• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
  • WordPress
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
Science Update

Science Update

Sharing Science | Satisfying Curiosity | Debunking BS

  • Spotlights
  • Reality Check
  • Why Is It?
  • Radio Archives
  • Sciup @ School
Home » Radio Archive » Daily Show » Spreading Happiness

Spreading Happiness

December 23, 2008
https://podcast.scienceupdate.com/081223_sciup_happ.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window

BOB HIRSHON (host):
The happiness network. I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.

Only you can make yourself happy, right? Sounds like good advice, but it turns out that your own happiness may actually be strongly influenced by that of your friends and family. This according to James Fowler of the University of California, San Diego and Nicholas Christakis of Harvard Medical School. They studied relationships between 5,000 people whose happiness had been measured over the course of 20 years. Fowler says that each happy friend or close relative increases your likelihood of being happy by 15%. And if a friend’s friend is happy, your chances go up another 10%.

JAMES FOWLER (University of California, San Diego):
The effect even extends up to three degrees, so if my friend’s friend’s friend becomes happy, it increases the likelihood that I’ll become happy by 6%.

HIRSHON:
He says we may be hardwired to spread happiness because it fosters social harmony. I’m Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.

Category: Daily ShowTag: Social & Behavioral Sciences
Previous Post:Brainy Impersonation
Next Post:Cleanliness & Morality

Sidebar

Radio Program Archives

Want to learn more about the brain? The environment? Here you can browse the topics that come up regularly on Science Update.

Search the Archives

Categories

  • Daily Show
  • Station Download
  • Weekly Show

Find By Tag

  • 2020
  • Acoustics & Sound
  • Aging
  • Animal Behavior
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Astronomy & Space
  • Biology
  • Brain Science
  • Bugs
  • Cat Video
  • Chemistry
  • Children & Families
  • cicadas
  • Climate & Weather
  • Communications
  • Computer Science
  • Economics & Business
  • Education
  • Energy
  • Engineering & Technology
  • Environment & Conservation
  • Genetics & Evolution
  • Geology
  • Marine Science
  • Materials Science
  • Mathematics
  • Medicine & Health
  • Microbiology
  • Nanotechnology
  • NASA
  • Nutrition & Food Science
  • Paleontology & Dinosaurs
  • Physics
  • Plants & Agriculture
  • Political Science
  • Reality Check
  • Social & Behavioral Sciences
  • Sports & Fitness
  • spotlight
  • Spotlight Bugs
  • Terrorism & War
  • Why Is It? Questions
  • Wildlife
  • Year in Review

Find By Date

Science Update
  • About Science Update
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

Image of computer screen depicting an orange cat with a variety of alphanumeric scientific data superimposed on the the screen.
Spotted skunk performing handstand to threaten predators

Copyright © 2025 · Springtail Media LLC · All Rights Reserved · Powered by Pongos