Human Happiness Midterm

The Great Transformation (Karen Armstrong)

2500 years ago, Axial Age, Emergence of Judeo-Christian, Hebrew Prophets, Classical Greek, Buddhist, Hindu, Taoist, Confucian Thought Expanding markets, materialism, violence, break down of community Themes: Compassion, Empathy, Sharing, Common Humanity, Temperance

40% Solution

50% genetics, 40% intentional activities, and 10%life circumstances (Sonja Lyubomirsky) 40% Solution: 'There is no happiness without action.' If feelings of passivity and futility overcome you whenever you face up to your happiness set point or to your circumstances, you must know that a genuine and abiding happiness is indeed within your reach, lying within the 40 percent of the happiness pie chart that's yours to guide." 50% of our happiness is determined by our genetics and that we have what they call a "happiness set point"—a level of happiness we tend to gravitate toward. So 50% is FIXED. We can't do anything about it. 10% of our happiness that's determined by our life circumstances. Most people spend all their energy on this variable but research shows that increasing our wealth, attractiveness and stuff like that has both a negligible and a temporary impact on our well-being. our behavior. Thus the key to happiness lies not in changing our genetic makeup (which is impossible) and not in changing our circumstances (i.e., seeking wealth or attractiveness or better colleagues, which is usually impractical), but in our daily intentional activities.

Depression Gene

5HTTLPR is a short version allele of this gene. Those with this gene coupled with reporting high life stress are more prone to depression than those with long alleles of this gene. Those this long allele of this gene are more resilient to stress. Because this gene is shown to express itself only from stress. 40% Solution indicates that we have some control over this.

Homo Economicus

Central Assumptions of Economics (Rational choice theory), psychology (learning theory), and early evolutionary though Self interest roots in gratifying personal desires Human minds, interests, well-being are fundamentally separate from others Cynicism, hard edged competitiveness wins

Circle of Care and common humanity

Circle of care: give rise to the sense of a belief in equality, compassion. Share a sense of similarity among a group of people. Common humanity: We were all infants, we all have families, we all experience grief, and laugh; we all suffer; we all die. Awe -- standing in the presence of something massive -- primes a sense of common humanity with others. Peter Singer (1981): Evolving Circle of Care

The Empathic Brain

Cognitive Empathy See another feel fear, disgust, sadness, mirth Ventromedial prefrontal cortex, dorsal prefrontal cortex, temporal parietal junction, medial temporal lobe Measured by ability to judge emotion from faces, voices, body Predicts better grades, relationships, upwards mobility, Affective empathy Friend given a painful experience Friend socially rejected Dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, anterior insula, inferior frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobe

Darwin: Survival of the Kindest

Communities with the greatest number of sympathetic members would flourish best and rear the greatest number of offspring

Circle of Care

Compassion gave humans sense of empathy to narrow circle of family and friends, but this circle has expanded

Compassion

Compassion gave humans sense of empathy to narrow circle of family and friends, but this circle has expanded Predicts more volunteering, reduced punitive attitudes towards wrong doers, greater forgiveness in relationships, reduced costs of giving, increased sense of common humanity, self-other similarity

Constructivist vs. Evolutionary Approach to Compassion

Constructivist: Emotion: Language, beliefs, concepts Are emotions universal? No Origins of emotions: Values, institutions, social practices Philosophers: Martha Nussbaum, Immanuel Kant, Ayn Rand, Friedrich Nietzsche, Machiavelli Emotion: Physiological processes in the body Are emotions universal? Yes Origins of emotions: Natural selection Philosophers: Darwin, Peter Singer

Happiness Equation

Feeling Good/Bad about life Positive Emotion, Social Connection, Calm Mind

Prosocial Nervous System

Reactions in Vagus Nerve (Peripheral Nervous System) when viewing images of harm compared to other images

Buddhism

Siddhartha Gautama Born as Prince in India or Nepal, renounced title after encountering disease, and old man, discovered Nirvana and 4 noble truths under the Bodhi Tree 4 Noble Truths 1. Life is suffering, frustration 2. Cause of suffering, clinging, grasping, ignorance 3. Release Nirvana, disengage from grasping 4. 8 fold practice/path: action, thought, friendship/loving kindness, equanimity, compassion joy, kind speech, non judgmental mindfulness Maitri: Friendship/Loving/Kindness Upeksha: Equanimity Karuna: Compassion Mudita: Joy

Overthinking

thinking too much, needlessly, passively, endlessly, and excessively pondering the meanings, causes, and consequences of your character, your feelings, and your problems Overthinking impairs problem solving, worsens sadness, fosters negatively biased thinking, saps motivation, and interferes with concentration and initiative. Creates an overly pessimistic perspective on life.

Principle of Serviceable Habits

useful habits reinforced previously, and then inherited by offspring disgusted face - vomiting angry face - attack mode

Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness

Abstract description of the social and physical environment in which the human species evolved Within this environment certain genetically based traits (avoid food with four odor - decay) led to greater success in the games of survival and reproduction, and became encoded in the human genome

Utilitarianism

Age of Enlightenment - Reason, individual rights, science, freedom, industrialization all rise Happiness in freedom, actions that promote happiness for the greatest number of people, is an individual right J.S.Mill, Jeremy Bentham Happiness is found in actions that maximize the well-being of those around me. Happiness is found in actions that promote happiness for the greatest number of people, and bring about the least misery (Bentham: Greater Good) Happiness is an individual right - Thomas Jefferson and The Declaration of Independence on inalienable rights: "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Cooperation

