Saturday Odd Bits Roundup: Happiness Research
by Miki Saxon
Levity (not joke telling) increases happiness and happy employees are more productive, innovative and less likely to leave.
Today we’ll take a look at some fascinating “happy” research.
The NY Times runs an opinion column called Happy Days that posts thoughts, research and comments from professionals and regular folks. A recent post by Paul Bloom, a Yale professor of psychology caught my eye. In it he considers whether it is necessary to choose between being a “happy pig or sad Socrates,” in other words, is it necessary to choose between indulging yourself and being a good person. Be sure to check out the comments; they add some excellent thoughts.
Second is a long article, but well worth the time to read it, especially if you are interested in the research being done on social networks.
Social scientists Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler are analyzing data from a study that has followed more than 15,000 Framingham residents and their descendants since it was 1948.
Their finding is that “good behaviors — like quitting smoking or staying slender or being happy — pass from friend to friend almost as if they were contagious viruses,” although not all experts agree.
Next week we’ll explore levity here at MAPpingCompanySuccess starting Monday with a review of the Levity Effect.
Please join us and add your thoughts on the subject.
Image credit: MykReeve on flickr
