Frequently Asked Questions about The Happiness Initiative and The Gross National Happiness Index - projects of The Happiness Initiative, including: Why Happiness? Can Happiness be measured? What does it mean to me?

1. Happiness Alliance
home of The Happiness Initiative & the
Gross National Happiness Index survey
.
Frequently Asked Questions
Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org

2. What is Happiness? Most people think of emotions as defining
happiness. This is one part of happiness. Scientists call it “positive affect” and
“negative affect” meaning feeling happy, joy, sad, angry, stress, or other
emotions. Another important way of defining happiness is “satisfaction with
life,” meaning whether you are living the best life for you and feel your life is
worthwhile. These are usually the only two things used to define happiness.
However, the conditions in which we live influence on our affect and satisfaction
with life. By including the conditions of happiness in a definition of happiness,
we acknowledge the internal and external are integrated. We use the domain
approach created by Bhutan, and adds one domain: work experience. This way,
when you look at your own happiness, you can see where you have balance or
imbalance in your life that fosters or undermines your affect and satisfaction
with life. The conditions or domains of happiness we use to define happiness
(along with affect and satisfaction with life!) are: material wellbeing/standard of
living; governance; environment; community; social support; education, arts &
culture; health; psychological wellbeing; time balance and work experience.
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Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org

3. What are the domains of happiness?
Material wellbeing/standard of living: Financial Security, Meeting Basic Needs
Governance: Confidence in Government, Involvement, Influence
Environment: Access to Nature, Pollution, Conservation and Preservation Efforts
Community: Volunteer time, Safety, Trust
Social Support: Family and Friends, Feeling Lonely, Cared For or Loved
Education, Arts & Culture: Access, Participation and Spectatorship of Sports and
Cultural Activities
Health: Energy Level, Performance of Everyday Activities, Exercise
Psychological Wellbeing: Optimism, Positivity, Purpose, Sense of
Accomplishment
Time Balance: Sufficiency of Time to Complete Tasks, Leisure Time, Enjoyment of
Activities
Work Experience: Productivity, Achievement, Autonomy, Sense of Fair Payment
for Services
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Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org

4. Can you measure happiness?
The field of measuring happiness is
a relatively new development, and this science is becoming more reliable.
The OECD Guidelines on Measuring Wellbeing sets forth the perimeters of
subjective wellbeing (happiness) measures. The World Values Survey, the
Gallup-Healthways survey, The OECD Better Life Index and many other
organizations have been measuring national happiness and wellbeing for
many years using questionnaires developed by scientists. Questions have
been developed which scientists believe offer reliable information about
life satisfaction across cultural divides. Our Gross National Happiness
Index survey is a carefully vetted compendium of many of the most
reliable questions from international surveys.
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Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org

5. What do I get from taking the Gross National Happiness
Index? When you complete the Gross National Happiness Index
survey, you will receive an instantaneous well-being score for each
of the 10 domains and you will be able to compare your score with
the median results for others who have taken the survey. You will
find that the questions in this survey encourage you to think about
your life in new ways and about what you can do to be happier.
The Gross National Happiness Index survey takes about 15 minutes
to complete and you cannot stop and start over, so do the survey
when you have a period of free time. It is comprehensive survey
that allows it to give you a comprehensive picture of your wellbeing in comparison to others.
Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org

6. Where does our Gross National Happiness Index survey
come from? A team of researchers from San Francisco State
University's Personality and Wellbeing Lab developed the
Happiness Initiative Gross National Happiness Index survey. It is a
set of internally and externally scientifically validated questions
designed to accurately predict conditions of wellbeing. The
researchers kept the nine domains measured by Bhutan and added
a tenth, workplace experience, identified as an essential condition
of wellbeing by Gallup and others.
Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org

7. Where does our Gross National Happiness Index survey
come from? A team of researchers from San Francisco State
University's Personality and Wellbeing Lab developed the
Happiness Initiative Gross National Happiness Index survey. It is a
set of internally and externally scientifically validated questions
designed to accurately predict conditions of wellbeing. The
researchers kept the nine domains measured by Bhutan and added
a tenth, workplace experience, identified as an essential condition
of wellbeing by Gallup and others.
Happiness Alliance – home of The Happiness Initiative & Gross National Happiness Index Survey
happycounts.org