The science of happinessThe science of happiness
All In The Mind
The pursuit of happiness is a global obsession. But can science investigate its slippery, subjective nature? What are the metrics—self report, brain activity, or the good deeds we do? Five world leaders in the field join Natasha Mitchell in conversation—neuroscientist Richard Davidson, Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard, Buddhist scholar B. Alan Wallace, psychologist Daniel Gilbert and philosopher David Chalmers.
30:07•17 May 2008
The Science of Happiness: Can Your Brain Learn to Be Happier?
Episode Overview
- Happiness affects both brain and body, with potential benefits for physical health.
- Long-term meditation practice may improve how accurately people understand and report their own emotional states.
- Genetic temperament shapes our starting point, but environmental factors and mental training can shift emotional baselines.
- Chasing money, possessions and status often reflects cultural and genetic "bad advice" rather than what actually supports happiness.
- Negative emotions can protect us and enrich life, but they’re most helpful when they don’t dominate or distort our view of reality.
“"Meditation is training of that spoiled brat of the mind."”
What drives someone to seek a life that actually feels happy, rather than just looks good on paper? This episode of *All In The Mind* lines up five big thinkers to wrestle with that question from scientific, philosophical and Buddhist angles. Host Natasha Mitchell moderates a lively panel featuring neuroscientist Richard Davidson, Buddhist monk and former biologist Matthieu Ricard, Buddhist scholar B. Alan Wallace, psychologist Daniel Gilbert and philosopher David Chalmers.
Together they ask whether happiness can be measured, trained, and even re‑wired into the brain. Davidson explains why science bothers with feelings at all, arguing that "happiness is not just a subjective conscious feeling, but it actually has impact for the body in ways that may be beneficial for health." He shares research showing that long‑term meditation practitioners report their emotions more accurately, with tight links between their self‑reports and brain activity.
For anyone working on their mental health, the idea that practice can change emotional "set points" is a hopeful twist. Ricard brings a Buddhist perspective, describing Buddhism as "a contemplative science" and cracking a smile with the line that "meditation is training of that spoiled brat of the mind." He argues for happiness as a stable way of being rather than a passing mood, something that can still exist alongside sadness and difficulty.
Wallace questions our culture’s obsession with material fixes and talks about mental training like a gym for the mind, while Gilbert cheerfully points out how both our genes and our society "give us a whole host of lies about happiness" and why we keep chasing things that don’t help. For people interested in recovery, anxiety, or simply feeling better, this conversation offers practical food for thought: happiness isn’t a lottery win, it’s a skill that can be cultivated over time.
So what kind of training is your mind getting right now?
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