In this episode, a philosopher of science from Cambridge offers us a cautiously optimistic guide to the science of happiness. Dr Anna Alexandrova, the author of A Philosophy for the Science of Well-being, and Ilari discuss questions such as:

What do happiness questionnaires measure?
Are rich countries happier than poorer ones?
Should the science of happiness measure concepts such as “flourishing”? Or focus on simple questions like “how satisfied are you with your life”?
Why psychologists and economists are averse to qualitative measures? When is this a problem?
Why are some scholars so pessimistic about the science of happiness?
Dr Alexandrova's experience of growing up in the Soviet Union and post-soviet Russia
Is Ilari actually from the world’s happiest country?

Names mentioned

Dan Hayburn (philosopher at St Louis University)
Max Weber (sociologist 1864-1920)
Polly Mitchell (philosopher at KCL)
Thomas Kuhn (philosopher of science, 1922-1966)
Johanna Thoma (philosopher at LSE)
Naomi Oreskes and Eric Conway (authors of Merchants of Doubt)
Mark Fabian (political theorists at Cambridge)
Jeffrey Sachs (economist at Columbia University)

Terms mentioned

Utilitarianism
Easterlin paradox
World Happiness Report
WELLBY (measure adopted by the UK government)
“Participatory methods” (in construct validation)
Turn To Us (UK-based anti-poverty charity)

Get in touch

Form: https://on-humans.podcastpage.io/contact
Email: makela dot ilari at outlook dot com

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Episode highlights

Flourishing in Contemporary Sciences: The Link to Aristotle's Thought

The Importance of Context in Describing Well-being

The Compatibility of Expertise and Democracy