University of Leuven looking to uncover the secret to happiness

The psychology department at the University of Leuven is examining what makes us happy, through an experiment with about 1,000 people. The researchers were inspired by The World Book of Happiness by Flemish expert Leo Bormans, who will collaborate on the project.

The researchers will divide the trial group at random into three groups. From 10 January for a month, the first group will receive one happiness tip a day. The second group will be given more profound advice once a week, while the last group will be left alone. The results will be evaluated for six months following the test.

Bormans hopes that the research will provide “results which we can use to treat patients who suffer from, for example, depression or heart problems”. According to his book, 40% of our happiness depends on our own actions and decisions, 10% is determined by concrete life circumstances and half is genetically defined.  

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https://websurvey.kuleuven.be/index.php/216631/lang-nl

Photo: Ingimage