Good life does not have to be happy, psychologists have established16 октября, 2021
Questions about what is a «good life» and how to measure it, humanity sets the time immemorial, and the answers have accumulated a huge set. Scientists from the United States offered their own option: a good life is a psychologically rich life, that is, an unusual, diverse, complicated and, most importantly, leading to changes in the worldview.
Psychologists from the University of Virginia and the University of Florida established that for some people to live life rich in impressions and experiences, more important than finding happiness or meaning,
«Unlike a happy or meaningful life, psychologically rich is characterized by a variety of interesting and transforming experience,» the article says. «We present empirical evidence that happiness, meaning and psychological wealth are related, but individual and desirable aspects of good life, with unique causes and correlates.»
The concept of a happy (or hedonistic) life includes such purposes as positive sensations and general satisfaction, while the search for the meaning of life (Eudemonism) is associated with the implementation of its potential and the maximum development of talents, the achievement of the planned and creating something valuable.
Scientists do not argue that psychological wealth acts completely independently of happiness or meaningfulness. However, this is part of our well-being that requires more attention.
The study covered 3728 people from nine countries. Most people who prefer psychologically rich life, in Germany (16.8%), India (16.1%), Korea (15.8%) and Japan (15.5%). As three examples of such a living, people called moving abroad, a change of profession or creating a complex work of art like «Ulysses» James Joyce.
Thus, psychologically rich life provides another criterion for assessing the quality of human existence, other than the search for happiness and meaning and outlining this dichotomy.
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