Yale's online class on “The Science of Well-Being”

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/13/i-took-yales-most-popular-class-ever-and-it-completely-changed-how-i-spend-my-money.html

by NicoJuicy • 7 years ago

177 121 7 years ago

cnbc.com

krat0sprakhar• 7 years ago

The class starts today if anyone is interested in enrolling: https://www.coursera.org/learn/the-science-of-well-being

educationdata• 7 years ago

Why does the teacher put "Well-Being" in the course title, instead of "Happiness", even when the course is totally about happiness? Does this mean happiness is the same as well-being? I highly doubt it.

sonnyblarney3• 7 years ago

Happiness might be well associated with a specific mental state or emotion while well-being is really one's overall health.

Someone who is in a very good position, and general state of well being will have bouts of every emotion, and surely won't be 'happy' in every moment.

Though surely one could make the case that 'general happiness' and 'general well being' are the same thing if they wanted to.

ne018• 7 years ago

Just my 2.5 cents for myself.

Happiness is not a good thing. It is the other side of the same coin that brings me sadness and pain. What I'm looking for is peace.

Being in peace is the ultimate form of being -- the only form of being.

If I'm not in peace it means I'm chasing something else. When I stop looking for anything (including peace itself) then I am... I am.

vincentmarle• 7 years ago

People who are in peace generally don't have to think much about happiness, so in that sense peace = happiness.

ne018• 7 years ago

Being in peace brings me joy but no happiness. Happiness takes one's ego up and what goes up will always come down.

But words are words, my joy could be your happiness.

pkghost• 7 years ago

What's wrong with chasing? The buddha didn't check out after enlightenment, he spent the rest of his life chasing the same thing for others

ne018• 7 years ago

What's wrong with chasing?

Absolutely nothing. In fact chasing what I truly want to chase will eventually bring me closer to myself.

Buddha didn't check out after enlightenment

Buddha is not enlightened until we all are. I used to think he was a different person and I still do, only sometimes :)

ajawee2• 7 years ago

If I have goals, then I will chase something. Does it mean I am not in peace.

ne018• 7 years ago

Does it mean I am not in peace.

No. You already have peace! Being in peace is the natural form -- the only way of being. Everything else is like a dream, created by our mind... imagined.

If I have goals, then I will chase something

True, I think.

Now I'm thinking... if pain is imagined... can I chase without imagining pain? I think so. I/You can do anything.

sridca26• 7 years ago

How can you tell that your peace is not an instance of (arguably more intense than usual) emotional detachment rather a simple absence of the feeling of unhappiness?

ne018• 7 years ago

I don't fully understand the question but here is my thoughts on "emotional detachment" and "absence of the feeling of unhappiness"

When I separate me with what is driven by me... I start to realize that I'm not JUST my feelings/ego. Saying I'm not my feelings/ego is as big of a lie as saying I am the ego.

But realizing that I am not JUST the ego puts me in a beautiful state of the mind -- so different than other states that I call it "no state". For me it is better to first think that I'm not the ego then embrace it -- it always works for me when I want to go into a deeper level of peace/joy/consciousness.

In other words, detachment from feelings is a tool used by me to get to the state where I feel everything.

Also, I like to think of all these as a complex mind/being trying to optimize/control itself -- it is not supernatural, religious or anything.

sridca26• 7 years ago

Happiness has become a dirty word.

People fail at happiness; and then start devaluating happiness itself probably to rationalize their unhappiness and also justify the consequent resorting to socially inculcated meanings. Mr. Jordan Peterson even enabled a cult following around this odd psychic adumbration.

And, by the way, it goes without saying that cynicism and weariness precludes happiness.

sridca26• 7 years ago

I thought I'd join, but the more I read the more spiritual and mumbo-jumbo the course appears. From the course overview:

  Week 1. Signature Strengths
  Week 2. Savoring & Gratitude Journal
  Week 3. Kindness & Social Connection
  Week 4. Exercise & Sleep
  Week 5. Meditation & Gratitude Visit
  Week 6. (It's a SURPRISE!)
  Week 7. Rewirement Challenge Part 1
  Week 8. Rewirement Challenge Part 2
  Week 9. Rewirement Challenge Part 3
  Week 10. Rewirement Challenge Part 4

Just for starters, what's the deal with "gratitude"? Isn't that a spiritual concept? Why not go straight to the root and dislodge the root cause of resentment itself? Gratitude treats the symptoms -- it counters resentment -- but does not eliminate it. As an intelligent HNer we should not fall for these superficial traps.

