Viewing archives for Cause And Effect

There’s something unique about eating together that’s good for us

BBC Future

Arguably the strongest evidence comes from the World Happiness Report – a yearly analysis of wellbeing based on a global survey from the opinion polling company Gallup. In 2024, the company was sponsored by the Japanese food manufacturer Ajinomoto to add a section on people’s eating habits, which included the following questions:

Thinking about the last 7 days …
(1) On how many days did you eat lunch with someone you know?
(2) On how many days did you eat dinner with someone you know?”

“My eyes lit up when I saw,” De Neve says, who co-authored a chapter on the importance of commensality in the latest World Happiness Report. “We’re looking at about 150,000 individuals around the world who responded to that question.”

De Neve’s team found that the more meals that people shared with others, the higher they scored on standard measures of emotional wellbeing, with quite astonishing consistency. “It was as predictive of someone’s life satisfaction as their employment status and your relative income,” he says – two factors that are known to be enormously important for wellbeing.

2601 | Reduce or Compress? Panel Evidence on Working Time Arrangements and Worker Wellbeing

William Fleming

The 4-day work week (4DW) has garnered much attention following recent high-profile trials; whereas the compressed work week (CWW) has made a concurrent comeback. The rise of two comparable working time arrangements (WTA) raises the question: which is best for workers? To compare, this article uses representative panel data from the UK observing both WTAs. Results unsurprisingly corroborate the 4DW is good for workers. In sharp contrast, the CWW is associated with declines in women’s wellbeing. These possible harms are alleviated when coinciding with ‘a lot’ of schedule control, demonstrating the importance of worker control for individuals utilising WTAs. Yet these differences signal significant gender trade-offs. Overall, theory should not be so ambivalent about wellbeing and working time: working less is better. For organisational and public policy, divergent results emphasise equivalating working time reduction and compression is unhelpful for guiding interventions which support worker wellbeing.

Wellbeing and Adolescents: Measurement, Development and Inclusion

Wanying Zhou

Abstract

This chapter explores the multifaceted concept of adolescent wellbeing and its critical role in fostering inclusive schools and societies. Drawing from psychological, developmental and cross-cultural research, it examines how wellbeing is conceptualised and measured, highlighting both hedonic (life satisfaction and affect) and eudaimonic (meaning, purpose and growth) frameworks. It reviews widely used tools and emerging adolescent-specific instruments, discussing their developmental and cultural relevance. This chapter also highlights adolescents’ own perspectives, emphasising the importance of participatory and context-sensitive approaches. Key issues such as the ecological influences on wellbeing, the role of schools and families and the inclusion of marginalised youth are addressed. By integrating research, measurement and policy perspectives, this chapter argues for a holistic and inclusive approach to adolescent wellbeing which centres youth agency and cultural diversity in educational and societal settings.

Sharing meals is associated with greater wellbeing

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

Abstract

Although social connections are important drivers of wellbeing, and sharing meals is a nearly universal practice, the relationship between sharing meals and wellbeing remains underexplored. In Study 1, using novel data from Gallup surveys in 142 countries and territories (2022–2023), we use the frequency of meal sharing as a global measure of social connections, and investigate its relationship with subjective wellbeing. We find a significant, positive relationship in almost all world regions. The number of shared meals explains as much variation in wellbeing as some key socioeconomic indicators, such as income or unemployment. In Study 2, we use data from the American Time Use Survey (2003–2023) to document changes in meal sharing in the United States over time. We find clear evidence that, with every passing year, Americans are dining alone more and more often, particularly the younger generations. Using Day Reconstruction Method data, we show that Americans who eat at least one meal with others report higher levels of happiness and lower levels of stress, pain and sadness on that day. Finally, we point to a number of promising avenues for future research and discuss implications for policy.

Investigating the analytical robustness of the social and behavioural sciences

Balazs Aczel, Barnabas Szaszi […], Caspar Kaiser et al.

Abstract

The same dataset can be analysed in different justifiable ways to answer the same research question, potentially challenging the robustness of empirical science. In this crowd initiative, we investigated the degree to which research findings in the social and behavioural sciences are contingent on analysts’ choices. We examined a stratified random sample of 100 studies published between 2009 and 2018, in which, for one claim per study, at least five reanalysts independently reanalysed the original data. The statistical appropriateness of the reanalyses was assessed in peer evaluations, and the robustness indicators were inspected along a range of research characteristics and study designs. We found that 34% of the independent reanalyses yielded the same result (within a tolerance region of ±0.05 Cohen’s d) as the original report; with a four times broader tolerance region, this indicator increased to 57%. Of the reanalyses conducted, 74% reached the same conclusion as the original investigation, 24% yielded no effects or inconclusive results and 2% reported the opposite effect. This exploratory study indicates that the common single-path analyses in social and behavioural research should not be simply assumed to be robust to alternative analyses. Therefore, we recommend the development and use of practices to explore and communicate this neglected source of uncertainty.

