, 2010)

Children have fewer depressive symptoms, less drug abuse, better grades, more emotionally stable, less prone to obesity (Pollan) High points, low points; thorns and roses

Source of Narratives: Cultural artifacts

Tsai (2007)
US high excitement culture, East Asia veers toward valuing calm, contentedness US dangerous recreational practices, happiness defined in terms of excitement, more likely to be addicted to exciting drugs US childrens books: Protagonists are highly excited (Dr. Seuss, Where the Wild Things Are, Huck Finn) US ads: more excited smiles

Narratives in Music
Semantics and music
Susan Langer: Form and Feeling Music has structure of great narratives Juslin: Acoustic properties of music (amplitude, rise time, pitch, speed) same as acoustics of basic vocalizations for emotions like anger (justice), sadness (loss), joy

Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003

Extraverts prefer highly energetic, upbeat music (country, hip hop, electronica) Open to experience prefer reflective, complex music (alternative, jazz)

Markus & Snibbe, 2006

Upper SES prefer music about individual freedoms, identity (alternative rock) Lower SES prefer music that profiles struggles of life

Narratives in other art forms

Fiction: Oatley
Fiction simulates our own experience in empathic leap of imagination

Dance: Hejmadi, Rozin, Davidson

Natyshastra: movements of dance communicate emotion in narrative

Art
Color and semantics

Pennebaker s writing paradigm

Initial interest in power of confession Write about strongest emotions of trauma, or the facts of the event Traumas studied: bereavement, divorce, holocaust survivors, 9-11 victims 9Effects: increased well-being, enhanced wellimmune function, reduced visits to health center, reductions in anxiety, depression

Other narrative findings

Markus: more possible selves, less likely experiences of depression McAdams (2008): more vivid and engaging narratives predict increased wellwell-being as people age Laura King

Functions of Narrative
Insight, what does it do? 1. Reduced suppression Gross, John Suppression leads to Greater SANS activity Frustration, SANS activity in others Memory deficits Reduced satisfaction 2. Catharsis: insight Expressing negative feelings: coherence a. more negative words than positive words b. evolved from fewer to more cognitive words c. increased psychological coherence: fewer unique words d. increased acceptance, organization 3. Reduced intentional object: reduces free floating anxiety, distress 4. Reduces uncertainty, increases control (Wilson & Gilbert, 2008) 5. Social sharing (Rime) Social support 6. The pleasures of aesthetic distance (Aristotle: Catharsis)

Reflection on play: Your play history, narrative (Brown, 2009)

Think back to earliest experiences of play. What were they?

Are you as free as you d like to play today?

What is Play?
Peek a boo, rough and tumble, games, sociodramatic play, word play, imitations, interspecies play Criteria (Stuart Brown, 2009)
Apparently purposeless Voluntary Inherent attraction Freedom from time Diminished consciousness of self Improvisational Desire to continue

Play: The safe arena thesis

A. Boundaries:
Rough and Tumble Play: learn boundaries between pleasure, pain, harm Marc Bekoff: coyotes in rough and tumble learn how not to bite, learn hierarchies Flirtation: learn boundary between friend, intimate

Play Functions
Skills
Playful imitation Play kissing of pre-adolescents preBoys playing cavemen, girls playing with dolls:
hunting, care-taking care-

Play functions:
Identity:
sociodramatic play (3 years) Barrie Thorne studied lunchtime play of middle school girls: gender play to take on, try out sexual identities Adolescents play at adults

Play functions
Knowledge
Playing with liquids, sand: understand substance, materials, conservation

Play Functions: Empathy

Theory of mind in pretend play (Leslie)
Abuse of language in pretend play
Object substitution: banana = phone Attribution of non-literal properties: glasses have diamonds nonImaginary objects

Abuse frees children from egocentrism, paves way for theory of mind, different perspectives, empathy

A language of laughter
Preuschoft, Van Hooff: pant hoots in primates Provine: Laughter punctuates speech Bachorowski: hisses, snorts, guffaws, cackles, grunts 3-4 bursts per laugh Voiced laughs involve vocal folds Dominant, submissive laughs

The acoustics, physiology of laughter

Own space in acoustic structure (Bachorowski) Predates language CNS correlates in brain stem, pons (which regulations breathing)

Laughter = humor?
Provine
Laughter gatherers in dorms, malls About 20% of laughs follow jokes, humor Most do not

Laughter = cooperation? (Bachorowski, Owren)

Laughter has a unique idiosyncratic acoustic signature It signals imminent rewards, sign of cooperation Friends engage in antiphonal laughter (Smoski & Bachorowski)

Laughter =

La petite vacation)

Laughter signals suspension of serious Meaning Laughter and exhalation; shift to PANS Means of managing conflict

Laughter and health (Martin & Lefcourt)

Reduction of cardiovascular stress Quicker return to cardiovascular baseline during stress Laughter cascades benefit marriage (Gottman, 2003) Martin, Lefcourt: sense of humor benefits health

