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Meaning.....a Predictor of Happiness?

Introduction

Happiness may be thought of as a state of mind or feeling characterized by contentment, love, satisfaction, pleasure, or joy. It’s been a topic of great interest in philosophy, religion, psychology and biology, which have been trying to define and identify its source.

Current research in positive psychology has derived from two general perspectives in attaining well being and happiness: the hedonic approach, which focuses on happiness and defines well-being in terms of pleasure attainment and pain avoidance and the eudaimonic approach, which focuses on meaningful behaviours (e.g. showing gratitude, helping others etc) and self-realization and defines well-being in terms of the degree to which a person is fully functioning (Ryan and Deci, 2001).

Yet it is too easy to see these two approaches as mutually exclusive and contrasts (Huta and Ryan, 2009). The question of which one predicts happiness is hard to answer. Can you imagine yourself being happy without seeking any pleasure only through helping others?

Therefore Seligman (2002) postulated the “full-life-hypothesis”. According to this, to live a full life you have to carry out eudaimonic AND hedonic behaviours. On contrast, carrying out only one of them will result in an empty life.

This hypothesis was supported in several studies, one of them is our key experiment (Huta & Ryan, 2009).

Contents

History

Seeking happiness through either pleasure or meaning has been questioned and thought about in our culture for centuries. Many different schools from philosophers to religious masters have considered happiness as a principle criterion for well-being.

Ancient Greek Influence

Since ancient times, two main routes to happiness and well-being have been considered, the hedonic approach and the eudaimonic approach (Ryan and Deci, 2001).

In the Fourth century BC, the Ancient Greek Aristippus argued that the main goal in life is the pursuit of the maximum amount of pleasure regardless of its source. However, Aristotle argued that the eudiamonic approach to life would lead to better well being and a more fulfilled life by developing the best in one’s self, in line with deeper principles than mere pleasure seeking. He believed that true happiness came from virtue- that is, in doing what is worth doing. (Ryan and Deci, 2001). The notion of virtue as a necessity for true happiness can also be traced back to the teachings of Socrates. Socrates believed virtue to be not only a factor necessary for happiness but that happiness could be attained exclusively by virtue. The teachings of Socrates were documented in several of Platos literatures. Analysis of the following translated quotations from Apology (Plato, 399 BC), assumes the possibility that Socrates argued that what good may come to a man is a consequence of his virtue:

"I do nothing but go about persuading you all, old and young alike, not to take thought for your persons or your properties, but and chiefly to care about the greatest improvement of the soul. I tell you that virtue is not given by money, but that from virtue comes money and every other good of man, public as well as private"

“… everything the soul endeavours or endures under the guidance of wisdom ends in happiness…”

Philosophical Influence

Various philosophers have also expressed their views on how happiness is attained. Two opposing theories are commonly argued, one suggesting happiness is attained by successfully obtaining and fulfilling desires (Hobbes 1588-1679) , whereas Bentham (1748-1832) argued it could be obtained from seeking to maximise pleasure (Ryan and Deci, 2001).

Religious Influence

Religion has always had an influence on culture, from dress code, morals, and what we consider a happy and meaningful life. Various research has shown that religion can provide people with a source of optimism, hope, and meaning in their lives (Hadaway, 1978) and other researchers have provided evidence that religious activity is positively correlated to subjective well-being (Moberg, 1972). One reason for this is that is has been argued that serving something bigger than oneself , such as a higher being, is in it self a more meaningful life (Seligman et al, 2006). Others have argued that religion provides people with greater coherence and structure to thier lives which in turn leads to better psychological well-being.

Certain meaningful activities, such as counting your blessings (eg. Thanksgiving prayer) and meditation , have been practiced in various religions, and have been correlated to positive well-being (Huta, 2009). Religious activities have been shown to reduce anxiety, fears, frustration and isolation . Meditation has been associated with improvement in panic attacks, depression, insomnia, and chronic pain (Moreira-Almeida et al, 2006).

Religion appears to improve subjective well-being however, it is hard to be sure whether subjective well-being comes from the ' meaning ' that religion provides people with, or whether it comes from activities that come hand in hand with participating in a religious sect. Activities such as Church or Synagogue attendance provide people with a sense of belonging which can in itself be benificial to metal health. As well as social support , many religions prohibit certain activites that may be harmful to our health(Moreira-Almeida et al, 2006).

Therefore, it is difficult to see how much meaning derived from religion alone affects psychological well-being.

