10 Things Science Says Will Make You Happy
Daily habits can affect our well-being. Here are 10 simple actions that research has shown makes people feel good.
In the last few years, psychologists and researchers have been digging up hard data on a question previously left to philosophers: What makes us happy? Researchers like the father-son team Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener, Stanford psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky, and ethicist Stephen Post have studied people all over the world to find out how things like money, attitude, culture, memory, health, altruism, and our day-to-day habits affect our well-being. The emerging field of positivepsychology is bursting with new findings that suggest your actions can have a significant effect on your Happiness and satisfaction with life. Here are 10 scientifically proven strategies for getting happy.
1. Savor Everyday Moments
Pause now and then to smell a rose or watch children at play. Study participants who took time to "savor" ordinary events that they normallyhurried through, or to think back on pleasant moments from their day, "showed significant increases in Happiness and reductions in Depression," says psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky.
2. Avoid Comparisons
While keeping up with the Joneses is part of American culture, comparing ourselves with others can be damaging to Happiness and self-esteem. Instead of comparing ourselves to others, focusing on our own personal achievement leads to greater satisfaction, according to Lyubomirsky.
3. Put Money Low on the List
People who put money high on their priority list are more at risk for Depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem, according to researchers Tim Kasser and Richard Ryan. Their findings hold true across nations and cultures. "The more we seek satisfactions in material goods, the less we find them there," Ryan says. "The satisfaction has a short half-life -- it's very fleeting." Money-seekers also score lower on tests of vitality and self-actualization.
4. Have Meaningful goals
"People who strive for something significant, whether it's learning a new craft or raising moral children, are far happier than those who don't have strong dreams or aspirations," say Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener. "As humans, we actually require a sense of meaning to thrive." Harvard's resident happiness professor, Tal Ben-Shahar, agrees, "Happiness lies at the intersection between pleasure and meaning. Whether at work or at Home, the goal is to engage in activities that are both personallysignificant and enjoyable."
5. Take Initiative at Work
How happy you are at work depends in part on how much initiative you take. Researcher Amy Wrzesniewski says that when we express creativity, help others, suggest improvements, or do additional tasks on the job, we make our work more rewarding and feel more in control.
6. Make Friends, Treasure Family
Happier people tend to have good families, friends, and supportive relationships, say Diener and Biswas-Diener. But it's not enough to be the life of the party if you're surrounded by shallow acquaintances. "We don't just need relationships, we need close ones" that involve understanding and caring.
7. Smile Even When You Don't Feel Like It
It sounds simple, but it works. "Happy people...see possibilities, opportunities, and success. When they think of the future, they are optimistic, and when they review the past, they tend to savor the high points," say Diener and Biswas-Diener. Even if you weren't born looking at the glass as half-full, with practice, a positiveoutlook can become a habit.
8. Say Thank You Like You Mean It
People who keep gratitude journals on a weekly basis are healthier, more optimistic, and more likely to make progress toward achieving personal goals, according to author Robert Emmons. Research by Martin Seligman, founder of positivepsychology, revealed that people who write "gratitude letters" to someone who made a difference in their lives score higher on Happiness, and lower on Depression -- and the effect lasts for weeks.
9. Get Out and Exercise
A Duke University study shows that exercise may be just as effective as drugs in treating Depression, without all the side effects and expense. Other research shows that in addition to health benefits, regular exercise offers a sense of accomplishment and opportunity for social interaction, releases feel-good endorphins, and boosts self-esteem.
10. Give It Away, Give It Away Now!
Make altruism and giving part of your life, and be purposeful about it. Researcher Stephen Post says helping a neighbor, volunteering, or donating goods and services results in a "helper's high," and you get more health benefits than you would from exercise or quitting smoking. Listening to a friend, passing on your skills, celebrating others' successes, and forgiveness also contribute to happiness, he says. Researcher Elizabeth Dunn found that those who spend money on others reported much greater Happiness than those who spend it on themselves.