Laughter and stressful trauma

(Bonanno & Keltner, 1995)
Bereavement Studied 45 adults 6 months bereaved Simple narrative: tell me about your relationship with your deceased spouse Coded emotion with FACS Griefwork hypothesis
Lots of anger a sign of effective grieving Positive emotion sign of denial, maladaptive grieving Our findings: more laughter, better functioning two years later More anger: worse functioning Laughter: physiological arousal not distressing, more perspective

Humor and teasing (a linguistic analysis)

Teasing Playful provocation + offrecord markers Linguistic Principle Criterion Violations _____________________________________________________________ Quality Truth Exaggeration, fantastical description Quantity Relation Manner Informativeness Redundancy, repetition, excessive brevity Relevance Clarity Digression Vagueness, obliqueness, metaphor

____________________________________________________________

The dozens (Abrahams, 1963)

Don t take about my mother cause you ll make me mad. Don t forget how many your mother had. She didn t have one, she didn t have two, She had eighty motherfuckers look just like you. I fucked your mother in a bowl of rice. Two children jumped out shootin dice. One shot seven and one shot eleven. God damn, them children ain t goin to heaven.

Nicknames
The Lousiville Lip The Brown Bomber No Mas The Ambling Alp Raging Bull The Bald Eagle Big Aristotle The Black Hole The Golden Bear Grandma ma Ice Borg Jelly Bean Little Miss Poker Face Muscles Mr. Ed Puff Nuts The Raging Potato The Refrigerator The Round Mound of Rebound The Spanish Fly Spud Bush 43, Dubya, The Shrub, Uncurious George The Comeback Kid, The first black president, slick Willie Tricky Dick, Iron Butt, The Mad Monk The Old Fox, The Farmer President Bonny Johnny, Your Superfluous excellency, His rotundity Honest Abe, The Illinois Ape, The Great Emancipator Muhammad Ali Joe Louis Roberto Duran Primo Carnera Jake LaMotta Y.A. Tittle Shaquille O Neal Kevin McHale Jack Nicklaus Larry Johnson Bjorn Borg Joe Bryant Chris Evert Ken Rosewall John Elway Jaromir Jagr Keith Wood, Irish Rugby William Perry Charles Barkley Pau Gasol Anthony Webb George W. Bush Bill Clinton Richard Nixon George Washington John Adams Abraham Lincoln

Teasing and love: Much Ado About

Nothing
Benedick And, I pray thee now tell me, for which of my bad parts didst thou first fall in love with me? Beatrice For them all together, which maintain d so politic a state of evil that they will not admit any good part to intermingle with them. But for which of my good parts did you first suffer love for me? Benedick Suffer love! A good epithet! I do suffer love indeed, for I love thee against my will. Beatrice In spite of your heart, I think. Alas, poor heart, if you spite it for my sake, I will spite it for yours, for I will never love that which my friend hates. Benedick Thou and I are too wise to woo peaceably.

Teasing in flirtation Happier couples have more nicknames about each other
Metaphors: animals, food objects Happier couples resort to humor, teasing to negotiate conflicts

Teasing and hierarchies: Nicknames and status

0. T asing 0. 0 -0. - . - . wP w r T s r Hi P w r T s r 0. 0. Low Pow r T rg t High Pow r T rg t

ili y

The fool (jokester, trickster, satirist)

Human universal: from China to original peoples Pervasive in earlier culture Political power, advising Mocked every public event Embodied a rhetoric of absurdity

The absurd (Nagel)

Seeing the insignificance of things

Work
Potent predictor of happiness (Argyle, Myers) Loss of work common cause of depression A caveat: Americans are working harder than ever before (167 hours more than previous generation), and harder than individuals from other industrialized nations Wolford: a bit more leisure time boosts happiness

Meaningful work
Positive organization Network (Michigan)
Meaningful work, deeper purpose, greater good are key

Signature strengths (Peterson, Seligman) Matching Strengths (Peterson)

Universal, paragons, early prodigies
Wisdom: creativity, learning Courage: Bravery, authenticity Humanity: Kindness, love Justice: fairness, leadership Temperance: Modesty, prudence Transcendence: gratitude, spirituality

People who find deeper purpose in work most satisfied

Flow and Optimal experience

(Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi)
Balance between Skills, challenges in goal directed, rule bound system with clear feedback Studies of artists, dancers, poets, people in organizations
Intense concentration No worries, no rumination Time disoriented, expands Self consciousness disappears Little concern for rewards Intrinsic motivation (Lepper, Deci)

Cultivation
The story of the Buddha (Karen Armstrong)
Several year quest after leaving bourgeois life Disillusioned with material pursuits Suffering = attachments Eight fold path to enlightenment (like Lyubomirsky s skills)
Right mind, action, emotion

A bit of review
Cultivating strong relationships 3 positive emotions for every negative one Reducing stress, HPA Axis activation

Cultivating right mind

Optimism, hope
Circulation (2009): study of 100, 000 Dutch women
Optimistic women lower blood pressure, cholesterol Optimistic women 9% lower risk of heart disease, 16% lower risk of dying at 8-year follow-up 8follow-