Psychotherapeutic Influence

A relatively new form of psychotherapy is logotherapy. This was developed by Viktor Frankl in the mid 20th century and could be seen as one of the starting points for the psychological study of meaning. Logotherapy is an existential form of therapy and analysis that focuses on the search for meaning in ones life. The therapy was based on Frankl's belief that the ultimate drive in a human beings life was to find meaning and that any individual, regardless of circumstances could achieve this. He also stated that wealth, hedonism and materialism were not factors contributing to the search of meaning. Instead, meaning could be discovered through the doing of good-deeds, experiencing the value of art, the environment or a loved one.

Key Experiment

Huta and Ryans (2009) Pursuing pleasure or virtue: the differential and overlapping well-being benefits of hedonic and eudaimonic motives.

This study features 4 studies including correlational analyses, experience sampling and an intervention study and it demonstrates the key findings in this area.

This section will only include a summary of the 4th study which involved an experimental manipulation and was the key study. However a full summary of the paper is also available, if you wish to read more, as the other studies contain more interesting information and results. 

Click here for a full summary of the paper.

The aim of this research was to assess motives behind eudaimonic and hedonic behaviours and to establish how these behaviours are related to well being and life satisfaction. Motives were assessed as this could reduce any confounding variables. The researchers aimed to see if there was any overlap between eudaimonic and hedonic behaviours or if they are completely separate and distinct pursuits.
Another aspect that was considered was the full life versus the empty life.

The researchers, importantly, provided a definition of meaning . They defined meaning as:
‘ The degree, to which one personally resonates with, comprehends and values one’s activities and experiences. ’
As meaning is a key feature in this research it is essential that it is defined as its given meaning can vary from one study to another.

Hypothesis

The main hypotheses of this study were:
• That the both pursuits(hedonic and eudaimonic) would contribute to well-being
• That people with high levels of motives for both pursuits will have greater levels of well-being than those who pursue either one or neither pursuit
• That both pursuits would link to well-being in distinct ways but there will be an overlap between the concepts as well

Study 4-Key Study

The 4th study was an intervention and involved an experimental manipulation unlike the first 3 studies that involved either correlations or experience sampling.
The sample consisted of 114 undergraduate students; they were split into 59 participants in the hedonic group and 54 in the eudaimonic group. Participants were assigned to either add eudaimonic or hedonic activities daily to their life for ten days. Participants had a choice of the activities they could add but they were provided with a list of suggestions and definitions to aid them in the process. Each evening they completed an online survey detailing their daily life activities and the well-being they felt. They also had to try and write down a possible activity that they could carryout the next day in order to keep themselves engaged in the task. Baseline levels of well-being and other measures were taken before the start of the intervention. Well-being was compared before and after the intervention. To establish if the intervention had any long term effects well-being was measured again after 3 months. After the intervention an online follow up questionnaire was completed to establish their levels of well-being, eudaimonic and hedonic throughout the intervention.

Results
As before it was found that hedonic behaviours were associated with carefreeness and together with eudaimonic behaviours with vitality. When eudaimonia was measured between persons it was found to be related to meaning.
The full life was associated with greater levels of positive affect. So a combination of the two pursuits was found to be lead to greater well-being than either one singularly.

Conclusions

Overall the researchers used various methods to demonstrate and replicate their results. Hedonic behaviours were more related to carefreeness and short term well-being. Where as eudaimonic behaviours was more related to meaning and long term well-being. There was also strong evidence to show that the full life leads to greater well-being and vitality than the empty life.

Criticisms of research in this area 

Reliance on self-report measures
There are various criticisms that apply to a large number of studies in this area. Most of the research conducted relies on participants using self-report measures. There are a number of problems with employing this sort of methodology. Retrospective biases can be induced. This could effect the responses so participants may not be recording their experiences and behaviours properly and this could alter the results. Self presentation biases may also affect the results as participants may not answer truthfully in order to try and make themselves look better or be to present themselves in a particular way.

Problems with samples
There are also issues with the samples used for a lot of the research; due to convenience often only undergraduate students are involved. This limits the ability to generalise the results as the education levels, age and the gender of the participants are often the same. As a result of this the sample is not representative of the whole population and so is of limited applicability to the general population.