日常习惯会影响我们的健康。研究显示，有10种小举动可以让人们感觉良好。
近几年来，心理学家和研究员埋头在重重数据中，试图发掘出先前留给哲学家们的问题的答案："是什么是我们快乐？"研究人员中有父子组队的爱德华‧迪纳和罗伯特比斯瓦斯‧迪纳，来自斯坦福大学的心理学家宋雅桑雅‧吕波密斯基以及伦理学家斯蒂芬‧珀斯特，他们研究的人群遍布世界，试图找出诸如金钱，态度，文化，记忆，健康，利他心理，以及日常习惯等因素对人们健康的影响。人们在新兴领域"积极心理学"中的许多新发现表明人们的一举一动能对快乐感以及满足感产生显著的影响。以下是10个经科学证明能变得快乐的方法。
1，品味每时每刻
时不时停下来去闻一闻玫瑰或看看玩乐中的孩子。参与研究的人们每天都会拿出时间来"品味"那些通常因为匆忙而忽略的事物，或者回想一天里美妙的时刻。心理学家宋雅桑雅‧吕波密斯基说："研究显示这样的人的快乐感明显上升，消沉感明显降低。"
2，避免攀比
美国有句俗语："赶上琼斯"即和左邻右舍比排场比阔气，它虽然是美国文化中的一种，但把我们自己和别人相比较会使我们不快乐，是我们失去自尊心。吕波密斯基说，不要和别人攀比，要专心于自己的成就，这样我们更容易感到满意。
3，不要把钱看的太重
研究人员蒂姆和理查德瑞安调查表示：把钱看的太重的人更容易消沉，焦虑，自卑。这个发现在不同国家，不同文化中都是被证明是真的。"越想在物质生活上寻找满足感，越难找到，"瑞安说："这种满足感半衰期很短，很容易消失。"追求金钱的人活力和自我实现力相对更低。
4，树立有意义的目标
爱德华迪纳和罗伯特比斯瓦斯-迪纳说，那些能为某些有意义的事情--不论是学习一门新手艺或者提高孩子的道德意识--而献身努力的人们比起那些没什么强烈的梦想和抱负的人要快乐得多。"作为人类，我们非常需要存在的意义。"哈佛大学教授塔尔本沙哈尔同意这个观点，他说："当乐趣和意义交汇的时候，快乐就产生了。无论是工作还是在家里，我们的目标是能从事那些对个人既有意义有能让之享受的事情。"
5，在工作上主动积极
在工作上的快乐程度一部分取决于你的主动性。研究员艾美说，当我们表现出创造力，当我们帮助他人，当我们提供改进建议或者额外多做点工作的时候，我们的工作就变的更有价值，更能为我们所掌握。
6，交朋友，珍惜家人
迪纳和比斯瓦斯-迪纳说，快乐的人们一般有好的家庭好的朋友，有可以依靠的人际关系。不过如果你和身边的认识的人没什么交往的话，你的生活就不会太快乐。"我们需要的不仅仅是关系，我们还需要亲密的关系"，这种关系包括了理解和关心。
7，就算不开心也要微笑
听起来是个简单的方法，但却是有效的。迪纳和比斯瓦斯-迪纳说："快乐的人们能看到可能性，机会和成功。当他们想到未来的时候他们乐观，当回顾过去的时候，他们会回想好的记忆。"即使你不是那种天生乐观的人，（比如看到半满的杯子你会想，啊，还有半杯呢！而不是啊，只剩半杯了）你也能通过实践，把乐观变为习惯。
8，说句真诚的谢谢
作家罗伯特埃蒙斯说，每周能写几篇感谢日志的人更加健康和乐观，在实现个人目标方面更有可能取得进步。积极心理学的创始人马丁塞利格曼通过几周的研究发现，写"感谢信"给那些使他们的生活发生了改变的人们的人更快乐，更不容易消沉。
9，出门锻炼
杜克大学研究表示，锻炼就像毒品一样能有效治疗消沉，同时没有副作用，花销也不像买毒品那么大。其他调查显示，定期运动不仅有利于身体健康，还让人产生成就感，提供了人与社会互动的机会，释放人体内的内啡肽使人感觉良好，增强了人们的自信心。
10，奉献，奉献！现在就做！
为他人着想，献出你一部分生命，过有目标的生活。研究员斯蒂芬‧珀斯特说，帮助邻居，做志愿者工作，捐献物品或是无偿服务都可以带来"帮手的快乐"，比起健身或者戒烟来说，这种方法更加有助于健康。他还说，倾听朋友的话语，把你的技能教授给别人，庆祝他人的成功以及宽容都有助于快乐。研究员伊丽莎白邓恩发现把钱花在别人身上的人比那些把钱花在自己身上的人更加快乐。
关键字:市民英语
生词表:
Daily habits can affect our well-being. Here are 10 simple actions that research has shown makes people feel good.