EDIT: So a group of people have taken to downvoting my comments, instead of intelligently addressing them. Apparently I made a blasphemy, attacking a religious concept (gratitude). LOL.

jdavis7032• 7 years ago

I think gratitude is part of mindfulness. It means appreciating the smell of fresh air, the taste of your go to breakfast beverage, the sounds of the birds chirping or the smell of your partner. These are things we can get used to day after day, and so it’s useful to take a moment or two to appreciate them. That’s at least how I interpret it...

shittyadmin5• 7 years ago

I mean the whole idea of "mindfulness" and "meditation" are the sort of pseudoscientific bullshit that just plain don't belong in a scientific class.

Sure, they may have some benefits, but they're essentially just placebo effect. There has to be more interesting science on the topic than that...

sridca26• 7 years ago

Then why call it "gratitude" instead of calling it what it is, to wit: appreciation? Obviously the proponents of gratitude meant something more than appreciation.

Consultant324523• 7 years ago

There is no end to potential causes of resentment, and some may not be resolved in a lifetime. It makes sense in the context of psychological health and well-being.

sridca26• 7 years ago

How does it [the necessity of resentment] make sense in the context of psychological health and well-being?

ryanstorm• 7 years ago

I recall reading some research on the effects of gratitude. Here's an example:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-...

sonnyblarney3• 7 years ago

'Gratitude' is a mental concept as much as it is spiritual and issues such as this and 'forgiveness' I suggest go far beyond merely addressing 'causes', they represent a certain perspective, a mental posture more than anything.

qwerty4561272• 7 years ago

As soon as you learn to exercise particular feelings you choose (most people believe feelings can only be triggered with external factors and not chosen at their own will but they are wrong) you will find out that feeling (actively) gratitude and pure unconditional love for no reason is extremely pleasurable.

Scientists would probably notice increase in pleasure/happiness-related neurochemicals and particular happy brain area activity patterns when I just choose to feel gratitude if they could put me in an fMRI machine and also perform realtime neurotransmitters monitoring.

Nevertheless I am not sure if this can be considered a reliable medication alternative, it can be hard to switch to these feelings with stressed amygdala and depleted L-tryptophan.

sridca26• 7 years ago

Okay, but what happens to the resentment while you experience the extreme pleasure of gratitude or unconditional love? Are these feelings merely a palliative (a remarkably strong one at that) rather than a permanent cure?

harimau7773• 7 years ago

I think that you may be getting downvoted because your posts are using incendiary language ("spiritual and mumbo jumbo") and splitting hairs over minor issues (should it be called gratitude or appreciation?). This may give people the impression that you are trying to pick a fight.

I also think that by positioning your argument as in opposition to "spirituality" it may call to mind negative experiences that many religious people have had with people who have bigoted views about religion.

sridca26• 7 years ago

Fair enough, good points. Will keep that in mind when writing.

As for "splitting hairs over minor issues" I disagree; the difference is not trivial as explained over here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19905418

procinct4• 7 years ago

Could you elaborate on how you would approach getting to the root cause of the resentment? And then once you have identified the cause, how would you go about dislodging that?

sridca26• 7 years ago

Could you elaborate on how you would approach getting to the root cause of the resentment? And then once you have identified the cause, how would you go about dislodging that?

Sincerity as to what you are feeling each moment is the first step towards it.

If you are actively denying or dissociating (i.e., meditation), you won't get to understand how it all works. Resentment, or any other affective issue, is to be curiously explored with awareness and attentiveness (what are the emotions involved? what are the beliefs? why do I feel this way? how does this feeling operate? etc). Once you have fully explored something -- and this is where dogged determination comes into play -- there comes a point where that issues vanishes like dropping hot coal. Not unlike ceasing to believe in Santa Claus.

