Question Sheet: A Recipe for Happiness

SCIENCE

Before reading:

1. On a scale from 1 to 10, how happy are you? Explain why you chose that

   number. 

2. Do you think most people around you are slightly happy, extremely happy, or

   unhappy? Explain your reasoning.

During reading:

1. What is “positive psychology”? 
2. What are some benefits of being happy? 
3. Why is it difficult to measure happiness? 
4. Scientists have developed more accurate ways to measure happiness. Describe

   these techniques. 

5. Which determines how happy you are: genes or external circumstances? 
6. Name a research-backed happiness booster.

After reading:

1. The article suggests that poets and artists, in addition to scientists, are

   interested in the subject of happiness. Compare how an artist might talk about

   happiness with how a scientist would talk about the subject. How do members of

   each profession approach the topic differently? Which type of person do you

   think understands happiness better? Why? 

2. Why do you think teenagers are prone to depression? 
3. The article offers several tips for becoming happier. Are these suggestions

   helpful to you? Why or why not? 

4. Besides happiness, name two emotional states that might be useful for

   scientists to rate on a scale from 1 through 10. Name two states that would be

   difficult to rate or compare in a similar way. Why do ratings work well

   sometimes and fail other times as a tool for collecting scientific data? 

5. Would you expect that scientists have conducted more research on sadness or

   happiness? Explain your answer. 

6. Where does happiness come from? Is it located in the brain or somewhere

   else?

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SOCIAL STUDIES

1. Do you think people in the past were as concerned with happiness as they are

   today? Has the meaning of happiness changed throughout history? 

2. Do you think people in some parts of the world are happier than people in

   other places? Where would you expect people to be happiest? Where would you be happiest?

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LANGUAGE ARTS

1. Expressing gratitude helps boost happiness, according to research. Write a

   letter to someone that expresses appreciation for something they’ve done for

   you. 

2. Your genes help determine how happy you are, and genes get passed down from

   generation to generation. Pick an older family member to interview. Ask

   questions that will help you determine how happy he or she was at your age and

   how happy he or she is now. Has this person’s level of happiness changed over

   the years?