Have you ever heard of happiness? You don’t have to be happy all the time, but being happy is important for your mental health because happiness can enhance your level of well-being. In the past, scholars have conducted research on happiness. Do you know what scholars think about happiness? 

 

The sources of happiness are divided into two types (i.e., hedonism and eudaemonism). Hedonism suggests that happiness is based on our sensations. For example, if you are a dog lover, you will be happy immediately when you are stroking a dog. Hedonism emphasizes maximizing pleasure and minimizing displeasure. However, this kind of happiness cannot last for a long time. Then, people start to focus on eudaemonism to find out long-lasting happiness. Eudaemonism suggests that happiness is based on our values. We are happy when we do what is worth doing. These activities have meaning and purposes. Also, they can fulfill our potential. For example, your goal is to get the highest mark in your Chinese tests. When you achieve it, you have greater life satisfaction. However, your goal may involve considerable personal hardship and effort over the long term. You may feel frustrated in the process. Some scholars believe that hedonism and eudaemonism could not effectively explain all the factors of happiness. Then, they developed other models of happiness. 

 

Martin Seligman has a “PERMA” model to explain more about happiness. “P” means positive emotions (e.g., hope, interest, joy, and love). “E” means engagement. We can learn, grow and nurture our happiness. We will be happy when we engage in something we love. “R” means relationship. We are happy because we have harmonious relationships with our family, friends, and even our teachers! “M” means meaning. We are happy because we believe that we have purposes, which give us a sense of direction in life! For example, you want to achieve your aspirations in your future career, or you want to realize a dream! These are your purposes in life. “A” means accomplishment. It is similar to eudaemonism. We are happy because we can reach our goals and master our endeavors to progress towards goals and competence. “PERMA model” provides us a direction to be happy, which fosters our well-being! 

 

In conclusion, scholars believe that happiness can be explained by hedonism, eudaemonism, as well as “PERMA” model. Although the concepts may be a bit challenging for you, you can still find that being happy is easy!