Sharing meals with others: How sharing meals supports happiness and social connections

Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Andrew Dugan, Micah Kaats, and Alberto Prati

Abstract

In this chapter, we explore links between sharing meals, social connections, and wellbeing. Although the topic of sharing meals has remained relatively understudied in the academic literature, the connection between food and social relationships is far from new. In French, copain (friend) and in Italian compagno (mate) come from the Latin cum+‎pānis, literally “with-bread”. The Chinese term for companion/partner, 伙伴, stems from a similar term (火伴) which literally translates to “fire mate”, a reference to sharing meals over a campfire.

The World Happiness Report is published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, in partnership with Gallup, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and an independent editorial board.

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