Use of correlations
Another flaw with many of the studies in this area is the common use of correlations. Perhaps this occurs as it might be easier to carry out this sort of research in this area, whilst experimental manipulations may be more difficult to carry out. Correlations can only be used to demonstrate a relationship or link between two variables so cause and effect cannot be demonstrated in this way. So although there is a body of evidence that supports the pursuit of the meaning and of the full life a lot of this is demonstrated through correlations. The use of more experimental manipulations in future research would help to resolve this issue.

Lack of control conditions
With our key study and other studies in this area another problem that could affect the conclusions researchers draw from their results is the lack of a control condition . Although the Huta article from 2009 contains an experimental manipulation it does not have a control condition. So it is difficult to conclude that their results they have are solely due to the manipulation. This is true of many other studies in this area. Including a control condition in future research would improve the studies and allow more valid conclusions to be drawn from future results.

No common definition of meaning
The lack of a common definition of meaning is also a problem with research in this area. This has lead to a lot of different references to meaning in various studies as though the same concept is being discussed when in fact it is not. Some studies have defined meaning in terms of behaviours and acts that involve helping others where as others have defined it in terms of personal events such as thinking about one's values and finishing an assignment early. This could make it difficult to draw comparisons across the research. If a standard defintion of meaning was employed in the future then this issue could be resolved.

Some behaviours are both Hedonic and Eudaimonic

The seperation of behaviours into distinct categories is another problem this area faces. Although some behaviours may be purely hedonic or eudaimonic and so can be easily seperated there are some behaviours that cannot be. These behaviours or activities may fit into both categories as they are hedonic and eudaimonic. Examples of such behaviours are listed by Huta et al (2009) these include: playing a musical instrument, playing a sport and doing something artistic. This is an issue in itself but to add to this some of the lists of activities or beahviours that are used in the research seperate these behaviours that appear to include an aspect of both concepts. This could lead to artifical distinctions being made and so problems with results in this area and many conclusions that have been drawn from these. It may be better in the future to try and only include behaviours or activities that can clearly be seperated between the two ideas omitting those that may fit into both categories.

Uncritical Claims

The pursuit of happiness in your life through meaning is a huge field in the self-help literature. A simple hint for this is searching on google or amazon for the topic and seeing the great number of hits you get. But having a closer look on the topic and the contents of the book it mostly comes down to simple rules for living your life we all have heard before:

• Money and pure pleasure can't buy you happiness

• You have to build strong relationships, care for others give love to others.

• You have to find your values in live, and set goals for yourself.

Applications

This idea was firstly addressed by Fordyce (1977/1983) who created a list of strategies that people should follow to increase happiness levels. An example of one strategy may be socialising more or maintaining a busier life.
Evidence suggests that these strategies can make people happier whilst also leading to reduced anxiety and less depressive symptoms. Moreover follow up data suggests this technique can achieve a lasting happiness.

In the normal population, there does not seem to be many successful applications to increase happiness levels. However within a clinical population, applications have been more successful. It is these successes that have provided evidence suggesting that positive applications are of any use at all. Furthermore there is a huge overlap between different areas of positive psychology as a whole. This overlap means that most applications are based on theories derived from many areas as opposed to one, such as meaning.

Positive Psychotherapy (PPT)
PPT focuses on increasing positive emotions & behaviours to increase wellbeing & reduce ill-being (Seligman et al 2006). In other words not only will you no longer be depressed but you will enjoy life too. It is argued that by teaching clients how to seek pleasure, engagement & meaning (the full life), a lasting happiness can be achieved.
This link will provide Seligman's view on positive psychotherapy:

Testing PPT (clinical population)
Seligman et al (2006) tested PPT on mild-moderately depressed clients.
Seligman devised positive strategies for the group to follow and fully instructed clients on these. Strategies included; signature strengths, thinking of 3 blessings, writing a positive obituary, 1 gratitude visit, active-constructive responding & savoring.
To measure affects of PPT, Seligman used the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) to assess alleviation of symptoms and the Satisfaction in Life Scale (SLS) to assess increased happiness. Measurements were made before, during and after the study.
Findings showed an increase in life satisfaction & alleviation of depressive symptoms. After 1 year the PPT group showed sustained affects compared to the control group who exhibted some depressive symptoms.

Seligman & colleagues (2006) carried out another PPT test on clients with major depression aiming to alleviate symptoms.
Participants were assigned to one of three conditions; PPT, traditional therapy or traditional therapy with medication.
Findings showed PPT decreased symptoms of depression but more importantly it was more effective than alternative conditions. This explains some major drawbacks for medical treatments in psychological disorders.

