The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos

Giving Tuesday: Why Giving Money to Others Makes us Happier

Nov 29, 2022

Lara Aknin, a social psychology professor at Simon Fraser University, explores how giving money to others boosts happiness significantly more than spending on ourselves. She discusses the power of prosocial spending, sharing how choosing the right charity amplifies the joy of giving. The conversation highlights the transformative effects of generosity and its ability to foster a positive feedback loop of kindness. Additionally, listeners learn about the impressive fundraising efforts that helped raise nearly $470,000 for meaningful causes, demonstrating the fulfilling impact of altruism.

31:57

Creator website

Episode guests

Lara Aknin

Highlights

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Spending on Others Increases Happiness

01:48

Enhancing Happiness through Prosocial Spending

01:07

Intro

2min

The Joy of Giving

7min

The Joy of Giving

7min

The Generosity Effect

8min

The Happiness of Giving: Understanding Impact and Emotional Rewards

6min

The Impact of Generosity: A Community's Generous Giving

6min

Money can buy you happiness - but not in the way we think. Giving money away - especially to help others - has been shown make us happier than spending on ourselves.

Social psychologist Lara Aknin explains the best ways to spend on loved ones, friends and even total strangers to get the biggest happiness bang for your buck.

And Harvard's s Josh Greene reveals how much money Happiness Lab listeners gave to charity via Giving Multiplier last year - and how many lives you saved.

To give to a charity of your choice and to some of the most effective charities around (and have your donation matched at a special rate) visit: https://givingmultiplier.org/invite/HAPPINESSLAB

The Happiness Lab will return in January 2023. See you then.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts

Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.