What makes us happy? What affects do the decisions we make have on our subjective well-being?

How does money, or parenthood affect our happiness? What are societies like when the people in them are happier? What affects do new technologies like smartphones, and constant connectivity, have on how happy we think we are?

If happiness, subjective well-being, or flourishing is important (which i'm sure we'd all agree it is), answering these questions has profound consequences for how choose to organise our societies.

Today we're talking to Kostadin Kushlev, an assistant professor in psychology at Georgetown University where he leads the The Digital Health and Happiness Lab, exploring questions of how digital technologies affect health and well-being.

The general themes covered in the podcast

Happiness helps health, productivity and being a good citizen

Components of well being

Using phones doesn’t make us feel worse, it just removes opportunities for potential happiness.

Parenthood and well being

Affects of do not disturb on people who have ADHD

Income and its affect on happiness/well being

Progressive taxation and its effect on the general population’s well being (In the States)

Living a Psychologically rich life and what that means

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Links Kostadin's papers (https://www.kushlev.com/papers#publications)

ADHD and Smartphones (https://theconversation.com/are-our-smartphones-afflicting-us-all-with-symptoms-of-adhd-58330)

Stop Checking Email So Often (https://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/11/opinion/sunday/stop-checking-email-so-often.html?_r=0)

Smartphones and Well-being (https://theconversation.com/to-improve-digital-well-being-put-your-phone-down-and-talk-to-people-82057)

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