Basic choice and force in evolution: Nuclear Arms race marriage: Collaborate or separate Business: Mutually beneficial or adversarial Relation between cells, genes, organisms Social Life: Speech, navigating space, play, eating, driving Intuitive tendency toward cooperation Public Goods Game in groups of 4 Give between 0 and 40 cents to group fund: Each gift was doubled and then split amongst group, make decisions within 10 sec, give 65%, after 10 sec, give 50% Tit-for-Tat Evolution of Cooperation Prisoners Dilemma tournament of different strategies R1: 14 strategies players 200 rounds with each other R2: 62 strategies played 2-- rounds with each other Winner: Tit-for-tat: start cooperatively, mirror response of partner Ethics: Begin cooperatively, easy to read, not envious, not exploitable, forgives Machiavellian Approach Power = force, fraud, manipulation, violent Works in violent contexts, short term Fails compared to collaborative protests Fails in UC Senate Fate of Machiavellians: Don't rise in ranks, less pay, less respect, social isolation Promote Cooperation: Communicate before playing, audible laughter, smile, touch NBA teams who touched more were more efficient during season, won more games, cooperated with teammates more (set picks, helped out on defense, tipped balls, etc) Cooperation brings own rewards Reward circuit includes Ventral tegmental area (VTA), Nucleus Accumbens, Pre-Frontal Cortex (PFC) Enthusiasm, goal directed delight Activated by various directed delight Pretty faces, food, music, pleasurable scenes, winning money, heroin, amphetamines, cocaine Cooperation activates reward circuit 36 women play PDG while being scanned, when cooperating, Nucleus Accumbens, ventral caudate, and ventromedial/orbitfrontal cortex were activated Reputation Promotes Cooperation within a Social System Content, Spread, and Function Reputation arise quickly, within a week when members of dorms are surveyed about trustworthiness of peers Awareness of others' reward makes us more cooperative Upside-down dots: 60% give money to stranger Dots evocative of human face: 75% give money to stranger Gossip: know which uncooperative types to avoid Commentary about someone's reputation within a social network, focus on making strong groups Targets Machiavellians, flows to high status individuals, makes groups more cooperative Gossip prevents non-cooperators from gaining power Well-known machiavellian prime targets of gossip Gossip enhances cooperation Play 6 rounds of public goods game Give to group, Gift increased and redistributed in groups of 4 Each round move to a new group Could gossip (give note to future players) less contribution, gossip and prevent from playing next round (ostracize) - most contribution, or just play least contribution

Apology

Apology is a vital, often necessary, step toward assuaging feelings of humiliation, promoting forgiveness, and restoring balance to a relationship. Apology → forgiveness Four parts to the structure of an effective apology: 1. Acknowledgement of the offense 2. Explanation 3. Expressions of remorse, shame, and humility 4. Reparation

Nichomachean Ethics

Aristotle and Moderation Being angry with the right person and to the right degree is not easy Bring desires down to present means Increase only when your increased means permit Virtue at the end of life

Moderation - Aristotle

Aristotle: Moderation Anybody can become angry - that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy Bring your desires down to your present means. Increase them only when your increased means permit Happiness is found in balance, moderation, having passions that are suitable to the context The feeling of virtue at the end of life

Awe

Awe arises when perceiving power that is obscure Being in the presence of something vast, beyond current understanding From self interest to collective interest From isolated self to integrated self Break down us vs. them thinking Awe, vastness > virtuous behavior Piloerection (Goosebumps): Sympathetic ANS response; contraction of muscle around hair follicle Mammals: responding to threat, especially socially Zebrafish vibrate when facing novelty Comes from magnanimity, birth, nature Communal vs. Hierarchical awe More democratized awe

Piff et al. - Awe, the Small Self, and Prosocial Behavior

Awe is an emotional response to perceptually vast stimuli that transcend current frames of reference. Guided by conceptual analyses of awe as a collective emotion, across 5 studies (N 2,078) we tested the hypothesis that awe can result in a diminishment of the individual self and its concerns, and increase prosocial behavior. In a representative national sample (Study 1 - Dispositional Levels of Awe Predict Generosity in an Economic Game), dispositional tendencies to experience awe predicted greater generosity in an economic game above and beyond other prosocial emotions (e.g., compassion). In follow-up experiments, inductions of awe (relative to various control states) increased ethical decision-making (Study 2 - Awe Increases Ethicality via Feelings of a Small Self), generosity (Study 3 - Awe Increases Generosity via the Small Self), and prosocial values (Study 4 - Negative Awe and Nonnature Awe Increase Prosociality via the Small Self). Finally, a naturalistic induction of awe in which participants stood in a grove of towering trees enhanced prosocial helping behavior and decreased entitlement compared to participants in a control condition (Study 5 - Awe and Prosocial Behavior Amid a Grove of Towering Trees). Mediational data demonstrate that the effects of awe on prosociality are explained, in part, by feelings of a small self. These findings indicate that awe may help situate individuals within broader social contexts and enhance collective concern. Awe arises in evanescent experiences. Looking up at the starry expanse of the night sky. Gazing out across the blue vastness of the ocean. Feeling amazed at the birth and devel- opment of a child. Protesting at a political rally or watching a favorite sports team live. Many of the experiences people cherish most are triggers of the emotion we focused on here— awe. Our investigation indicates that awe, although often fleet- ing and hard to describe, serves a vital social function. By diminishing the emphasis on the individual self, awe may encourage people to forego strict self-interest to improve the welfare of others. Future research should build on these initial findings to further uncover the ways in which awe shifts people away from being the center of their own individual worlds, toward a focus on the broader social context and their place within it. Study 1: Dispositional Levels of Awe Predict Generosity in Economic Game Conclusion: Increased tendencies to experience awe were positively and significantly associated with generosity in both versions of the dictator game (give tickets to partner). Study 2: Awe Increases Ethicality via Feelings of a Small Self Conclusion: Awe induction increased small self ratings compared with the pride and neutral inductions (Give back extra change). Study 3: Awe Increases Generosity via the Small Self (Same ticket game) Conclusion: The awe condition led to greater small self ratings than did the amusement or neutral conditions. Awe induction increased generosity relative to the amusement and neutral conditions. Awe leads to increased generosity via the small self. Study 4: Negative Awe and Non-nature Awe Increase Prosociality via the Small Self (Videos of threatening natural phenomena, non-nature: droplets in slo-mo) Conclusion: These findings indicate that the negative and non-nature-based awe conditions elicited similar increases in the small self that were significantly higher than the neutral condition. The two awe conditions increased prosocial tendencies compared with the neutral condition. This analysis indicates that awe leads to prosocial tendencies via the small self. Small self can be aroused by entities both large and small Study 5: Awe and Prosocial Behavior Amid a Grove of Towering Trees (1m looking up at atypically large trees, 1m looking at typical tall building) Conclusion: Participants in the awe condition gathered more pens. Participants in the awe condition exhibited marginally greater ethical tendencies. Participants in the awe condition chose smaller circles to represent themselves in relation to others

