How Do Mental Health Researchers Define Happiness?

How you define happiness may impact how you experience it. For example, if you believe that it’s a state of joy you “should” be experiencing most of the time, you may actually find it harder to feel content. For a personalized but realistic definition of happiness, it can help to understand what the research says about it, then consider your own goals and desires in this area. For more help defining or working toward happiness, you might find it useful to work with a therapist online or in person.

Happiness, defined

Happiness is generally thought of as a positive emotional experience, but the possible definitions of it beyond this are many. Some research suggests that it tends to include any or all of the following key components:

• Feelings of pleasure and joy
• A sense of purpose and meaning
• Life satisfaction

That said, the type of happiness a person wants or how they experience it can vary widely depending on the individual, their culture, and other factors. Regardless of the exact form it may take, research has linked overall happiness to a reduced risk of depression, fewer physical health challenges, and even a longer lifespan. If you’re struggling to find happiness in your daily life, you might benefit from working with a therapist.

How psychologists measure joy and happiness

Happiness can be highly subjective, which can make it hard to measure. Cross-sectional studies on the topic may all use different criteria, each of which might offer a deeper understanding of this experience. Common measures of happiness include the following:

• Current and remembered emotion, which is what many people think of when asked about their happiness level
• Subjective well-being, or a person’s own perception of their overall mental, physical, emotional, social, and spiritual health
• Life evaluation, which is a person’s own judgment of how satisfied they are with their life as a whole. It may take into account any aspects of life the person considers impactful and important to them, such as connectedness, stability, fulfillment, etc.

Types of happiness

Another consideration when defining happiness is thinking about the different types, which can stem from different sources. For example:

• Hedonic happiness and well-being is the type “that is achieved when pleasure is obtained, and pain is avoided”
• Eudiamonic happiness and well-being is the type “that is achieved through self-actualization and having meaningful purpose in one’s life”

While both types may bring positive feelings, they can have different impacts on a person’s overall happiness and well-being over the longer term. A 2023 article published in Frontiers in Psychology reports that hedonic motivation “does not robustly influence individual life satisfaction” when compared to eudaimonic motivation. In other words, pursuing meaningful goals might make a person happier in the long term than pursuing pleasure for the sake of it. This finding also suggests that pursuing hedonic happiness only may actually “backfire,” since it’s unlikely to bring lasting satisfaction on its own.

How culture and values can shape happiness

A data analysis from 2023 suggests that although “dimensions of happiness appear to be uniform across diverse cultures, culture can shape” both how people pursue happiness and how much this happiness actually improves their subjective well-being. 

For example, people in collectivist cultures may be more likely to seek happiness and fulfillment through community than people in more individualistic cultures. When considering your own happiness levels, it might be useful to think about your culture, how it defines happiness, and how your cultural values may affect your happiness levels.

Are money, possessions, or experiences associated with more happiness?

Is there truth to the saying, “Money can’t buy happiness?” Psychological science research findings on the topics of money, material possessions, and happiness are nuanced.

First, society today requires people to have enough money to pay for their basic needs, like food, safe housing, education, and quality healthcare. It may be more difficult to positively evaluate your life and feel happy if your basic needs are not met, or if you’re experiencing the constant stress of housing instability or poverty. This may be why researchers suggest that money correlates with happiness up to a point—roughly $90,000 a year in income in the US, according to one study—after which more money doesn’t lead to any additional happiness.

There’s also evidence to suggest that “experiential purchases (such as trips or outdoor recreation) represent a more promising route to enduring consumer happiness than the consumption of material goods.” In other words, spending money or time on experiences that you find fulfilling may bring more happiness than accumulating material possessions.

Happiness across the lifespan

Happiness levels or contributing factors to happiness may also change across the life course. As circumstances, needs, and priorities change, people may come to find joy or fulfillment in different things than they used to. Evaluating and reevaluating the people, activities, and values that bring you happiness may be a normal part of adult development. This may be one reason why research suggests that happiness levels tend to resemble a U-shape throughout a person’s life, with many experiencing a dip in mid-life but higher levels of satisfaction in youth and older age.

