Some good news for philosophers!
Based on a recent study by psychologist Matthias Mehl, happier people tend to spend more time engaging in deep conversations and not very much on small talk. According to a New York Times article, Mehl proposes that the reason is two-fold: most of us enjoy social interaction and talking in general, and we also crave to find or unlock a sense of purpose or meaning in our lives. So by discussing with a partner questions like, “What does it all mean? Where did we come from? What is the best way to live a good life? Do I matter?” we satisfy a longing for connection with that other person, and also, in Mehl’s words, “manage to impose meaning on an otherwise pretty chaotic world.”
So it seems that perhaps you may be a happier person by discussing (or questioning) happiness itself –– or, in fact, its opposite: any “deep” topic will do. (This would make even the existentialists giddy in their angst!)
Monday, March 22, 2010
Happy News
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1 comments:
Interesting topic, although correlation is not causation. Perhaps people who are happier are more likely to engage in deep conversation? Perhaps a third factor-- such as intelligence or free time-- causes both happiness and deep conversation?
It's an interesting correlation, but I'm not convinced whether there's a causal link.
http://xkcd.com/552/
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