Signs of Compassion

Awe, Ecstasy, Interest, Sympathy, Triumph, Contentment, Origins of Om (Sacred sound in Hinduism, Buddhism)

Rand, Greene, and Nowak - Spontaneous giving and calculated greed

Cooperation is central to human social behavior. However, choosing to cooperate requires individuals to incur a personal cost to benefit others. Here we explore the cognitive basis of cooperative decision-making in humans using a dual-process framework10-18. We ask whether people are predisposed towards selfishness, behav- ing cooperatively only through active self-control; or whether they are intuitively cooperative, with reflection and prospective reason- ing favouring 'rational' self-interest. To investigate this issue, we perform ten studies using economic games. We find that across a range of experimental designs, subjects who reach their decisions more quickly are more cooperative. Furthermore, forcing subjects to decide quickly increases contributions, whereas instructing them to reflect and forcing them to decide slowly decreases con- tributions. Finally, an induction that primes subjects to trust their intuitions increases contributions compared with an induction that promotes greater reflection. To explain these results, we propose that cooperation is intuitive because cooperative heuristics are developed in daily life where cooperation is typically advantageous. We then validate predictions generated by this proposed mechanism. Our results provide convergent evidence that intuition supports coopera- tion in social dilemmas, and that reflection can undermine these cooperative impulses.

Precursors to Science of Happiness

Darwin: Evolution of positive emotions Freud: Pleasure in sex, aggression, catharsis and release of tension through art, dreams, therapeutic expression Marx: Alienation (working class), work, thoughts, and values are controlled by those who control capital, means of production Humanistic Movements: Self-actualization

Hypersociality / Evolution

Divide Labor, Forage, Hunt, Share Food, Provide for others

Friendship

Evolutionary Theory: reciprocal altruism (Cooperation with non-kin; trade kindness) - cooperate in childrearing, defense, resource gathering, hunting Alliance formation as hierarchy leveling mechanism as counter to alpha females, males Sexual Selection theory: Cooperative peer networks of potential reproductive partners; explore productive possibilities Qualities Reciprocity, Sameness, Common humanity, Behavioral mimicry, Emotional synchrony, Share laughter, touch Oxytocin Tend and befriend, rewards closenesss, counteracts stress Neural bases of connection Uterine contractions, breast feeding, regulating blood pressure, glucose production, vasodilation, extends to amygdala (inhibits) and forebrain Nonhuman evidence: Prairie voles (pair bond) differ in oxytocin receptors in brain compared to Montane voles (promiscuous), predict pair bonding and care-giving in non-human species Oxytocin increases empathy, generosity, gaze at the face, face memory Warm soothing touch elicits oxytocin Mutual gaze elicits oxytocin Expressions of gratitude associated with expression of oxytocin-related gene related to plasma levels of oxytocin Smile in egalitarian primates used as tool of friendship Duchenne smile Left frontal lobe activation, increased happiness, 9 mo olds show to parents, not strangers, evokes happiness, trust in others, triggers dopamine release in perceiver Strong Social Support Those who report weak social support 1.9 - 3.1x more likely to have died 9 yrs later Live longer, greater happiness Lower levels of cortisol (increase in cortisol correlated with loneliness) Public speaking with friend in audience reduces blood pressure and lowers cortisol Women with breast cancer who are in supportive group therapy better life expectancy compared to non-intervention control Benefits of Friendship Mendoza-Denton Cross race friendships, Reductions in stereotyping, academic benefits, better grades at Columbia, Berkeley, increased trust in institutions, reduced cortisol, inflammation markers

Sacred

Experience of the sacred: Transcendent purpose Small self Sense of Design common substance/humanity self located in broader pattern/force

Best Possible Self

Experiment, subjects went to lab 4 days consecutively to describe their best possible selves, forces people to think about most important goals, those who wrote 20mins per day show immediate increase in positive mood Best Possible Selves exercise, potent intervention to boost mood *benefit most when subject believed exercise "fitted" them building best self today to make future come true power to transform, work toward goals written, forces coherent thoughts, throughout " see big picture" of life Uses of Optimistic thinking Avoid: rumination and overthinking, social comparison

Experimental vs. Correlational

Experiment: isolates and manipulates the independent variable to observe its effect on the dependent variable, and controls the environment in order that extraneous variables may be eliminated. Experiments establish cause and effect. Correlation: identifies variables and looks for a relationship between them.

Elevation - Born to Be Good

Feelings evoked in hearing of others' kindness (chest swelling, goosebumps, tearing) We are wired to be inspired by the good acts of others The emotions that promote the meaningful life are powerfully contagious, which increases their chance for propagation, and their encoding into our nervous systems and their ritualization into cultural practice when you see other people in altruism, want to help people, lead people to be the better person. One of the moral emotions --- inspire people, texts

Hinduism

Freedom from Desire Yogas Breathing, postures 5 Yamas (Prohibitions) Violence, Greed, Sex, Stealing, Lying

War on Compassion

Freudian: Humans have inherent love of murder Libertarianism: To survive, people have to reject morality of altruism Political Theory: Natural people are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy Evolutionary Survival of the Fittest: Natural world is grossly immoral. Natural selection maximizes short sighted selfishness Moral Theory: Sympathy is always blind and weak

Mirth/Amusement

Games, Sociodramatic play, word play, nicknames, imitations, interspecies play Various types of laughs, vocal folds, dominant vs submissive laughs Only 20% of laughs follow humor Mostly used to punctuate speech and fill spaces between utterances Laugh is unique to each person, signal imminent rewards, signs of cooperation Antiphonal laughter - acoustic markers of laughs begin to mimic and synchronize Primates hoot in playful contexts Central Nervous System (brain stem, pons) involved in laughing and regulating breathing Laughter induces systematic exhalation (increased vagus nerve activation), involves muscle relaxation Laughter signals safety, interaction, lighthearted space Brings peace in the face of conflict Bonanno and Keltner More laughter causes better function) reduced anxiety, depression, better social connection 2 years later More anger = worse functioning Laughter causes reduction of cardiovascular stress, quicker return to cardiovascular baseline during stress, cascades of shared humor, jokes and amusement of partners benefit marriage, sense of humor correlates with better health

The Compassionate Instinct - Pay it Forward (Richard Emmons)

