Our current topic is 'Resource Management'. A-wah? Yeah, I know. The basic concepts of resource management are well being, needs & wants, resources (obviously), values & standards, goals and all that jazz.
Sounds fun, eh? I chose this subject because it would greatly prepare my mind for psychology. I aim to be a psychologist/ psychiatrist/ whatever psych there is. Anything involving the human mind (helping others while learning about their noggins is a plus). I was going to do Criminology which is this 1 unit class. Not enough people chose the subject so it was dropped. I'm actually glad about that! It'd be creepy to suddenly understand how criminals think at my age. I believe my childish stalking games are enough, for now.
My blog title was taken from this article my class read concerning the concept of well being. Well being relates to the way a person feels about their life, the satisfaction of and access to needs, and their ability to obtain their wants through adequate resources. The range of factors that can impact on well being are related to the physical, emotional, spiritual, economic and political status of the person.
If your overall well being is good, you are happy, satisfied. Hence the article on happiness. It was titled, "The science of happiness." (SMH - health and science, Apr 13, 2006)
Basically, the article tries to define happiness though the first sentence explains how "it's one of those things, like art, that's hard to explain, yet we know it when we see it." The article then focuses on how to achieve happiness, the most elusive of all emotions that scientists have really been working on for the past 3 decades.
It then explains how your overall well being affects your happiness. The most effective of all is love.
"The intimacy, belonging and support provided by close personal relationships
seem to matter most." - Richard Eckersley, co-author of The Australian Unity
Wellbeing Index.
In terms of money, populations of wealthier countries are generally happier than those of poorer countries due to improved standards of living. Though more money increases well being, it only does so to a point. Acquisitiveness is a known happiness suppressant. Material things that make us feel good over a short term cease to have effect after we adjust to them, so we keep buying and buying to restore that feeling once more.
Values, it seems, matter when it comes to happiness. A sense of meaning or purpose is the single attribute most closely correlated with overall life
satisfaction. Just what gives life meanings varies from individual to individual
but it tends to be linked with a sense of connection with something - from a
like-minded group to a common belief system, cause or goal - bigger than
oneself. This could explain why many studies show religious faith and church attendance, which incorporates all these factors, promotes subjective well
being.
Happiest of all are those who experience "flow". An optimal experience resulting from meeting a challenge or creating/achieving something significant.
Apparently happiness is affected by gender, age and hereditary. Women are happier than men, you're happiest when you're extremely young or extremely old, happiness, or conversely, depression can be "genetically hardwired". It is also affected by your family environment.
Nothing suss if all these aspects are negative for you - optimism can be learned.
For the full article, click here: http://www.smh.com.au/news/depression/the-science-of-happiness/2006/04/12/1144521401595.html?page=fullpage
Reading that article allowed me to understand not only myself more, but others too :)
