Happiness - Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth

Utilizing sophisticated methodology and three decades of research by the world's leading expert on happiness, Happiness challenges the present thinking of the causes and consequences of happiness and redefines our modern notions of happiness. shares the results of three decades of research on our notions of happiness covers the most important advances in our understanding of happiness offers readers unparalleled access to the world's leading experts on happiness provides "real world" examples that will resonate with general readers as well as scholars Winner of the 2008 PSP Prose Award for Excellence in Psychology, Professional and Scholarly Publishing Division of the Association of American Publishers "In this book the authors present scientific evidence revealing that happiness is not overrated, and is good for people's health, social relationships, job success, longevity, and altruism. They advocate an optimal level of happiness in which people do not seek euphoria, but pursue life satisfaction, meaning, and frequent positive emotions, with recognition that some negative emotions are an integral part of a happy life." "The authors describe why happiness alone is not enough; people need to be happy for the right reasons. They describe the new concept of Psychological Wealth, which extends beyond material riches, and beyond popular concepts like emotional intelligence and social capital. The book describes the authors' data collection around the globe that shows that people are not necessarily "born" happy, but can and do change their levels of happiness." "The authors provide a model for a happy approach to life, based on Attention, Interpretation, and Memory (AIM). Diener and Biswas-Diener suggest that happiness is about away of traveling, learning to react in positive ways to the world, rather than simply being a destination or set of circumstances."--Jacket

Is being happy beneficial to your health, wealth, and social relationships? Is there an optimal level of happiness for obtaining your goals? Is there a happiness set-point, and can it change? Do you know your level of psychological wealth?

Utilizing his groundbreaking development of the field of subjective well-being, Dr. Ed Diener, ­recognized as the world's leading expert on happiness, challenges our modern assumptions about the causes and consequences of happiness. Ed and his son Robert Biswas-Diener share the results of three decades of research on happiness to help unlock the mysteries of this elusive Holy Grail. In Happiness the father and son team presents scientific evidence revealing that happiness is not overrated, and is good for people’s health, social relationships, job success, longevity, and altruism. They also show why "super-happiness" is not a worthy goal.

Foreword Acknowledgments Part I Understanding True Wealth 1 Psychological Wealth: The Balanced Portfolio 2 Two Principles of Psychological Wealth Part II Happy People Function Better 3 Health and Happiness 4 Happiness and Social Relationships: You Can’t Do Without Them 5 Happiness at Work: It Pays To Be Happy Part III Causes of Happiness and Genuine Wealth 6 Can Money Buy Happiness? 7 Religion, Spirituality, and Happiness 8 The Happiest Places on Earth: Culture and Well-Being 9 Nature and Nurture: Is There a Happiness Set Point, and Can You Change It? 10 Our Crystal Balls: Happiness Forecasting 11 Take AIM on Happiness: Attention, Interpretation, and Memory Part IV Putting It All Together 12 Yes, You Can Be Too Happy 13 Living Happily Ever After 14 Measuring Psychological Wealth: Your Well-Being Balance Sheet Epilogue Further Reading References Index