Gratitude is more than a pleasant feeling; it is also motivating. Gratitude serves as a key link between receiving and giving: it moves recipients to share and increase the very good they have received. males in particular may resist experiencing and expressing gratefulness insomuch as it implies dependency and indebtedness. American men were less likely to regard gratitude positively than were German men, and were likely to view it as less constructive and useful than their German counterparts. supposedly self-reliant Americans would feel queasy about even discussing it. Gratitude implies humility. gratitude is a deep, complex phenomenon that plays a critical role in human happiness. 1. (once a wk, 10 wks): randomly assigned participants one of three tasks. We decided to encourage some participants to feel gratitude and others to be negative and irritable. third, neutral group by which to measure the others. Gratitude Journal: More optimistic, healthy, 25% happier 2. (every day, 2 wks): gratitude journal reported feeling more joyful, enthusiastic, interested, attentive, energetic, excited, determined, and strong than those in the hassles condition. They also reported offering others more emotional support or help with a personal problem—supporting the notion that gratitude motivates people to do good. more hours of sleep each night, spending less time awake before falling asleep, and feeling more refreshed upon awakening. similar results in a study of adults with neuromuscular disorders Why is Gratitude Good? 1. gratitude strengthens social ties 2. increases one's sense of personal worth. forces us to abandon a belief that may accompany severe depression—that the world is devoid of goodness, love, and kindness and is nothing but randomness and cruelty.

Inequality, Economics, and Happiness

Happiness has not risen w.r.t. wealth, GDP, innovation, medical expenditures, declining violence, and improvements in democracy in the past 40 yrs Inequality in wealth gap has skyrocketed. Lower 3 quartiles barely increased while top 1% made much more money 30 yrs ago executives made 28x more than the average worker, now they make 300x more In 2010 the avg annual family income of top 1% in US was 1m+, but bottom 90% was 30k- Top 1% owns 34.6% of the wealth in US, bottom 90% owns 26.9% At many universities (Stanford), 1%ers = bottom 50% General Social Survey Data from 1972-2008 US Citizens happier during times of greater equality due to perceptions of fairness trust in fellow citizens, true for low income citizens Inequality causes stress and social fabric causes elevated blood pressure, distrust, cynicism, increased aggression, bullying, sexual assault/violence, poor social tie, more likely to divorce, bounce from job to job Passion for fairness in nonhuman primates: Two capuchins exchange tokes for food 25 times with same pay or unequal pay, in unequal condition, about 40% refuse to do task compared to 3$ in equal condition Egalitarianism in hunter gatherers living in small groups over 200,00 yrs of evolution: collaborative child care, share hunted game, food, inequity aversion: modest about big kill, tease, gossip about boasters and hoarders, celebratory food sharing Ultimatum game: allocator given money ($10), gives some amount to responder who accepts or rejects Rational self interest: Allocator gives little and responder accepts the allocators offer, both are better off in terms of advancing self-interest Breaks down homoeconomicus: small scale societies give 39%, European societies (71%) give between 40-50%, most responders reject unfair offers at expense to self-interest Shift toward inequality: 9k to 12k BC: Expanding human settlements; neighboring and interlocking tribes, rise of agriculture and food surpluses, shift from communal gathering rooms to temples, shift to indentured relations, slavery, rise in social hierarchies, big chiefs, emergence of polygamy

Edmund Burke

In "A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful", Burke detailed how we feel the sublime (awe) not just during religious ritual or in communion with God, but in everyday perceptual experiences: hearing thunder, being moved by music, seeing repetitive patterns of light and dark. Awe was to be found in daily life.

Jen Ratio

In the denominator of the jen ratio place recent actions in which someone has behaved in selfish, malevolent fashion, bringing the bad in others to completion — the aggressive driver who flips you off as he roars in front of you, pealing away; the disdainful diner in a pricey restaurant who sneers at less well heeled passersby. Above this, in the numerator of the ratio, list recent benevolent acts of others, which brought the good in others to completion - a kind hand on your back in a crowded subway car; the woman who laughs melodiously as a stranger accidentally steps on her foot. The greater the value of the jen ratio, the more humane your world. The smaller the number becomes, the clearer it is that you are living in a Hobbesian, dog-eat-dog world, bloody in tooth and claw.

Awe Appraisals

In this paper we present a prototype approach to awe. We suggest that 2 appraisals are central and are present in all clear cases of awe: perceived vastness, and a need for accommodation defined as an inability to assimilate an experience into current mental structures. Five additional appraisals account for variation in the hedonic tone of awe experiences: threat, beauty, exceptional ability, virtue, and the supernatural. We derive this perspective from a review of what has been written about awe in religion, philosophy, sociology, and psychology, and then we apply this perspective to an analysis of awe and related states such as admiration, elevation, and the epiphanic experience.

Blood Revenge

Many cultures (95%) have some sort of blood revenge embedded in them. It's a part of human nature.

Empathy

Mimicry/Contagion Mimic Others' Emotional Behavior Affective Empathy: Feel Others' Feeling Cognitive Empathy: Understand others' Feeling Cognitive Empathy Understanding of others' emotions mental states more generally (desires and aspirations)

Mimicry

Modeling Behavior on Another's Behavior Infants imitate facial expressions and scratches, postures, and tones of voice

Oveis et al.

People induced to experience compassion or pride Asked how similar are you to vulnerable (elderly, homeless), and stronger (doctors, lawyers) populations

Bonanno and Keltner

More laughter causes better function) reduced anxiety, depression, better social connection 2 years later

Myths of Happiness

Myth of Materialism: Greed is actually okay. It can be healthy and you can be greedy and still feel good about yourself Myth: Happiness is Found Within: Individualism: Values of self-expression alongside reverence for other humans. Self-reverence alienates one from others, Hell is other people Myth: Happiness is for the young: Concave dip at 45-50, high when young and high when old

Taoism

Natural unfolding of mind Lao Tzu Life - tender and weak Death - stiff and hard Tree is stiff - it will break Strong and great are inferior Tender and weak are superior Happiness not grasped with rational mind and categories Return to nature, not intentional striving Happiness contradictory, paradoxical Happiness - natural unfolding of being

Simon-Thomas et al. - An fMRI study of caring vs self-focus during induced compassion and pride

Neural activation during the experience of compassion, an emotion that orients people toward vulnerable others and prompts caregiving, and pride, a self-focused emotion that signals individual strength and heightened status. Functional magnetic resonance images (fMRI) were acquired as participants viewed 55s continuous sequences of slides to induce either compassion or pride, presented in alternation with sequences of neutral slides. Emotion self-report data were collected after each slide condition within the fMRI scanner. Compassion induction was associated with activation in the midbrain periaqueductal gray (PAG), a region that is activated during pain and the perception of others pain, and that has been implicated in parental nurturance behaviors. Pride induction engaged the posterior medial cortex, a region that has been associated with self-referent processing. Self-reports of compassion experience were correlated with increased activation in a region near the PAG, and in the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). Self-reports of pride experience, in contrast, were correlated with reduced activation in the IFG and the anterior insula. These results provide preliminary evidence towards understanding the neural correlates of important interpersonal dimensions of compassion and pride. Caring (compassion) and self-focus (pride) may represent core appraisals that differentiate the response profiles of many emotions.