It does take time and persistence in the beginning.

fernly• 7 years ago

Expressing gratitude to another, or mindfully thinking about things you are grateful for in the moment, is a recognized technique that has been shown in studies to increase people's self-reported level of contentment. I'm surprised they don't cover journaling, another low-cost, low-effort practice that has been shown to improve subjects' self-reported level of contentment with life.

astura• 7 years ago

Gratitude could certainly be incorporated into a religious or spiritual practice, but it's not inherently a spiritual concept.

The way I was taught to use gratitude to enhance my well being was to consciously think about the things I'm grateful for a write them down. That's it.

DennisP• 7 years ago

Since when is gratitude a religious concept?

That's like saying love is a religious concept, just because some religions talk about love.

sridca26• 7 years ago

Oh, I was making a parallel to religion. As you may already know, even though one becomes atheist that does not necessarily mean they are no longer religious in other aspects of life (here, meditative practices).

slothtrop• 7 years ago

Gratitude as it's frequently been explained to me just sounds like slave-mentality shaming. There's a strong distinction between it and recognizing and accepting what you can and can't change. Genuine gratefulness isn't a bad thing in and of itself. It's not a forced emotion. Gratefulness as a mantra in practice is just guilt tripping, it informs you to feel shame for negative emotions. It's a healthy response to be upset at some circumstances. Being grateful for being dealt a bad hand is for the birds. Someone might chime in to suggest that's not what gratefulness is about - I'll save you some time, I disagree.

dang2• 7 years ago

Please don't break the site guidelines by going on about downvotes like that. It's tedious and self-referential.

Your original comment also broke the site guidelines by calling names and being a shallow dismissal and flamebait. If you'd made your substantive point about gratitude without all that, and neutrally, it might not have been downvoted, though even then it's kind of a generic tangent.

So far, that's at least five site guidelines you broke. Would you mind reviewing them?

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

themodelplumber• 7 years ago

Spending less money on things that aren’t long-lasting, like extravagant gadgets and more bedsheets that I actually need.

My gadgets seem like they will outlast me at this point...which is exactly what makes it hard to continue spending money on them :D (I don't buy bedsheets, is this some kind of hobby?)

I do personally count ham radio as one of those "experiences plus gadgets" hobbies though; it's been a lot of fun in that way. It gives me more reasons to get out and exercise (radio play), make little trips (club breakfasts and event volunteering), and reach goals (stuff to talk about with friends). I feel like the friendships I make through the hobby are about 10x more resilient than other friendships.

There is a "spin the dial" philosophy in ham radio that I have taken into other friendships. There will always be someone else to talk to, so stop hanging around as if you're stuck with your current conversation partner. If things aren't going well, give the frequency dial a spin and see who else is around.

keyle• 7 years ago

Sadly, the article read more like "teenager discovers the things her parents failed to teach her". Sorry I'm too old for this. Maybe the class is great, but the article was uninspiring.

tnegoshi• 7 years ago

Hmm, I agree the article was uninspiring.

I looked into the course a bit more though and one of the first lectures addresses this preconception people seem to go into the course with in what the professor calls the "GI Joe Fallacy." She refers to it as "this mistaken idea that knowing is half the battle."

There will undoubtedly be behavioral practices or studies in positive psychology you may have come across before, but there is a difference in knowing those things vs. putting them to use through conscious, habitual effort.

I can't speak to how good the course is on that type of learned discipline, but it might be worth another go if you were interested enough to read the article.

rchaud• 7 years ago

Sadly, the article read more like "teenager discovers the things her parents failed to teach her". Sorry I'm too old for this.

When you were 18, how concrete was your definition of well-being? Remember, this is a class being taught at Yale, whose incoming students are likely already high achievers. On top of that, a 10% admissions rate tells incoming students that they will simply have to keep climbing the ladder of GPAs, internships, varsity sports etc. for the next 4 years, and after that, for the rest of their lives.

I haven't taken this particular class, but I went through 4 years of college feeling like a failure if any one of the above "todos" didn't pan out, because it made me feel like I was closer to the bottom of the pile than the top. At that age, all you can see are the trees, not the forest

Looking back, it would've been nice to have had some perspective on what it's all for. Before you know it, you've graduated, and you can't go back and try to do things differently.