Practical Exercises

Seligman's PPT exercises
The exercises below aimed to help patients find meaning:
Devise a personal satisficing plan
Respond constructively to positive events by others
Have a day to celebrate yours and another's signature strengths
Discussing strengths with your family
Do something good for someone else which requires time and attention
Complete a PPT Inventory to assess your ability to pursue the "Full Life".

Questionnaires/Assessment Tools
Meaning in Life (Stager & Frazier 2005)
20 Item Purpose in Life (Crumbaugh & Maholick 1969)

Laughter:

Many argue that this simple exercise can bring about a happier life. This link is a nice read but has little scientific support - http://www.johnglostersmith.com/laughter-is-the-best-medicine.html

Links to other topics

Strengths
The strengths approach argues that you find fulfillment when using your strengths. Likewise Aristotle‘s early eudaimonic approach demands to develop the best in oneself in line with oneself’s inner principles.

Gratitude
Giving gratitude and being thankful for everything you have is one way to fill your life with meaning.

Roots in Psychotherapy
Meaning is associated with mental health. Therapists aim to understand how people feel about events in their life and why they feel this way. Therefore understanding what things mean to clients is a large part of this therapy.

Mindfulness
Meaning can not be sought after, instead it comes naturally. This link offers a mindfulness view and has relevance to this topic of meaning -

Further Reading

http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/newsletter.aspx?id=54

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being . Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141–166.

Vella-Brodrick, D. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2008). Three Ways to Be Happy: Pleasure, Engagement, and Meaning—Findings from Australian and US Samples . Soc Indic Res 90, 165–179.

Frankl, E. V. (First published 1946). Man's Search for Meaning.

References

Antonovsky, A. (1987). Unravelling the Mystery of Health: how people manage stress and stay well. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Duckworth, A. L., Steen, T. A., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2005). Positive Psychology in Clinical Practise. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 1 629-651 (This sites both questionnaires under practical exercises).

Fordyce, M. W., (1977). Development of a Personal Programme to Increase Personal Happiness. Journal of Counselling Psychology, 24 (11) 511-524.

Hadaway, C. K. (1978) Life satisfaction and religion: A re-analysis. Social Forces, 57, 637-643.

Huta, V., & Ryan, R., M. (2009). Pursuing Pleasure or Virtue: The Differential and Overlapping Well-Being Benefits of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives . Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141–66.

Lyubomirsky S., & Dickerhoof, R. (in press). A Construct Approach to Increasing Happiness. Social Psychological Foundations of Clinical Psychology, New York: Guilford Press.

Lyubomirsky, S., King, L. A., & Diener, E. (2005a). The benefits of frequent positive affect: Does happiness lead to success? Psychological Bulletin, 131, 803–855.

Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K. M., & Schkade, D. (2005b). Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainablechange. Review of General Psychology, 9, 111–131.

Moberg, D.O. (1972) Religion and the aging family. The family coordinator, 21, 47-60.

Moreira-Almeida, A., Neto, F.L., Keonig, H.G. (2006) Religiousness and metal health: A review. Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria, 28, 242-250.

Peterson, C., Park, N., & Seligman, M. E. (2005). Orientations to happiness and life satisfaction: The full life versus the empty life. Journal of Happiness Studies, 6, 25–41.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being . Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141–166.

Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Authentic happiness. New York: Free Press.

Seligman, M. E. P., Rashid, T., Parks, A. C. (2006). Positive Psychotherapy. American Psychologist, 774-778.

Steger, M. F., Kashdan, T. B., & Oishi, S. (2008). Being good by doing good: Daily eudaimonic activity and well-being . Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 22–42.

Vella-Brodrick, D. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2008). Three Ways to Be Happy: Pleasure, Engagement, and Meaning—Findings from Australian and US Samples . Soc Indic Res 90, 165–179.

Websites

Summary of key paper

Huta and Ryans (2009) Pursuing pleasure or virtue: the differential and overlapping well-being benefits of hedonic and eudaimonic motives.

This study features 4 studies including correlational analyses, experience sampling and an intervention study and it demonstrates the key findings in this area.

The aim of this research was to assess motives behind eudaimonic and hedonic behaviours and to establish how these behaviours are related to well being and life satisfaction. Motives were assessed as this could reduce any confounding variables. The researchers aimed to see if there was any overlap between eudaimonic and hedonic behaviours or if they are completely separate and distinct pursuits.
Another aspect that was considered was the full life versus the empty life.

