Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Cultural Values And Happiness, Timothy B. Smith

Faculty Publications

Csikszentmihalyi (1999) has reminded us that social scientists cannot shrink from challenging the validity of our most cherished values, including the fundamental nature of happiness. He cites research affirming that material wealth does not correlate with happiness and then presents data correlating happiness with the experience of flow. However, in making this leap Csikszentmihalyi confuses correlation with causation. Because losing oneself in a project, relationship, or dream is followed by a very positive condition does not mean that the experience itself caused happiness. It is equally likely that losing one self is the causative factor. In looking at his data …