In the last few years, psychologists and researchers have been digging up hard data on a question previously left to philosophers: What makes us happy? Researchers like the father-son team Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener, Stanford psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky, and ethicist Stephen Post have studied people all over the world to find out how things like money, attitude, culture, memory, health, altruism, and our day-to-day habits affect our well-being. The emerging field of positivepsychology is bursting with new findings that suggest your actions can have a significant effect on your Happiness and satisfaction with life. Here are 10 scientifically proven strategies for getting happy.
1. Savor Everyday Moments
Pause now and then to smell a rose or watch children at play. Study participants who took time to "savor" ordinary events that they normallyhurried through, or to think back on pleasant moments from their day, "showed significant increases in Happiness and reductions in Depression," says psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky.
2. Avoid Comparisons
While keeping up with the Joneses is part of American culture, comparing ourselves with others can be damaging to Happiness and self-esteem. Instead of comparing ourselves to others, focusing on our own personal achievement leads to greater satisfaction, according to Lyubomirsky.
3. Put Money Low on the List
People who put money high on their priority list are more at risk for Depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem, according to researchers Tim Kasser and Richard Ryan. Their findings hold true across nations and cultures. "The more we seek satisfactions in material goods, the less we find them there," Ryan says. "The satisfaction has a short half-life -- it's very fleeting." Money-seekers also score lower on tests of vitality and self-actualization.
4. Have Meaningful goals
"People who strive for something significant, whether it's learning a new craft or raising moral children, are far happier than those who don't have strong dreams or aspirations," say Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener. "As humans, we actually require a sense of meaning to thrive." Harvard's resident happiness professor, Tal Ben-Shahar, agrees, "Happiness lies at the intersection between pleasure and meaning. Whether at work or at Home, the goal is to engage in activities that are both personallysignificant and enjoyable."
5. Take Initiative at Work
How happy you are at work depends in part on how much initiative you take. Researcher Amy Wrzesniewski says that when we express creativity, help others, suggest improvements, or do additional tasks on the job, we make our work more rewarding and feel more in control.
6. Make Friends, Treasure Family
Happier people tend to have good families, friends, and supportive relationships, say Diener and Biswas-Diener. But it's not enough to be the life of the party if you're surrounded by shallow acquaintances. "We don't just need relationships, we need close ones" that involve understanding and caring.
7. Smile Even When You Don't Feel Like It
It sounds simple, but it works. "Happy people...see possibilities, opportunities, and success. When they think of the future, they are optimistic, and when they review the past, they tend to savor the high points," say Diener and Biswas-Diener. Even if you weren't born looking at the glass as half-full, with practice, a positiveoutlook can become a habit.
8. Say Thank You Like You Mean It
People who keep gratitude journals on a weekly basis are healthier, more optimistic, and more likely to make progress toward achieving personal goals, according to author Robert Emmons. Research by Martin Seligman, founder of positivepsychology, revealed that people who write "gratitude letters" to someone who made a difference in their lives score higher on Happiness, and lower on Depression -- and the effect lasts for weeks.
9. Get Out and Exercise
A Duke University study shows that exercise may be just as effective as drugs in treating Depression, without all the side effects and expense. Other research shows that in addition to health benefits, regular exercise offers a sense of accomplishment and opportunity for social interaction, releases feel-good endorphins, and boosts self-esteem.
10. Give It Away, Give It Away Now!
Make altruism and giving part of your life, and be purposeful about it. Researcher Stephen Post says helping a neighbor, volunteering, or donating goods and services results in a "helper's high," and you get more health benefits than you would from exercise or quitting smoking. Listening to a friend, passing on your skills, celebrating others' successes, and forgiveness also contribute to happiness, he says. Researcher Elizabeth Dunn found that those who spend money on others reported much greater Happiness than those who spend it on themselves.