Vocal Burst

Nonverbal utterances that indicate emotion

Compassion and MidBrain - Periaqueductal Grey Activation

Nurturant behavior in mammals Responsive to Oxytocin Interventions Response to Baby Faces, Kindness towards elderly, Harm to fellow group member, Pain regulation

Sympathy Breakthrough

Overwhelming force of compassion. Soldiers at war may find themselves overwhelmed by the humanity of the humans they are fighting and killing.

Directed Facial Action Task

Paul Ekman movements of emotional facial muscles stimulate activation in the ANS (autonomic nervous system)

Jen / Confucianism / Empathy

Person of jen brings good things of others to completion and not the bad things Confuncius = person of jen Wishes to establish own character, but also that of others

New Science of Happiness

Positive Psychology Uncharted Territory: Anger vs Gratitude, Fear vs Compassion, Divorce vs Long-term Marriages, Disease vs Positive Health

Warneken and Michael Tomasello - Varieties of altruism in children and chimpanzees

Recent empirical research has shed new light on the perennial question of human altruism. A number of recent studies suggest that from very early in ontogeny young children have a biological predisposition to help others achieve their goals, to share resources with others and to inform others of things helpfully. Humans' nearest primate relatives, such as chimpanzees, engage in some but not all of these behaviors: they help others instrumentally, but they are not so inclined to share resources altruistically and they do not inform others of things helpfully. The evolutionary roots of human altruism thus appear to be much more complex than previously supposed. The take-home messages from this review are two. First, from an early age human infants and young children are naturally empathetic, helpful, generous, and informative. The mechanisms presumably responsible for the emer- gence of human altruism as an evolutionarily stable beha- vior - reciprocity, reputation and social norms - do not seem to kick in until after children have been practicing their natural altruism (with a good bit of selfishness in parallel, of course) for a few years. This natural altruism also helps to explain the well-known finding that inductive parenting - in which the adult points out to the child the effect of her actions on others or on the functioning of the group - is especially effective in promoting altruistic beha- vior [51]. Such parenting presumes, correctly, that children will be naturally cooperative, if only they can see clearly the effects of their actions on others. Second, altruism is not a single trait or phenomenon. Both in evolution and ontogeny individuals may be more or less altruistic independently in different domains of activity. This is apparent at the species level in the differ- ent ways that young children and chimpanzees either are or are not helpful in the three different forms of altruism reviewed here. We know relatively little about the way that young children mediate their altruistic tendencies as ontogeny proceeds - through such mechanisms as reciprocity, reputation and social norms - and so this is an important topic for future research (see also Box 3).

Compassion as Evolutionarily Stable Strategy

Reliable ID: ID altruistic types to cooperate selectively to greater gain. Altruistic person treated more favorably Contagious Compassion: Convert competitive interactions into cooperative ones of mutual gain DNS: Compassion supported by genetically based physiological systems Expands sense of self to include others; redefines self interest to include others

Compassionate Instinct - The Forgiveness Instinct (Michael McCullough)

Revenge and Forgiveness: The desire for revenge isn't a disease... it's a universal trait of human nature, crafted by natural selection. The capacity for forgiveness, like the desire for revenge, is also an intrinsic feature of human nature, crafted by natural selection. To increase forgiveness in the world, it doesn't make sense to try to change human nature. It makes a lot more sense to try to change the world around us. Natural Revenge: 1. Revenge may have deterred would-be aggressors from committing acts of aggression against our ancestors. 2. Revenge may have helped them deter the aggressors from harming them again. 3. May have been useful for punishing (and reforming) "free riders" Natural Forgiveness: Martin Daly and Margo Wilson found that blood revenge has emerged as an important social phenomenon in 95 percent of the societies they examined, my own analysis revealed that the concepts of forgiveness, reconciliation, or both have been documented in 93 percent of those same societies 1. Repairs important relationships that have been damaged by aggression. By forgiving and repairing relationships, our ancestors were in a better position to glean the benefits of cooperation between group members—which, in turn, increased their evolutionary fitness More Forgiving Society: Behaviors we actually express depend on our changing circumstances. Cultural changes can also produce changes in revenge and forgiveness "truth and reconciliation commission" before the early-to mid-1990s, when El Salvador and South Africa put commissions in place to investigate human rights abuses during civil war (in the case of El Salvador) and apartheid (in the case of South Africa). forgiveness is easier to achieve when we presume that natural selection has endowed the human mind with a "forgiveness instinct."

Inflammatory Cytokines

Secretion that induces depression We found that circulating levels of interferon-γ (IFN-γ), which can affect brain functions and induce depressive symptoms, were lower in the high-happiness group than in the low-happiness group. A negative correlation between the levels of perceived happiness and IFN-γ concentrations was also observed. Furthermore, we also found that experimentally induced happiness could reduce peripheral IFN-γ levels. Conclusion: Increased happiness may suppress the peripheral circulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines.