NicoJuicy3• 7 years ago

I posted it here because the summary on the course seemed likeable.

Eg.

- Money doesn't create happiness ( and what they don't mention: being short on money makes unhappy, my 2 cents)

- never ever forget exercise, it makes you feel better and healthier

- make time for friends and family, not every relationship needs to have a meaning future-wise

And that related to me. Not "mumbo-jumbo" and spirituality like some comments below mention.

Or my TLDR; have enough of money, you don't need plenty.

Have plenty of time, you never have enough.

dorchadas• 7 years ago

- Money doesn't create happiness ( and what they don't mention: being short on money makes unhappy, my 2 cents)

I had this exact conversation with my uncle and dad the other day. It was basically along the lines of, "Those who say money doesn't make you happy have never been low on money trying to meet bills." Perhaps we're really cynical, but I feel this is a good point that many things don't address (though I am aware of the studies that show money does increase happiness, up to a point, around $75k USD if I remember).

That said, "Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy the things that make me happy."

logicx24• 7 years ago

I agree with you. Money can't create happiness on its own, but as a reasonably happy person, I'd much prefer to have more money than less.

NicoJuicy3• 7 years ago

Or it can buy experiences, it doesn't make you appreciate the little things that make it awesome though ;)

In the same reasoning, most of my friends have no "lack of money", in the sense that they are'nt filthy rich. But they earn good money.

I have noticed that almost none of them are jealous of each other. Which are truly the best friends to have.

Don't get me started about people who complain all the time, but just want to talk the talk, without doing the walk. They won't bring joy, ever.

Some people are a lot richer, so what. I would also never went to trade places with someone who is a millionaire suddenly and have all their friends change because of that single thing.

Appreciating what you have is not such a rare thing ( outside of IT). But it's almost never mentioned here, everyone wants to start the next unicorn, while forgetting that a solid business/job keeps you more sane.

pmiller2• 7 years ago

That study was nearly 10 years ago. A newer study[0] found that the number is closer to $105k.

[0] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-017-0277-0

cik2e• 7 years ago

The trope of "money doesn't create happiness" applies only to people who already have their financial freedom. I completely agree that aspiring to get a bigger house or a nicer car when you already have a big house and a nice car is pretty shallow and speaks to an underlying inferiority issue that more money won't cure.

The rest of us on the other hand would be anywhere from a little to much much happier if we had student loans, mortgages, kids' educations, and retirement savings all taken care of.

The prospect of having to slog through life in a glacial pursuit of these things fills me with dread. For me there isn't much of an option beyond becoming successful as an entrepreneur. It's not even so much about the money but having complete ownership. Having to work until 65 running a mildly successful business that I built seems like it shoild be much more gratifying than slaving away to enrich others.

ohyeshedid3• 7 years ago

As someone that grew up very poor, worked very hard for a long time and got very lucky, to then make a lot of money:

I like to look at it as the power of money to most people isn't what it adds to your life, it's what it takes away. No more fears about bills, no more worrying about being broke or stressing over the monetary concerns. That/those are the first plateau. Once those things are gone some people are going to be a lot happier, but sometimes money wasn't the actual cause of your unhappiness; just one of many causes amidst the pile. You might be more happy, or less stressed, neither, or both.

These concepts are nebulous at best, but I'm curious how one measures an increase in happiness versus a decrease of stress. Likely a fair amount of comorbidity at play.

winningcontinue• 7 years ago

thanks for putting it clearly and succinctly. I think that's a much better view than what a lot of self improvement books offer.

farahday• 7 years ago

I struggle with the last one, I make time for family and two somewhat close friends but I have a really bad tendency to cut off/not keep relstionships that have no obvious immediate or even long term benefit be it similar interests etc. I always have to change gyms every 8 months because it after that it becomes too awkward further avoiding conversations with people you see most of the week. If I talk to him once, that means I would have to talk to/greet him everytime i visit. If i did that for just a dozen people thats 25% of the time spent in the gym gone like that. This thought process takes over in many other situations including the workplace. I once avoided this guy at an agency I worked on a clshort term contract, he wasn't on my team/area so I used to kind of ignore(?)/not strike a conversation. I found out 4 months later he was the CEO on the project retrospect meeting. All four of the other contractors were given extensions except me. I know 100% it wasn't performance related because my team lead fully expected me to be back but told me it was a decided by "top management".

