Happiness Should Not Be Measured Research Paper

722 Words2 Pages

Ever since childhood, happiness is depicted as a feeling, an emotion. However, being happy might be a chemical reaction, a mindset, and might actually be virtually measured. As humans, we have tried to define happiness, we have tried to capture the essence of an interpretable experience. However, we fall short due to the lack of accuracy within the procedure of these experiments. Happiness cannot be measured because the definition of the term is very different across different people; one person’s idea of happiness can be very different from someone else’s. Additionally, happiness is impossible to measure because there is no concrete evidence to support that happiness can be measured. Furthermore, the measuring of happiness is not realistic …show more content…

As all humans before us, our desire to understand all that confuses us has led to many breakthroughs like space travel, the creation of religion, and ocean exploration. However, some things are better left incomprehensible. The measurement of happiness is both illogical and unrealistic due to the faulty experimenting conditions. Happiness cannot be measured owing to the fact that the definition of happiness varies so vastly across different groups of people. It is immensely difficult, if not impossible, to place an intangible entity inside the limits of a definite definition. “The tool recognizes that everyone has a different idea of what happiness looks like” (Thottman 14) By this, one can understand that a person’s definition of happiness can be different from someone else’s. There is not accurate depiction of …show more content…

Without any constants in these experiment, there is no comparison, no realistic outcomes to develop the theory that happiness can be measured. A poll taken a Columbia University states, “Columbia University researches compiled polls that asked people in 150 countries how they feel about their lives” (MIT Technology review 1) The experiment was based on the polls or surveys answered by participants. This illustrates that no series of questions could epic someone’s happiness truthfully. The experiments we attempt to measure happiness are only as valid as the answers given during experimentation. In this particular experiment, the results portrayed the universal goal of happiness but not the universal definition of happiness. Additionally, in an explanation of a happiness measuring experiment, Pérez-Álvarez states, “The problem about taking happiness as a scientific object is that we do not know what it really is, or what it depends on, according to the case and the times, just as in every age and society it may be one thing or another, depending on the circumstances.This is because happiness is a syncategorematic concept, empty, whose meaning depends on other terms.” (Pérez-Álvarez 8) By this, Pérez-Álavarez develops the claim that there is no concrete evidence in a happiness measuring experiment because he explains how happiness should not be considered a scientific

Open Document