Is there really a definition for flourishing? All too often the absence of disease is about is good as it gets. There is much written about resiliency in the face of adversity. And don’t forget harm reduction. But what about flourishing? Could actual flourishing be a goal for all people?
Tyler J. VanderWeele, in the article “On the promotion of human flourishing” published in Proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences, tackles this question. The article reviews previous studies defining flourishing, creating measures for thriving and subjective happiness, health and even economic measures such as production and consumption of goods that may influence flourishing. To understand the study of flourishing, the author employs six broad domains that are interrelated: Happiness and life satisfaction, health, meaning and purpose, character and virtue, and close social relationships. VanderWeele has added sufficient financial resources, noting that having the means to supply basic life needs is essential to thriving.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) performs periodic surveys of life satisfaction, positive feelings, health and other conditions associated with happiness and flourishing. VanderWeele’s domains are pulled from these surveys. Four “pathways” most associated with flourishing are identified: family, work, education and religious community.
Marriage/family: Effects of family and marriage are substantial, not just for the people who get married, but especially for their children. Marriage and family also impact most of the other domains.
Work: Even though work is often portrayed as drudgery, having a job increases life satisfaction. Re-employment for the unemployed does the same. Although not as well understood as the positive effects of marriage and family, the effects of employment on life satisfaction are clear.
Education: Education’s contributions to well-being and health are not as robust as marriage or employment. These educational effects go beyond just improved earning potential.
Religion: Belonging to a religious community is associated with many domains of flourishing including health (physical and mental health), staying married, and having social supports. Religion’s contribution to flourishing is most robust in those who regularly attend services.
The last section of the article discusses promoting human flourishing. Policies to support marriage include access to counseling for troubled marriages and abandoning policies that dis-incentivize work (such as welfare programs that provide needed services that are cancelled when recipients work). Also included is ncrease access to supported employment for vulnerable populations. Negative portrayals of religion in media can and should be balanced with the many positive benefits of religious participation.