The Meanings Ascribed to Happiness, Life Satisfaction and Flourishing

Abstract

This study aims at describing what happiness, life satisfaction, and flourishing mean for the respondents and did the previously generated associations influence the self-reported levels of well-being. The design of the study is cross-sectional, qualitative and quantitative. The sample comprises 351 volunteers aged 20 - 55, divided into two groups. Both groups have been administered happiness and life satisfaction scales and PERMA profiler. One of the groups simply replied to the self-reported scales, while the volunteers from the second group have been asked to generate free associations of words/ expressions they relate to the happiness, life satisfaction, and flourishing prior to reply to the self-report scales. The results reveal that the free generated associations for happiness, life satisfaction, and flourishing, have common, however different meaning. Happiness turns out to be linked mostly with intrinsic predictors, e.g. love, balance and harmony, whereas life satisfaction comprises extrinsic (self-realization, success) and intrinsic factors (close people, positive emotions). Flourishing is most of all explained by similar concepts (happiness, life satisfaction) and also relates both to extrinsic and intrinsic domains (career, satisfaction; love, and joy). Previously generated associations have no effect on the reported experienced happiness and life satisfaction and have partial effect on the flourishing scales. The positive emotions and relations are not influenced; however self-reflection is related to the cognitive variables. When respondents have first thought about what flourishing means for them, they give lower scores for accomplishment, engagement and life meaning. This suggests that well-being is related to different intrinsic and extrinsic predictors that follow different pathways and this is one of the keys for promotion of flourishing.