Does happiness spread within organizations? Evidence from a field experiment in Norway

Torbjørn Hanson, Åshild A. Johnsen, Andreas Kotsadam and Alberto Prati

Abstract

We report the results from a large field experiment that tests if happiness spreads within an organizational setting, as predicted by the emotional contagion hypothesis. Although some studies have supported this hypothesis, no well-powered randomized controlled trial has ever tested it in the field. In collaboration with the Norwegian Armed Forces, we randomly assign over 1500 recruits to rooms during eight-week boot camps. Some recruits live with relatively happier peers while others live with relatively unhappier ones. We find no evidence of happiness convergence at the room level and reject even small contagion effects. We show that the null result is not explained by excessive stability in happiness, and prior studies in the same setting show that peer effects emerge for some non-emotional attitudes. These results call for a reconsideration of the presumed ubiquity of happiness spillovers, with subsequent implications for well-being models and policies.

The Companies Winning With AI Aren’t Replacing Workers

Forbes

In a difficult business environment, artificial intelligence can look like an obvious answer for executives seeking faster work, lower costs and new efficiencies. But as AI moves into everyday business use, the more important question is whether those gains will last.

New research led by Professor Jan-Emmanuel De Neve of Saïd Business School, University of Oxford suggests companies may be making a strategic mistake if they treat AI mainly to cut headcount. The research argues that businesses focused too heavily on automation risk weakening the human capabilities they will need for growth, including creativity, judgment, institutional knowledge and leadership development.

“It’s a classic manifestation of status quo bias,” says De Neve. “It’s far easier for an executive to look at a spreadsheet and imagine using AI to streamline what people already do than it is to do the heavy strategic lifting of reimagining how technology can produce entirely new value. Treating AI as a headcount-slashing tool might yield quick, visible cost savings, but it is ultimately a path of organisational contraction that trades away a company’s long-term capacity to innovate.”

Ecological-collective-flourishing (e-co-flourishing): a framework to guide innovation and research

Shannon Maloney, Joseph Moore, Katrin Wilhelm, Jesus Montero-Marin, Verena Hinze, Anne Maj van der Velden, Tessa Lomax, Haiou Zhu, Madeline Reinecke, Edmond Awad, Joseph Scott Boyle, William Fleming, Laura Taylor, Matthew Broome, Christopher Thorogood, Yadvinder Malhi, Kearnan Myall, Ilina Singh and Willem Kuyken

Abstract

Converging ecological and social crises have exposed the limits of prevailing models of human progress, highlighting the need for more inclusive and interdisciplinary approaches to advancing wellbeing and flourishing across human and non-human life. In this Personal View, we propose an ecological-collective-flourishing (e-co-flourishing) approach, whereby one’s own human flourishing is pursued along with that of natural ecosystems and their collective and individual constituents. We offer a heuristic translational framework that includes a methodological approach; guiding principles; and proposed programme theory in terms of hypothesised outcomes, pathways of change (mechanisms), key contextual factors (moderators), and intervention characteristics. This framework aims to bridge theory to real-world applications of e-co-flourishing interventions that are effective, scalable, and promote change through targeted mechanisms of action. We present Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy-Balanced Living for Us and the Earth’s Ocean (MBCT-BLUE) as an illustrative application of this framework to outline how the framework can be used to identify, refine, develop, and evaluate interventions with e-co-flourishing potential. We also provide definitions of key conceptual terms and proxy measurements. Practitioners, researchers, and decision makers working at the interface of mental health, public health, sustainability, and planetary health can use this framework and its resources to guide emerging research and innovation.

Mechanisms underpinning flourishing at the interface of humans and other natural entities: an umbrella review

Shannon Maloney, Thomas Henning, Haiou Zhu, Benjamin Martin, Verena Hinze, Jesus Montero-Marin, Anne Maj van der Velden, Joseph Moore, Katrin Wilhelm, Tessa Lomax, Madeline G Reinecke, Edmond Awad, Joseph Boyle, William Fleming, Laura Taylor, Matthew Broome, Christopher Thorogood, Gaia Scerif, Yadvinder Malhi, Ilina Singh and Willem Kuyken

Abstract

Ecological-collective-flourishing (e-co-flourishing) describes the interconnected flourishing of human and non-human natural entities. Despite existing conceptual frameworks, translation into practice remains inadequate owing to insufficient synthesis of empirically tested mechanisms driving change across human and ecological systems. We conducted an umbrella review of systematic reviews examining mechanisms at the e-co-flourishing interface. Searches of seven databases and four grey literature sources identified nine eligible reviews. Evidence supported several cross-domain mechanisms, including psychological (eg, attention restoration and reduced stress), social (eg, cohesion and contact), physical (eg, activity), and environmental pathways (eg, reduced stressors and enhanced environmental quality). Psychological mechanisms showed the most consistent support, whereas evidence for other mechanism domains was mixed. Evidence for causality was weak and largely derived from cross-sectional and qualitative studies, and no reviews examined reciprocal mechanisms influencing both human and non-human flourishing. Future research should prioritise rigorous designs, theory-driven testing, and replication to strengthen evidence for equitable and sustainable e-co-flourishing pathways.

How to tell if you are living below the wellbeing poverty line

The Independent

“Wellbeing and happiness are ultimately – there is no way around it – in the eye of the beholder,” says De Neve, who is the co-founder of the World Wellbeing Movement; a charity which, for the past three years, has commissioned an annual UK Wellbeing Report which aims to assess the nation’s level of wellbeing by collating key UK data.

And, while there are many objective factors – such as physical and mental health, education, and income – that contribute to an individual’s wellbeing, the metric for assessing it couldn’t be simpler: asking people, on a scale of zero to 10, how satisfied they are with their life these days.