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Regular version of the site

The Science of Well-Being

2019/2020
Academic Year
ENG
Instruction in English
3
ECTS credits
Course type:
Elective course
When:
3 year, 1 module

Course Syllabus

Abstract

“The Science of Well-Being” overviews what psychological science says about happiness. The purpose of the course is to not only learn what psychological research says about what makes us happy but also to put those strategies into practice. The first part of the course reveals misconceptions we have about happiness and the annoying features of the mind that lead us to think the way we do. The next part of the course focuses on activities that have been proven to increase happiness along with strategies to build better habits. The last part of the course gives learners time, tips, and social support to work on the final assignment which asks learners to apply one wellness activity aka "Rewirement" into their lives for four weeks.
Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

  • To provide students the basic tools to overviews what psychological science says about happiness.
  • To provide students the basic tools to overviews what activities have been proven to increase happiness along with strategies to build better habits.
Expected Learning Outcomes

Expected Learning Outcomes

  • Understand the empirical science behind real well-being
  • Understand that our strongest intuitions are often misleading
  • Understand that we judge ourselves relative to reference points which are often irrelevant and make us feel worse than we
  • Discover how cognitive biases impact daily life
Course Contents

Course Contents

  • Introduction
  • Misconceptions About Happiness
  • Why Our Expectations are so Bad?
  • How Can We Overcome Our Biases?
  • Stuff that Really Makes Us Happy?
  • Putting Strategies into Practice
  • Final Rewirement Challenge
Assessment Elements

Assessment Elements

  • non-blocking The final exam
  • non-blocking Week Quizs
Interim Assessment

Interim Assessment

  • Interim assessment (1 module)
    The final grade is calculated on the basis of: the final exam & week Quizes. The grades will be given on a scale of 1 to 10 throughout the class.
Bibliography

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

  • Book review: C.R. Snyder and Shane J. Lopez (eds.), Handbook of positive psychology. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2002. (2003). Journal of Happiness Studies, 4, 341–343. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsnar&AN=edsnar.oai.pure.rug.nl.publications.ce6ac6fc.09ce.4dd5.9f0f.8782666d97bd
  • Bruni, L. (2015). The Oxford Handbook of Happiness, edited by Susan A. David, Ilona Boniwell and Amanda Conley Ayers. Oxford University Press, 2014, xi + 1097 pages. Economics and Philosophy, (01), 168. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsrep&AN=edsrep.a.cup.ecnphi.v31y2015i01p168.174.00
  • McCutcheon, L. E. (2014). The Oxford Handbook of Psychology and Spirituality. Implicit Religion, 17(3), 364–366. https://doi.org/10.1558/imre.v17i3.364

Recommended Additional Bibliography

  • Pchelin, P., & Howell, R. T. (2014). The hidden cost of value-seeking: People do not accurately forecast the economic benefits of experiential purchases. Journal of Positive Psychology, 9(4), 322–334. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2014.898316