日常习惯会影响我们的健康。研究显示，有10种小举动可以让人们感觉良好。
近几年来，心理学家和研究员埋头在重重数据中，试图发掘出先前留给哲学家们的问题的答案："是什么是我们快乐？"研究人员中有父子组队的爱德华‧迪纳和罗伯特比斯瓦斯‧迪纳，来自斯坦福大学的心理学家宋雅桑雅‧吕波密斯基以及伦理学家斯蒂芬‧珀斯特，他们研究的人群遍布世界，试图找出诸如金钱，态度，文化，记忆，健康，利他心理，以及日常习惯等因素对人们健康的影响。人们在新兴领域"积极心理学"中的许多新发现表明人们的一举一动能对快乐感以及满足感产生显著的影响。以下是10个经科学证明能变得快乐的方法。
1，品味每时每刻
时不时停下来去闻一闻玫瑰或看看玩乐中的孩子。参与研究的人们每天都会拿出时间来"品味"那些通常因为匆忙而忽略的事物，或者回想一天里美妙的时刻。心理学家宋雅桑雅‧吕波密斯基说："研究显示这样的人的快乐感明显上升，消沉感明显降低。"
2，避免攀比
美国有句俗语："赶上琼斯"即和左邻右舍比排场比阔气，它虽然是美国文化中的一种，但把我们自己和别人相比较会使我们不快乐，是我们失去自尊心。吕波密斯基说，不要和别人攀比，要专心于自己的成就，这样我们更容易感到满意。
3，不要把钱看的太重
研究人员蒂姆和理查德瑞安调查表示：把钱看的太重的人更容易消沉，焦虑，自卑。这个发现在不同国家，不同文化中都是被证明是真的。"越想在物质生活上寻找满足感，越难找到，"瑞安说："这种满足感半衰期很短，很容易消失。"追求金钱的人活力和自我实现力相对更低。
4，树立有意义的目标
爱德华迪纳和罗伯特比斯瓦斯-迪纳说，那些能为某些有意义的事情--不论是学习一门新手艺或者提高孩子的道德意识--而献身努力的人们比起那些没什么强烈的梦想和抱负的人要快乐得多。"作为人类，我们非常需要存在的意义。"哈佛大学教授塔尔本沙哈尔同意这个观点，他说："当乐趣和意义交汇的时候，快乐就产生了。无论是工作还是在家里，我们的目标是能从事那些对个人既有意义有能让之享受的事情。"
5，在工作上主动积极
在工作上的快乐程度一部分取决于你的主动性。研究员艾美说，当我们表现出创造力，当我们帮助他人，当我们提供改进建议或者额外多做点工作的时候，我们的工作就变的更有价值，更能为我们所掌握。
6，交朋友，珍惜家人
迪纳和比斯瓦斯-迪纳说，快乐的人们一般有好的家庭好的朋友，有可以依靠的人际关系。不过如果你和身边的认识的人没什么交往的话，你的生活就不会太快乐。"我们需要的不仅仅是关系，我们还需要亲密的关系"，这种关系包括了理解和关心。
7，就算不开心也要微笑
听起来是个简单的方法，但却是有效的。迪纳和比斯瓦斯-迪纳说："快乐的人们能看到可能性，机会和成功。当他们想到未来的时候他们乐观，当回顾过去的时候，他们会回想好的记忆。"即使你不是那种天生乐观的人，（比如看到半满的杯子你会想，啊，还有半杯呢！而不是啊，只剩半杯了）你也能通过实践，把乐观变为习惯。
8，说句真诚的谢谢
作家罗伯特埃蒙斯说，每周能写几篇感谢日志的人更加健康和乐观，在实现个人目标方面更有可能取得进步。积极心理学的创始人马丁塞利格曼通过几周的研究发现，写"感谢信"给那些使他们的生活发生了改变的人们的人更快乐，更不容易消沉。
9，出门锻炼
杜克大学研究表示，锻炼就像毒品一样能有效治疗消沉，同时没有副作用，花销也不像买毒品那么大。其他调查显示，定期运动不仅有利于身体健康，还让人产生成就感，提供了人与社会互动的机会，释放人体内的内啡肽使人感觉良好，增强了人们的自信心。
10，奉献，奉献！现在就做！
为他人着想，献出你一部分生命，过有目标的生活。研究员斯蒂芬‧珀斯特说，帮助邻居，做志愿者工作，捐献物品或是无偿服务都可以带来"帮手的快乐"，比起健身或者戒烟来说，这种方法更加有助于健康。他还说，倾听朋友的话语，把你的技能教授给别人，庆祝他人的成功以及宽容都有助于快乐。研究员伊丽莎白邓恩发现把钱花在别人身上的人比那些把钱花在自己身上的人更加快乐。
关键字:市民英语
生词表:
- well-being [´wel´bi:iŋ]
n.幸福；健康；福利 六级词汇 - psychologist [sai´kɔlədʒist] n.心理学家 六级词汇
- normally [´nɔ:məli] ad.正常情况下；通常 六级词汇
- vitality [vai´tæliti] n.活力；生命力；效力 四级词汇
- outlook [´autluk] n.眺望；景色；展望 四级词汇
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