Landscape of Well-Being

Self-Report: Overall how satisfied are you with your life Correlates with brain processes State of Immune System Peripheral Physiology (Vagus Nerve) Life Expectancy Good Citizenship Creativity, innovation, productivity

Social Connections

Solitary Confinement 70% nervous breakdown, 27% suicidal ideation, 40% hallucinations Humans are fundamentally and pervasively motivated by a need to belong, to form and maintain enduring interpersonal attachments Principle 1: Physiologically motivated to connect Principle 2: Substitutability: replace friends Principle 3: Well-being, health tied to strong ties Happy people have rich and satisfying relationships and spend little time along relative to average people, social relationships form a necessary but not sufficient condition for high happiness, that is they do not guarantee high happiness but it does not appear to occur without them Friends are equally important to mend and women, but family matters more for men's well-being Framingham heart study, 1100, network analysis: Happiness most integrated into network, friends' happiness is transitive. Social Capital Collective value of all social networks and inclinations that arise from these networks to do things for each other (norms of reciprocity) Declines in social capital: church, bowlines, softball, picnic, reductions in social capital and deleterious to health, associated with increased crime in community, failed growth of happiness is mostly due to the decline of social capital Isolation/Loneliness Increased tonic sympathetic tone and HPA activation Increased inflammation, poor sleep health, and expression of genes regulating glucocorticoid responses Health benefits of connectivity 300k+ individuals over 7.5 yrs indicate that individuals with adequate social relationships have a 50% greater likelihood of survival compared to those with poor or insufficient social relationship Dimensions of ultrasociality Care-taking, attachments, cooperation, flattened hierarchies, conflict and reconciliation, fragile monogamy Losing ultrasociality Divorce rate higher (40-50%) Maritcal satisfaction has declined inpast 20 yrs (Myers) Rise in loneliness (Caccioppo) 59 min a day on FB for avg American Americans have lost on average 1 close friend in the past 20 years Avg American child spends more time watching TV than with parents

Happiness Measurement Methods

Sonja: Subjective Happiness Scale To score the scale, reverse code the 4th item (i.e., turn a 7 into a 1, a 6 into a 2, a 5 into a 3, a 3 into a 5, a 2 into a 6, and a 1 into a 7), and compute the mean of the 4 items. Diener: Subjective Well-Being in general people are happy if they think they are happy; or at least, each person is the best judge of whether they are in fact happy or not. simply by asking someone: are you happy? How would you rate your happiness on a scale of 1-10? Are you satisfied with your life as a whole? three major components to SWB: positive affect (pleasurable feelings), negative affect (painful feelings), and life satisfaction, which is composed of 1) imperfect assessment of balance of positive and negative affect in one's life, and 2) assessment of how well one's life measures up to aspirations and goals.

Compassionate Instinct - The Banality of Heroism (Franco and Zimbardo)

Stanford Prison Experiment: Psychology of imprisonment to see what happens when you put good people in a dehumanizing place After a prisoner rebellion on the second day of the experiment, the guards began using increasingly degrading forms of punishment, and the prisoners became more and more passive. Each group rapidly took on the behaviors associated with their role, not because of any particular internal predisposition or instructions from the experimenters, but rather because the situation itself so powerfully called for the two groups to assume their new identities. only terminating the out-of-control study when an objective outsider stepped in, reminding them of their duty to treat the participants humanely and ethically. The experiment, scheduled to last two weeks, ended abruptly after six days. Conclusion: The "banality of evil" that is, under certain conditions and social pressures, ordinary people can commit acts that would otherwise be unthinkable. In a sense, then, it's the good guard who allowed such abuses to happen. The situation dictated their inaction, and their inaction facilitated evil. Milgram Experiment: Milgram experiments asked participants to play the role of a "teacher" who was responsible for administering electric shocks to a "learner" when the learner failed to answer test questions correctly. Most participants did not stop administering shocks until they reached 300 volts or above—already in the lethal range. The majority of teachers delivered the maximum shock of 450 volts. Conclusion: Some people are on the good side only because situations have never coerced or seduced them to cross over. The Banality of Heroism: By conceiving of heroism as a universal attribute of human nature, not as a rare feature of the few "heroic elect," heroism becomes something that seems in the range of possibilities for every person, perhaps inspiring more of us to answer that call. bystander effect is often motivated by diffusion of responsibility heroism entails the potential for deeper personal sacrifice. The core of heroism revolves around the individual's commitment to a noble purpose and the willingness to accept the consequences of fighting for that purpose. social heroism is costly in its own way, often involving loss of financial stability, lowered social status, loss of credibility, arrest, torture, risks to family members, and, in some cases, death. 1. Heroism involves some type of quest, which may range from the preservation of life, to the preservation of an ideal 2. Must have some form of actual or anticipated sacrifice or risk 3. Heroic act can either be passive or active. 4. Can be a sudden, one-time act or something that persists over a longer period of time. An important factor that may encourage heroic action is the stimulation of heroic imagination Seeing oneself as capable of the resolve necessary for heroism may be the first step toward a heroic outcome. Diminishing the ideal of heroism, our society makes two mistakes. First, we dilute the important contribution of true heroes, whether they are luminary figures like Abraham Lincoln or the hero next door. Second, we keep ourselves from confronting the older, more demanding forms of this ideal. We do not have to challenge ourselves to see if, when faced with a situation that called for courage, we would meet that test. There are several concrete steps we can take to foster the heroic imagination. 1. We can start by remaining mindful, carefully and critically evaluating each situation we encounter so that we don't gloss over an emergency requiring our action. 2. important not to fear interpersonal conflict and to develop the personal hardiness necessary to stand firm for principles we cherish. 3. remain aware of an extended time horizon, not just the present moment. 4. resist the urge to rationalize inaction or develop justifications that recast evil deeds as acceptable means to supposedly righteous ends. 5. transcend anticipating negative consequences associated with some forms of heroism, such as being socially ostracized.

State vs Trait Levels

State: A momentary emotional reaction to internal and/or external trigger(s) which also involves physical, behavioural, cognitive and psychological reactions. The duration and intensity of the emotion felt can vary due to various factors such as the level of arousal, frustration level, subjective perception, the context and etc. Once the emotional reaction passes, 'normal' equilibrium resumes temporary emotional change Trait: ore permanent presence and a stable level of emotion. Traits refer to the stable, consistent and enduring disposition of the individual (Allport & Odbert, 1936), which includes emotional reactions and temperament, rather than situational, variable and temporary factors (Hamaker, Nesselroade,& Molen, 2007). Traits present the tendency of an individual to constantly feel, think and behave in a certain way (Spielberger & Sydeman, 1994). We often use traits to describe individual's personality characteristics that are stable of time,

Facial Action Coding System

Stimulated muscles with electricity-founded action units (AU's) an anatomically based method for identifying every visible facial muscle movement in the frame-by-frame analysis of facial expression as it occurs in the seamless flow of social interaction. They then translated how changes in facial appearance—new creases, wrinkles, dimples, bulges—are brought about by different muscle movements, and combinations of muscle movements, into an esoteric language of action units. Movements of individual facial muscles are encoded by FACS from slight different instant changes in facial appearance. Jen ratios revealed in the movements of the face Smile, equality, and happiness Smile in egalitarian primates used as tool of friendship Human evidence

Hedonic Adaptation

Tendency of humans to quickly return to a relatively stable level of happiness despite major positive or negative events or life changes.

Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)

The Central Nervous System 100,000,000,000 Neurons, each with 15-50000 connections Peripheral nervous system: Vagus nerve HPA Axis: releases a stress hormone when activated (cortisol) Immune system, cytokine system Genes: 24,000 in human genome, control development of proteins, construction of systems Autonomic nervous system: adaptive response maintains the visceral and internal condition of the body to varying external events

Spirituality

The Mystical Experience Sense of truth Ineffable: can't describe with words Sudden, transient Transcendent purpose Small self Sense of Design Common substance/share life force Self located in broader pattern/force James' Varieties of Religious Experience (Mystical Experience core to) Puritan preacher's visions, Buddhist enlightenment, Hindu traditions, Yoga, Laughing gas, experiences in nature (John Muir) Spiritually oriented report higher levels of happiness, less depression, greater volunteerism, altruism, religious 29% more likely to be alive at any time Challenge against Spirituality/Religious Sam Harris - Divides people, causes conflict, harmful to women Richard Dawkins: Faith in creationism against scientific reason Christopher Hitchens: Against progress, freedom, development

Barlett and DeSteno - Gratitude and Prosocial Behavior

The ability of the emotion gratitude to shape costly prosocial behavior was examined in three studies employing interpersonal emotion inductions and requests for assistance. Study 1 demonstrated that gratitude in- creases efforts to assist a benefactor even when such efforts are costly (i.e., hedonically negative), and that this increase differs from the effects of a general positive affective state. Additionally, mediational analyses revealed that gratitude, as opposed to simple awareness of reciprocity norms, drove helping behavior. Furthering the theory that gratitude mediates prosocial behavior, Study 2 replicated the findings of Study 1 and demonstrated gratitude's ability to function as an incidental emotion by showing it can increase assistance provided to strangers. Study 3 revealed that this incidental effect dissipates if one is made aware of the true cause of the emotional state. Implications of these findings for the role of gratitude in building relationships are discussed. In combination, the studies reported here provide strong evi- dence that gratitude plays an important role in facilitating costly helping behavior in a manner distinct from that of a general positive state or simple awareness of prosocial norms. To our knowledge, these studies provide the first direct experimental evidence of gratitude's causal force in shaping prosocial be- havior. Thus, they add to the emerging literature documenting the roles played by positive social emotions in adaptively shaping human sociality, economic exchange, and morality. Given this clear demonstration of gratitude's ability to facil- itate prosocial behavior in the moment, several related questions arise. For example, we (and other researchers) argue that grat- itude aids in the ongoing construction of a relationship. There- fore, examining how gratitude affects the relationship between a recipient and benefactor at a time distant from the initial ex- perience of this emotion may offer insight into its long-term effects. Also, continued focus on understanding the mechanisms by which gratitude may generate positive personal outcomes is merited. Indeed, a growing body of research has provided evi- dence that focusing on events for which one is grateful leads to increased life satisfaction and optimism, among other benefits (Emmons & McCullough, 2003; McCullough et al., 2002). In sum, the current findings give increased credence to the theory that social emotions such as gratitude play a central role in guiding adaptive social behavior. We believe that we have identified one way in which gratitude fosters relationships: by encouraging individuals to accept short-term losses in order to reap longer-term rewards and, thereby, begin to solve a ''com- mitment problem'' central to social living. Study 1: Gratitude: Confederate (test partner) finishes task (general knowledge test, flashed letters = word), secretly pulls out computer cord of partner, fixes problem for partner. Amusement: Funny videos, Neutral: normal discussion Conclusion: Grateful people exerted more effort to help benefactors than those in amusement and neutral conditions Study 2: Same, but helped person was a stranger, not person who helped. Same results. Study 3: Same, but before participants left, the experimenter brought to their attention that the benefactor helped them (now knows of gratitude feeling) Conclusion: Incidental unknowing grateful people helped a lot more than neutral and gratitude-source people.

Gratitude

The feeling of reverence for things that are given Adam Smith (1759): Social glue of economic culture R. Trivers (1971): Motive of reciprocal altruism (trading of gifts for expressions of gratitude) amongst non-kin Woodruff (2002): Reverence for other people Jen: reverence, appreciation for humanity, generosity of others Lead to better health and happiness and selflessness

Sympathetic ANS

The system mobilize the body in terms of increasing the heart rate, blood pressure, deactivate the digest system. The sympathetic autonomic nervous system (ANS) involves over a dozen different neural pathways originating in the spinal cord, and most typically gets the body moving fast. It increases heart rate, blood pressure, and cardiac output. It produces vasoconstriction in most veins and arteries. It shuts down digestive processes. It is associated with contractions in the reproductive organs that are part of orgasm.

The Commitment Problem - Born to Be Good

Two faces 1. we must often put aside self-interested courses of action, chances to gain in the service of our long term commitments to one another 2. we must reliably identify who is committed to us, we must find morally inclined individuals to enter long term bonds with who can we trust

Vagus Nerve

Unique to Mammals Activates muscles to enable head movements, vocalizations Slows heart rate Interconnected with oxytocin networks Regulates digestion, immune system Activation Level Compassion > positive state > inspiration