The researchers, importantly, provided a definition of meaning . They defined meaning as:
‘ The degree, to which one personally resonates with, comprehends and values one’s activities and experiences. ’
As meaning is a key feature in this research it is essential that it is defined as its given meaning can vary from one study to another.

Hypothesis

The main hypotheses of this study were:
• That the both pursuits(hedonic and eudaimonic) would contribute to well-being
• That people with high levels of motives for both pursuits will have greater levels of well-being than those who pursue either one or neither pursuit
• That both pursuits would link to well-being in distinct ways but there will be an overlap between the concepts as well

The researchers also set out hypotheses relating to hedonic and eudaimonic pursuits. The key predictions on this were:
• Hedonic behaviours would lead to raised levels of positive affect and reductions of negative affect
• Hedonic behaviours would be associated with feelings of carefreeness
• The pursuit of eudaimonic behaviours would also lead to increase in positive affect but indirectly and less so than hedonic behaviours
• Eudaimonic behaviours would be more associated with meaning

Studies 1 and 2

The first two studies were conducted via the internet and were about assessing the motives behind people’s behaviour and measuring well-being.
The aims of the first study were to consider new outcomes related to well-being including: awe, inspiration, carefreeness, transcendence and meaning. To establish if these outcomes are distinct and to establish the effects of these outcomes in relation to hedonic and eudaimonic pursuits.
The second study was very similar to the 1st, the main difference was that briefer measures scales were used to measure well-being in preparation for the third study.
Three hundred undergraduates completed online measures. Well-being was measured and so were motives behind various behaviours, positive and negative affect and life satisfaction. Meaning was also assessed through a scale devised by the researchers themselves.

Results
Correlations were used to establish the results in this study.
Generally the predictions made by the researchers were supported. Eudaimonia was associated with meaning and elevating experience. While hedonic motives were associated with higher levels of positive affect and carefreeness. Both constructs were found to be related to life satisfaction and vitality.
For the second study the previous results were replicated. The only differences were that in this study life satisfaction and vitality were more related to eudaimonia than previously.

Study 3

For this study the researchers aimed to build on the previous two studies except this time they made use of experience sampling. Participants were assessed for seven consecutive days. They carried pagers that were activated at four random times throughout the day. When the pager was activated participants filled out forms recording what they were currently doing and what they were thinking about at that time. They were instructed to give one line answers which they then had to rate. Positive and negative affect as well as well-being was also measured.

Results
From this study again the levels of hedonic behaviour related more to carefreeness than eudaimonic behaviours. Where as eudaimonia was more related to elevated experience than hedonic behaviours but there was no difference in relation to meaning except at a within persons level. It was also found that only hedonic behaviour was related to life satisfaction.
The researchers also aimed to establish if the full life was better related to well-being and satisfaction than the empty life. They did not find this but they did find that the full life was more associated with elevating experience and vitality than the empty life. So this provided some evidence for the argument that the full life and so combining the two outcomes is better than pursuing one or the other.

Study 4-Key Study

Finally the 4th study was an intervention and involved an experimental manipulation unlike the first 3 studies that involved either correlations or experience sampling.
The sample consisted of 114 undergraduate students; they were split into 59 participants in the hedonic group and 54 in the eudaimonic group. Participants were assigned to either add eudaimonic or hedonic activities daily to their life for ten days. Participants had a choice of the activities they could add but they were provided with a list of suggestions and definitions to aid them in the process. Each evening they completed an online survey detailing their daily life activities and the well-being they felt. They also had to try and write down a possible activity that they could carryout the next day in order to keep themselves engaged in the task. Baseline levels of well-being and other measures were taken before the start of the intervention. Well-being was compared before and after the intervention. To establish if the intervention had any long term effects well-being was measured again after 3 months. After the intervention an online follow up questionnaire was completed to establish their levels of well-being, eudaimonic and hedonic throughout the intervention.

Results
As before it was found that hedonic behaviours were associated with carefreeness and together with eudaimonic behaviours with vitality. When eudaimonia was measured between persons it was found to be related to meaning.
The full life was associated with greater levels of positive affect. So a combination of the two pursuits was found to be lead to greater well-being than either one singularly.

Conclusions

Overall the researchers used various methods to demonstrate and replicate their results. Hedonic behaviours were more related to carefreeness and short term well-being. Where as eudaimonic behaviours was more related to meaning and long term well-being. There was also strong evidence to show that the full life leads to greater well-being and vitality than the empty life.