Appreciative Self compassion

A Legacy of Cynicism
FREUDIAN MIND: The very emphasis of the commandment: Thou shalt not kill, makes it certain that we are descended from an endlessly long chain of generations of murderers, whose love of murder was in their blood as it is perhaps also in ours. Sigmund Freud ours. LIBERTARIANISM: If any civilization is to survive, it is the morality of altruism that men have to reject. Ayn Rand

POLITICAL THEORY: Of mankind we may say in general they are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy of gain. gain. Machiavelli EVOLUTIONARY SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST: The natural world is grossly immoral . Natural selection can honestly be described as a process for maximizing short sighted selfishness George Williams MORAL THEORY: Sympathy as a good natured emotion is always blind and weak. Immanuel weak. Kant

Blame
Buddhism: focus on intention of act, not person Blame related to punitive tendencies, revenge (Rudolphs, et al., 2004) Bradbury Fincham (2003)
Blame in romantic couples assessed through
Self report Narratives On line conversations Blame related to dissatisfaction, divorce

Right body

Exercise, Yoga, Sports (Lyubomirsky, 2009)

Endorphins Breathing Catharsis Social Contact

Right action
Play, laugh, express gratitude, politeness, meditation

Functions of Touch
Reward Reinforce Reciprocity Signal Safety Soothe Power

A Language of Touch (Eibl(EiblEibesfeldt, 1989)

Evolution of hand Evolution of skin (Jablonski) Most developed sensory modality at birth Attachment processes, soothing, friendship, flirtation, sexual Kraus: Basketball study: chest bumps, head slaps, fist bumps, bum slaps predict better performance in NBA teams

We re a touch deprived culture

To ches of f ien s ing ave conve sation Jo a , 1969)

200 Numbe of touches 150 100 50 0 London Florida Paris n Juan Series1

Touch and stress

Coan et al (2006): anticipated stress, married women touching hand of partner but not stranger show: the right anterior insula, superior frontal gyrus, and hypothalamus Frances & Meaney, 1999:
Rat moms 10-20% of waking time in tactile contact with rat 10pups (licking, full body covers) Well handled pups: show less corticosterone in blood stream when restrained Less interconnectivity in stress related regions of brain a year later, enhanced immune function

Touch and health

Touching story in nursing home: An instinct to embrace Tiffany Field
In orphanages with touch, children lived longer Touch reduces symptoms of ADHD, depression in teen mothers, asthma and diabetes Heel lance procedure: infants who were held cried 82% less, grimaced 65% less, lower heart rate Touch therapies in hospitals
47% weight gain in premature infants Reductions in depression of Alzheimers patients

Touch and attachment

Rebecca Turner: 10 minutes of Swedish Massage leads to oxytocin release Touch and vagus nerve response Parents who have lots of skin to skin contact carried in baby bjorns have more securely attached children

Smile
Kouros

The evolution of the smile

Darwin s mistake
Smile first stage of laughter

Preuschoft, van Hooff

Silent bared teeth vs. relaxed open mouth displays

Smile, equality, and happiness

Smile in egalitarian primates used as tool of friendship Human evidence
Duchenne smile
Left frontal lobe activation Increased happiness Evokes happiness, trust in others

Emotional attunement, intelligence (Daniel Goleman)

Intelligent Intelligent Intelligent Intelligent encoding decoding insight into own emotions management of emotions

Emotional intelligence the best predictor of wellwellbeing, health, performance Friends who mirror one another s emotions are happier Leaders who are emotionally intelligent fare better

IMAGINE
The great secret of morals is love, or a going out of our own nature, and an identification of ourselves with the beautiful which exists in thought, action or person, not our own. A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and of many others; the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own. The great instrument of moral good is the imagination (Shelley).

Narrative

The big insights

Happiness is many things
Pleasure, emotion, traits East (contentedness), West (excitement) Individual variation (compassion, pride, sensory pleasure)

Happiness is a set of skills Happiness is emotion balance Happiness between Happiness is work Happiness is training the mind (optimism, appreciation, non materialism) Happiness is calming down from stress (exercise, meditation, sports) Happiness is a narrative we tell

US Culture?
American Paradox (Myers, 2001)
Despite some economic expansion, happiness hasn t risen Compared to many cultures, we re not faring as well

Some Challenges
% who he ped s umped over man

Our busy culture

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Late On time

Videogames, new media (Bushman, Anderson)

Breakdown in social fabric

Bowling alone (Putnam)

Rise in ideology of self-interest selfPrecipitous rise in narcissism, culture of selfself-esteem Rise in valuing materialism

Inequality
Asymmetries in wealth
46 44

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A turning point in our culture: Reasons for Optimism

Pinker: Rise of cooperation
Drops in materialism Drop in murder rates Drop in prevalence of torture Drop in likelihood of dying during war Fewer wars More humane treatment of those with psychological conditions A new social fabric