What the World Happiness Report can teach us

The World Happiness Report is an annual publication from the Columbia Earth Institute that surveys more than 100,000 people across 140 countries about their happiness. Instead of asking specifically about emotional happiness levels, it asks participants a “life evaluation” question, which is designed to empower people to “make their own judgements about what matters most, regardless of their culture and background.”

A few key findings from the report in recent years include:

• Problematic social media use may negatively impact happiness levels and lead to other negative outcomes.
• Social connection appears to be a consistent driver of happiness. 
• Frequently sharing meals with others may be a particularly “strong indicator of subjective well-being.”
• Acts of altruism may benefit the happiness and well-being of both parties involved.

For support in understanding happiness or finding more of it in your day-to-day life, working with an online therapist may be useful.

Tips for increasing happiness

Happiness can be a complex experience with many contributing factors. It can also be somewhat individualized, with certain situations or experiences increasing happiness for some and not for others. Finally, some factors that influence happiness may not be within a person’s control, such as genetics or socioeconomic barriers.

That said, some practices may help you work toward increasing daily happiness, satisfaction, and fulfillment in your own life, such as the following.

Define happiness for yourself

If you want to experience increased happiness, it can help to know exactly what you’re working toward. To that end, you might take some time to reflect on:

• Your current perception or definition of happiness
• The way your culture defines happiness
• How researchers look at it

You might find that the definition of happiness you’ve been holding on to isn’t yours or isn’t realistic. Adjusting your definition accordingly may be an important next step.

Aim for a realistic outlook

Research suggests that human emotions—including happiness—typically don’t last longer than 10 minutes at a time. In other words, expecting to feel happy and joyful all the time may not be realistic, so you might adjust your expectations. Instead, you might focus on finding fulfillment in your life and savoring moments of true joy when they do arise.

Practice gratitude and mindfulness

Gratitude and mindfulness are two skills that might help you feel more joy or contentment in everyday life. First, a gratitude practice has been linked to better health and increased happiness, and it can be as simple as saying or writing down three things you’re grateful for each day.

Next, mindfulness involves being aware of the present moment without judgment. Practicing mindfulness training and meditation for a few minutes each day may help you get better at tapping into this awareness. As a result, you might be better able to notice and savor the joy in small moments.

Set personal goals

Finally, you might also focus on working toward eudaimonic happiness by cultivating a sense of meaning and purpose in your life. It can start with getting to know yourself and your core values so you can identify what’s most important to you. This self-discovery process may help you set and then work toward personal goals that you find meaningful, which might increase happiness and life satisfaction over time.

Can a therapist help you work toward happiness?

If you’re consistently feeling unhappy or unsatisfied, it might be useful to explore these emotions with a therapist. They may help you:

• Unpack how you define happiness
• Address any obstacles to your well-being
• Develop effective strategies for mindfully enjoying positive emotions and experiences and dealing with negative ones

If you’re feeling unhappy due to a mental health condition, such as depression, a therapist can also provide treatment for your symptoms.

Getting support through BetterHelp

While mental health professionals can often provide valuable support, commuting to a therapist’s office each week for in-person sessions isn’t possible for everyone. Whether you have a busy schedule or few therapists in your area, you might find online therapy to be a more convenient way to receive care.

Platforms like BetterHelp match you with a licensed therapist based on the needs and preferences you share in a questionnaire. Once you’ve been matched, you can meet with your provider for virtual sessions via phone, video, or live chat. You can also make use of digital tools to support your mental health journey, such as habit tracking, journaling features, group sessions, and more.

Does online therapy really work?

Researchers have studied the effectiveness of many different forms of online therapy. In general, studies suggest that virtual mental health care can often be as effective as in-person care. For example, a 2021 review indicates that online cognitive behavioral therapy may be effective in treating symptoms of depression.