Peacemaking and Forgiveness

Universality of conflict Sibling conflict: 6/hr in American families, blue-footed boobies, hyenas, sand sharks Romantic (20-25% infidelity rates): Unhappy couples: 1.5 hrs of conflict a day Partners with kids: 5-6 conflicts a day Parent child: Fetus in competition with mother Step Relations: Abuse 100x more likely at hands of step relation than biological parent Evolution of Reconciliation: De Waal: Chimpanzee Politics Dispersal hypothesis: conflicting parties separate spatially In conflict conspecifics (same species) more contact One animal: bowing, exposure of vulnerable parts of body, open-handed gestures, vocalization Other: groom, embrace Everyday Reconciliation: Embarrassment arises after norm violations that threaten social stability Embarrassment as appeasement device Display resembles mammalian appeasement displays Expose vulnerable region, gaze aversion cut off behavior, awkward smile fear grimace in nonhuman primates, defensive face touch, cough, illness Forgiveness 4 components Accepting transgression Decline in punitive tendency Decline in avoidance Increase in compassion toward partner (Offenders have human suffering, want to be happy) Forgiving leads to decline in fight or flight cardiovascular physiology Longitudinal research, couples report on conflicts, and whether they forgive (less revenge, more compassion) - Those who forgive are happier 9 wks later Restorative Justice: Alternative to legal punishment Prevent contact perpetrator, victim, Denied opportunity for expressing remorse, Cost/Year to incarcerate in CA $47k 1500 programs in US, Europe, New Zealand, Schools, criminal justice Principles: Offenders accountable, undo effects of harm, offenders reintegrate into community, respectful dialogue victim, offender) Outcome: Victims 4x less revenge

Parasympathetic Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)

Vagus nerve is part of this system. The parasympathetic autonomic nervous system incorporates nerves that originate at the top and near the bottom of the spinal cord. The parasympathetic system decreases heart rate and blood pressure, it facilitates blood flow by dilating certain arteries, it increases blood flow to erectile tissue in the penis and clitoris, and it moves digested food through the gastrointestinal tract. The parasympathetic system also constricts the pupil (for feelings of love, look for smaller rather than larger pupils), and it stimulates the secretion of various fluids in the digestive, salivary, and lachrymal glands (for tears). Scientists believe that the parasympathetic branch of the ANS helps the individual relax and restore resources and bodily function. One branch of the parasympathetic ANS originating near the top of the spinal cord—the vagus nerve—is thought to enable care-taking behavior.

American Paradox

We have "bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences but less time, steep profits and shallow relationships. We've learned how to make a living, but not a life; we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul." paradoxically, we are a bit less likely to say we're "very happy." We are more often seriously depressed. And we are only now beginning to emerge from a serious social recession: doubled divorce, tripled teen suicide, quadrupled juvenile violence, quintupled prison population, and sextupled proportion of babies born to unmarried parents. If divorce ends unhappy marriages, then shouldn't the remaining marriages be happier? Yet today, though freer to escape bad marriages, we are less satisfied with the marriages that we have. As new psychological research shows, people express greater satisfaction with irrevocable choices (like those made in an "all purchases final sale) than with reversible choices (refunds or exchanges allowed). When feeling bound to something or someone, we're more likely to love it than when freer to contemplate alternatives. New evidence indicates that marriage doesn't just ride along with social, psychological, and economic well-being, it contributes to them. Ergo, say the "marriage movement" signers, government, schools, churches, counselors, and the media should make strengthening marriage a national priority. This broad, bipartisan movement affirms liberals' concerns about income inequality and their support for family friendly workplaces and children in all family forms. It affirms conservatives' indictment of toxic media models and their support for marriage and co-parenting. And it finds encouragement that teen suicide, violence, and pregnancy have begun to subside and (in contrast to the me-generation ahead of them) volunteerism among young Americans is now rising.

Principle of Antithesis

While some habits are serviceable, Darwin proposed that some actions or habits are carried out merely because they are opposite in nature to a serviceable habit, but are not serviceable themselves. Shrugging of the shoulders is an example Darwin used of antithesis, because it has no service. Shoulder shrugging is a passive expression, and very opposite of a confident or aggressive expression. Stable dog: hothouse face—drooping head/tail/ears when he was denied pleasure. Opposing states with opposing expressions. (display of dominance?). Eg: signal of dominance (expand the chest, hold clasped arms behind the head, and leans back) opposite to the signal of weakness(head movements down, shoulder constrictions)

Social Comparison

comparing ourselves to those around us Can be useful to inspire us to do what others do, and help us do things in different ways "Downward" Comparisons Example: he got laid off, her cancer is spreading May lead to feelings of guilt, the need to cope with others' envy and resentment and fears of suffering the same "Upward" comparisons Example: He's paid a higher salary, she is thinner May lead to feelings of guilt , distress, and loss of self-esteem Seek out people who had been singled out by their acquaintances and friends to be "exceptionally happy" or "exceptionally unhappy" RESULTS Happy people didn't seem to care about social comparisons, Used their own internal standard to judge themselves, Happy people take pleasure in others successes and concern in the failure Solving anagrams with another "participant" (who is a confederate) The confederate solves the puzzles faster, or slower, than the other participant. Happy participants felt more upbeat than they had been earlier and thought better of their ability, regardless of how they watched someone else perform Unhappy people thought lower of their anagram solving abilities

Eudamonia

flourishing through the discovery and expression of your core passions gained through self-examination and introspection highest human good Aristotle takes virtue and its exercise to be the most important constituent in eudamonia but acknowledges also the importance of external goods such as health, wealth, and beauty. By contrast, the Stoics make virtue necessary and sufficient for eudamonia and thus deny the necessity of external goods.

Accommodation - Born to Be Good

one of the ingredients for awe - paradigm shift in order to make sense (awe chapter in BTBG chapter 12). The process of changing our mental models to incorporate something to which we've recently been exposed. For example religion plays a part in accommodating awe because it helps us understand it. the process by which we update and change our core beliefs. Component of awe: involves transcendence of our understanding of the world.

Adaptation / Hyper vulnerability

selection pressures: features of physical and social environment which affect the way humans evolved by determining who survived and reproduced Adaptation: trait with current functional role in life history of an organism examples: Startle response Physical threat Sweet preference Identify nutrition Jealousy Mate guarding Pregnancy sickness Fetus vulnerability Neoteny Fetus attachment Baby's similarity to dad Paternal uncertainty

Self-Report

self-report measures of happiness could be reliable guides to relative happiness, though telling us little about how happy, in absolute terms, people are Self-report measures used in the literature have been found to correlate well with many intuitively relevant variables, such as friends' reports, smiling, physiological measures, health, longevity, and so forth Self-reports of happiness, for instance, might correctly indicate that unemployed people are considerably less happy than those with jobs