In the early middle ages, just as the
first millennium was winding down, Abd Er-Rahman III, the successful and
powerful Caliph of Cordoba, made the following observation: 

I have now reigned about 50 years
in both victory and peace, beloved by my subjects, dreaded by my enemies, and
respected by my allies. Riches and honors, power and pleasure, have readily
answered my call; nor does any earthly blessing appear to have been wanting for
my felicity. In this situation, I have diligently numbered the days of pure and
genuine happiness which have fallen to my lot. They amount to fourteen.

Likely the Caliph would have benefited from reading Jonathan
Haidt’s masterful book, The Happiness Hypothesis.  It came too late for
Er-Rahman, but today’s readers will certainly benefit.

This book approaches happiness from
several angles.  First, Haidt elucidates recent and current scientific
literature on happiness, and integrates the most reliable and useful of these
findings with the time-tested theories of the ancients.  The result is a
comprehensive yet very readable and balanced synthesis that will make intuitive
sense to both general readers and professionals. 

In addition, Haidt effectively demonstrates
the modern applicability of time-tested ideas from the ancient traditions,
drawing primarily on Greek/Roman and Indian/Buddhist works.  For example, to
illustrate the quandary that so often underlies human unhappiness the author capitalizes
on a very powerful metaphor of the mind – that of an elephant (something like
the Freudian id) upon which a rider (the ego, or conscious "I")
rides.  These two, the elephant and the rider, generally have different
motivations and interests, and the resulting conflicts typically result in
problems and unhappiness.  The reconciliation of their differing interests is
one of the keys to achieving feelings of fulfillment and happiness.

This book takes on central issues such
as what is a reasonable definition of happiness?  Can the time-tested insights
of the ancients and the works of Freud and other modern theorists be harmonized? 
Do all people have equal capacities to be happy?  To what extent is our highest
potential level of happiness hardwired?  Is the hardwiring in all people
equally controlling of our access to happiness?  And what about chance events –
many of us believe the role of randomness in human experience is underrated.  That
is, despite our best laid plans, accidental events constantly intervene.  Further,
we should not assume that the quest for happiness plays out the same for
everyone, or is achieved (or not achieved) in similar ways by everyone. What is
the relationship between meaning and happiness?  (While empirical research is
more frequently tackling this issue these days, much more remains to be done.)

Some of the research findings that Haidt
elucidates:

Ÿ        
Human nature has evolved to produce in us conflicting impulses
and wishes.

Ÿ        
An individual’s psychophysiology (which is after all a result of
evolved human nature) and circumstance work together to set the stage for the
individual’s experience of life, including the level of happiness he or she can
potentially experience.

Ÿ        
That is, due to genetic predispositions, people differ on their natural
set-points for happiness, as well as the degree of control they can exert over
the level they can achieve.

Ÿ        
When it comes to satisfaction and happiness, how we perceive and
respond to our perceptions of the world is more relevant than how the world
actually is.

Ÿ        
Reciprocity is fundamental to social life, and social life is
fundamental to happiness.  Love (as defined in the book) is essential to
happiness.

Ÿ        
We are biased to see shortcomings in others more clearly than our
own quirks and issues, and most people are more inclined to see risk than
potentials in situations.

Ÿ        
A direct pursuit of happiness an objective is very
unlikely to succeed; instead, happiness is an effect.  In addition,
power, success and money are not guarantees of happiness. (We tend to rely more
on comparisons with others in our own circles.)

Ÿ        
Adversity, in the right amount, can encourage personal growth.  For
this to happen, adversity is seen as challenge rather than tragedy.

Ÿ        
The virtues, defined classically, are vital to a sense of
satisfaction and happiness.

Ÿ        
A healthy sense of divinity doesn’t require dogmatic religiosity,
and in its purer forms is an essential ingredient in the recipe for happiness.

Ÿ        
A sense of meaning in our lives promotes happiness, perhaps is
even essential to it.

Ÿ        
Almost everyone has the ability to increase his or her happiness,
using one or more of the approaches described in the book.

In addition to providing an
excellent synthesis of the literature, Haidt’s work is commendable for its
incorporation of the principles of positive psychology.  The chapter on the
virtues deserves especially careful reading.  Cultivating the virtues in
oneself is an effective approach to toward forming a mutually beneficial
relationship with our inner elephant, and leads to self-discipline balanced by acceptance. 
This in turn leads to satisfaction and enhances our happiness and sense of
meaning.

The chapter on divinity is equally
well-presented.  Haidt adeptly negotiates the sensibilities of the
non-religious while demonstrating the profound benefits of awe and mystery, the
feeling of being part of something that stretches beyond the individual life.

While it reads smoothly, this book
goes far beyond self-help genre and certainly warrants the praise it has
received from professional reviewers.

Postscript:  As an informal field
test, I loaned this book to my college-age daughter.  She went through it
cover-to-cover and nearly non-stop.  She reported it to be exciting and
imminently applicable even to a business-major, and thought that it should be
mandatory reading for even high school students.

 

© 2007 Keith
Harris

 

Keith Harris, Ph.D.,
is Chief of Research for the Department of Behavioral Health in San Bernardino County, California. His current interests include the empirical basis for
mental health research, behavioral genetics, and the shaping of human nature by
evolutionary forces.

Categories: Psychology, General