On Happiness

Abstract

What do anthropologists have to say about happiness? For some contributors in this Vital Topics Forum, happiness is a sensory force that colors and shapes human evolution and experience. Others consider happiness, or the lack thereof, to be a faceted reflection of the arrangements in society. All recognize the potential power of human happiness, where a distant memory, fleeting experience, or idealized vision can serve as a driving force in transformative change, prompting individual and collective desire and action to give new meaning, sustain life and livelihood, restore dignity, make peace … to dream again. [trouble, happiness, well‐being, engaged anthropology]

Happiness: Notes on History, Culture and Governance

“…Others, such as Ferguson (2007), Ehrenreich (2009Ehrenreich ( , 2010, and McDonald and O'Callaghan (2008), have similarly explored the connections between the concern with happiness and neoliberalism. Finally, some scholars have begun to criticize the ethnocentrism of purportedly universally valid cross-cultural measures of happiness by both situating disciplines such as positive psychology as cultural artifacts (Christopher and Hickinbottom 2008), and exploring non-EuroAmerican constructions of well-being (e.g., Johnston et al 2012;Mathews and Izquierdo 2009).…”

“…comparison of phenomena as elusive and contextually specific as happiness and well-being. Recently, however, anthropology has both criticized the ethnocentrism of much cross-cultural happiness research, and launched its own efforts at comparative analyses that do not violate the integrity or reduce the complexity of cultural systems (Johnston et al 2012;Mathews and Izquierdo 2009;Thin 2009).…”

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“…Also, additional activities are often provided, such as yoga, art, and lectures on numerous topics. These events typically last for days and are held outdoors (St John, 2012a, 2012bSylvan, 2005).…”

“…The key component in these events is the technologically produced dance music, continuously mixed by DJs, for long durations (sometimes up to 12 hours or longer) and with the purpose of encouraging people to dance. Additional elements that comprise most EDM events include elaborate decorations and visual effects, such as lights that flash to the rhythm of the music, lasers, wall projections depicting symbols, images, film, and sometimes, theatrical performances and dancers on stage with the DJ (Gauthier, 2004;Hutson, 2000;St John, 2012b;Sylvan, 2005;Takahashi, 2005).…”

The Value of Reproductive Labor

“…Briefly, we consider happiness a constellation of positive feelings and mental states associated with contentment and joy; dignity deriving from an individual's inalienable right to respect, self‐worth, and self‐esteem that is conferred on them by others and recognized by themselves; and social legitimacy as the collective endorsement, by one's family and community members, of a specific activity or behavior as proper or appropriate (Johnston et al. ). We explored each of these concepts thoroughly with the people we interviewed, both guest workers and others living in the same communities, not only asking them directly about their sources of happiness, dignity, and social legitimacy but also paying attention to the contexts of the interviews where the three concepts were introduced voluntarily.…”