Happiness and well-being should not be viewed as permanent character traits, but rather as fleeting moments that must be actively created and maintained daily due to our natural tendency to habituate to the positive aspects of our lives.

noli's read

The idea of conceiving well-being as a dynamic and active process is firmly rooted in positive psychology research. The concept of hedonic adaptation, supported by the work of researcher Sonja Lyubomirsky via randomized controlled trials (RCTs), proves that we quickly become accustomed to positive events, making regular intentional actions essential to maintaining our level of satisfaction. Furthermore, Nicholas Epley’s field experiments demonstrate that simple social connection rituals, such as talking to a stranger, immediately boost our mood. However, completely rejecting the existence of a happiness "trait" is somewhat reductive. Observational and behavioral genetics studies show that a stable biological "set point" influences our baseline well-being by 30% to 50%. Science thus suggests that our flourishing results from a synergy between our underlying temperament (the trait) and our daily intentional efforts (the state).

the sources

No named source held this one up — that absence is part of the verdict.