The Hidden Happiness of Russians

Evgeny Osin spoke about the measurements of happiness, the index of happiness and happiness of Russians

“Happiness is an emotional state, which, like a thermometer, shows whether everything is going well in life: if the temperature is fine, then there is nothing to worry about, but if it is elevated, then there are some reasons for this,” says Evgeny.

Osin says happiness research began about 50-60 years ago. The term itself is general and vague, within the framework of scientific research it is impossible to rely on it, since the ideas of different people about happiness can be completely different. In the early 70s, American psychologist Ed Diener suggested replacing the term "happiness" with another concept - "subjective well-being", which consists of two components: an assessment of the satisfaction of one's life on a scale from 0 to 10 and the ratio of positive and negative emotions.

In 2011, the UN adopted a resolution urging countries to assess the happiness of their people and use it as a guideline in state policy. Every year, the UN publishes the World Happiness Report, which is based on data from the Gallup Foundation, the American institute of public opinion. There is another ranking of countries' happiness - the World Happiness Index from the British research center New Economic Foundation.

“Many countries create effective polls, on the basis of which they adjust government policies. I think this is definitely a useful activity. This feedback provides a valuable connection for developing the right policy, if the government really cares about people living well”.

As for Russia, according to the expert, according to all ratings, our country is more unhappy than the average country in the world. To come to this conclusion, we investigated the level of social trust, mentality, freedom or opportunity to choose, inequality, a positive agenda in society, the ability to help others, a sense of their importance and self-realization.

“If we strive for happiness, then we do not become happier, but if we strive for something valuable and important, then happiness comes as a by-product,” Evgeny said. The idea of ​​happiness changes with personal growth: gradually comes the understanding that happiness is a way of life, and not things that can be obtained forever.

We asked Envgeny what happiness is for a scientist himself. “For me, first of all, it is contact with myself, the ability to notice what is happening to me, not to ignore my own feelings and needs. And contact with ourself is a necessary condition for contact with others". 

The recording of the online broadcast can be seen on the YouTube channel of the ICAE network: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4hgyu1x9E4

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