Positive Psychology: Eudaimonic Happiness (Essay Sample)

Positive Psychology; Eudemonic and Hedonic Happiness
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Part (a)
Eudemonic and hedonic happiness
With the recent explosion in positive psychology, new evidence on the true sources of human health and well-being has been explored. It has been noted that the inexorable pursuit of delight might cause us more damage than good (Son & Wilson, 2012). Happiness has been associated with positive feelings and the experiences of pleasure. This especially results from the engagement by the persons involved in meaningful activities, thereby resulting to what is known as eudemonic wellbeing. Hedonic happiness, on the other hand, is associated with the concept of maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. The emotional states of individuals can be conveyed to others through contagions on social platforms, thus making different people experience the same emotions without their consent. As evidenced from different researches, it is clear that moods can be conveyed to others through different social platforms. Engaging in meaningful activities and interacting with the right individuals can thus be concluded as the key source of eudemonic happiness and should be embraced to achieve the optimal feeling of pleasure.
The conceptualizations of both eudemonic and hedonic happiness differ from one individual to another. Hedonic wellbeing is associated with the mental state of having pleasure or being happy. This can also be referred to the feeling of contentment about a situation one undergoes in life. This influences the moods, and the satisfaction one gets in life (Ryan & Deci, 2001). Eudemonic wellbeing, on the other hand, refers to the perceptual state of self-realization which enables people to involve in activities that coincide with their deeply held morals (Ryan & Deci, 2001). For instance, a living wealthy couple who does not have any limits for enjoying life and spending their leisure in any place they desire could be termed to be enjoying eudemonic happiness to their best. Such a couple have all the worldly things they could desire, and being in the best relationship makes each of them feel appreciated and contented for everything. Similar to the works of Kramer and colleagues, Baumgardner and Crothers (2009) also presents the different perspectives and measures of determining the eudaemonic happiness which range from the measure of autonomy, the positive relationships with the other people, the mastery of the environment, self-acceptance, personal growth and the purpose for living. It has also been emphasized from the self-determination theory that eudemonic happiness is constituted by three intrinsic fundamental requirements that apply throughout different cultures and in different moments. These include such aspects as autonomy in which one has the desire to choose what they want, competence and relatedness. This has also been said to define the close connections between humans that are secure and which facilitates the autonomy and competence (Ryan & Deci, 2001). The theory affirms that after satisfaction of these needs, motivation and wellbeing are boosted. On the other hand, limiting the assets impacts the well-being of individuals negatively. The works of Ryan and Deci have also played a part in accomplishing the work of Kramer and Colleagues’ (2014) by focusing on the differences between hedonic and eudaemonic happiness in terms of the self-sufficiency, competence and the affiliations that amount to happiness. Such aspects as forgetting personal hitches and losing the trail of time are the results of overindulging in activities that give eudaemonic pleasure. Conceptualizing happiness from the hedonic perspective can be defined as subjective wellbeing. It involves the experiences people get with the quality of their lives which includes the emotional retorts and the rational judgments. Akin to other works in the literature, Kramer and colleagues’ view psychological wellbeing as being an element for measuring happiness from the eudaemonic perspective. On the other hand, there exists literature in which the concept of determining psychological wellbeing is presented differently as is in the case of Kramer and colleagues’. It has been said to be measured from the perspective of social comparison (Kwan et. al, 2004). This involves a comparison of individual perceptions against that of the average person. This is defined as the self-insight perspective and involves the comparison of individual self-perception with the other external measures which might include test scores and other clinical measures (Kwan et. al, 2004).
Eudemonic happiness can therefore be associated to the feeling of optimal pleasure, in which people enjoy their lives to the highest. To achieve eudaemonic happiness at its best, such things as social relationships, interactions, family, health and social living should be accomplished (Carr, 2004). As such, the concept entails the different heights that individuals strive for to achieve their positive wellbeing (Lyubomirsky, 2013). Such characteristics as autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive interactions with others, self-acceptance and having a purpose for life are the main dimensions that result to eudaemonic happiness (Ryff & Singer, 2001).
Part (b)
Emotional contagions define the tendency for people to converge ardently. Through social platforms such as Facebook, people tend to converge emotionally by sharing their moods through the use of social contagions. Where an individual is only concerned with his or her wellbeing while reducing social pleasure, it is referred to as hedonic happiness. Conversely, eudemonic happiness denotes the broader concept of happiness with which individuals tend to achieve self-realization. It is thus important for individuals to optimize the feeling of happiness in whatever activities they engage in as this helps to promote their social, as well as emotional lives and the wellbeing of the others. In an effort to boost happiness, embarking on the positive psychological endeavors is inevitable. The concept of emotional contagion in social platforms implies that individuals tend to orchestrate their emotional feelings with those of their immediate friends and the people around. This could be achieved consciously or without their consent and emotions can thus be said to be contagious. Optimizing happiness through social platforms such as Facebook can be achieved in different ways; first, it could be through socially interacting and sharing with friends and other close personalities. Where such activities as social dating are performed through the social media, individuals can derive their eudaemonic happiness from there. Exchanging funny clips and quotes through Facebook can boost an individual’s moods and thus a source of happiness for such a person.
Social platforms are a common place where people share their best moments and thus an individual can imitate such good feeling which amount to positive psychology. When a person imitates other people who, for instance, could be smiling, they tend to be...