I am in my late 20s and have asked one women out, a few years ago (fwiw she turned out to be a lesbian). For me to approach a women she would have to be wife potential. Why would i waste time & money with some women with no potential (with me)? I have friends that do this and it confuses me, they they theyd never wife her and complain about wasting a whole weekended wasted together, but do it just for the sex. I've tried sex and it was unbelievably and depressingly underwhelming. Sex with condoms is a huge scam on men. I'd much rather jerk off at home.

This cavalier, selfish and aloof attitude is one I am 100% limit my career and happiness but I really doubt I will change.

NicoJuicy3• 7 years ago

I always have to change gyms every 8 months because it after that it becomes too awkward further avoiding conversations with people you see most of the week. I

Just say hi and talk a minute in the beginning. Put your headphones in.

When you go heavy on the bench, you can ask someone at least.

-- I think a long time ago, I used to be like you ( not that extreme). But I started going out and quickly changed my behavior. The small overhead of saying hello and being nice in general, makes it less obvious that you filter out successful people ( sometimes).

Or the small talk with other people, when something is happening. You are the point of reference. Not someone who never says hello

closeparen• 7 years ago

Getting a raise from an adequate salary to a great one made it possible to move to the city and eliminate my commute, buying me more hours and energy for exercise and lower-friction access to my friends.

Money buys urban real estate, and urban real estate buys happiness.

EnderViaAnsible• 7 years ago

I'm glad to hear of this class. I think I'll take it in order to see if I can learn some things I didn't know.

That said, the article is very poorly written. The author appears to not have a good understanding of what constitutes standards of proof in the social sciences, and in what way studies in social sciences ought to be spoken about.

(For example, they refer to a landmark Princeton study that "proved" money doesn't equal happiness, then states that some later studies with a different demographic "disproved" this.

But the first study did not prove anything by most meanings of the word, nor did the second disprove it. They provided evidence, suggested conclusions, invited interpretation...etc. You can't prove lasting things about changing statistical aggregates, nor prove things about individuals based on group statistics. That is not how statistics works.)

Then there is the cheesy bit where they show themselves "scoring points" on a professor who "concedes" that a car could be an experience, if you can focus on the experience of driving it...but frankly she's gently correcting them, not conceding a point. (Note that these scare quotes are my interpretation; they are not said in the article.)

I do think in general that I don't like this folksy let's-pretend-the-journo-knows-nothing-because-some-readers-won't style. Perhaps it's an imperfection of mine rather than the author's.

I'd rather they just tell me what they know or found out, or quote the authority, because I don't find the fact that they had a conversation with the authority human-interesting. (That is, I think they're angling for a human interest style in this sort of piece, but there is nothing of human interest in showing me you had a conversation with a person.)

User236• 7 years ago

This is why I’m religious. Christianity, in accordance with scripture and tradition, is a path to mental and spiritual well-being that was tested by my ancestors for millennia.

Sadly, as scripture tells us, many (most) people who claim to be Christians are wolves in sheep’s clothing. But there are plenty of wolves hiding in the guise of the other paths too. Caveat emptor.

notfromhere3• 7 years ago

Until very recently, your ancestors didn't have too much of a choice.

User236• 7 years ago

Every single one of my ancestors, back to the first, had a choice.

lucas_membrane• 7 years ago

I was part of a group that took the free on-line class together a while back. It is not well-named, being not about 'well-being', rather entirely focused on 'happiness.' In addition, as the course is given at Yale, a college community enclave, the viewpoints of the participants are somewhat peculiar to young people who are still preparing to live in a society that is not all about them. Those two, three or four times the age of the college kids will find it hard to identify.

circlefavshape• 7 years ago

"Subjective well-being", as far as I can tell, is psychologists' code-word for plain old happiness

Yale's online class on “The Science of Well-Being”

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