Well-being
Often-discussed contributing factors include feelings, emotions, life satisfaction, achievement, finding meaning, interpersonal relationships, and health.
[10] Similarly, the words pleasure, life satisfaction, and happiness are employed in overlapping ways with well-being, although their precise meanings differ in technical contexts like philosophy and psychology.
[15] Many disciplines examine or are guided by considerations of well-being, including ethics, psychology, sociology, economics, education, public policy, law, and medicine.
For instance, child well-being emphasizes health, education, material security, and social development in a loving and nurturing environment.
[c] It involves the absence of disorders and disturbances, together with the abilities to cope with challenging situations, maintain positive relationships, and cultivate personal growth.
For instance, some people prioritize family and health, while others primarily seek career success, wealth, knowledge, or spiritual enlightenment.
[58] One criticism of objective list theories asserts that they define an incoherent concept of well-being by including diverse elements that have little in common.
Subjectivist theories understand well-being as a purely subjective phenomenon characterized by the individual's own perspective, mental states, and attitudes.
Perfectionists discern key human abilities, such as rationality, knowledge, health, and dignity, holding that mastering and exercising them results in a life well lived.
[67] To avoid the deep disagreements surrounding the essential features of well-being, some researchers examine components and contributing factors independent of whether they are integral parts or external causes.
For example, there is wide agreement that positive emotions, achievements, interpersonal relationships, and health typically contribute to well-being in some form, despite academic disagreements about their precise roles.
A different perspective argues that their relation is more complex, asserting that pleasure and pain influence experience, motivation, and well-being in distinct ways.
[83][i] Researchers often focus specifically on friendship, understood as a voluntary social relationship between people characterized by mutual concern, trust, and support.
Physical illnesses and disabilities can negatively impact well-being by causing pain, limiting mobility, and reducing the capacity to engage in enjoyable or necessary activities.
Practically relevant knowledge about oneself and deep insights into general truths of the world, by contrast, typically have a more substantial impact on well-being.
[100] In addition to knowledge, many related epistemic goods contribute to well-being, such as intelligence, problem-solving skills, creativity, open-mindedness, understanding, and wisdom.
For example, a person lacking mental maturity and wisdom may freely engage in short-sighted egoism while ignoring negative long-term outcomes.
Similarly, the physical environment plays a role, with factors like housing conditions, pollution, noise, and access to nature and recreational areas.
Its five elements are positive emotions, engagement by following one's interests, interpersonal relationships, finding meaning in life, and accomplishments in the pursuit of success and mastery.
[112] Psychologist Michael Bishop developed the network model of well-being, which includes components such as feelings, emotions, attitudes, traits, and interactions with one's environment.
Others study its causes and effects in specific domains of life, such as physical and mental health, social relationships, altruism, tolerance, income, and productivity.
Earlier work in the social and biomedical sciences focused more on identifying, treating, and preventing negative outcomes rather than exploring and promoting factors of positive functioning.
The VIA model, an influential framework in positive psychology, analyzes personality based on six main virtues: wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence.
They are especially interested in the effects of major negative events, like the death of a child or bankruptcy, and aim to discern the psychological features that help people maintain their level of well-being, like self-regulation and an optimistic outlook.
[142] The growing academic interest in well-being is also reflected in the political sphere, challenging the gross domestic product as the main indicator of national success.
[146] Other biological factors include neurotransmitters and hormones that impact positive feelings such as endorphin, dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and cortisol.
They use both subjective and objective metrics, with some studies dedicated to well-being in general, while others focus on specific domains, such as work, family, and housing, or on particular demographic groups, such as employees or the elderly.
They seek to understand what people at different times and places associate with a good life, such as the culture-specific norms, values, and practices for achieving personal well-being.
A key assumption in this field is that the concept of well-being involves a commitment to what is desirable and an evaluative framework for guiding behavior and assessing lifestyles.
It aims to produce well-being by eliminating the causes of suffering, such as desire and ignorance, achieved through the practice of Buddhist virtues, like compassion, loving-kindness, and equanimity.
