The science of making people happy
Local governments and public organizations have a great impact on the happiness of citizens. Through policy and initiatives they shape how people live, work, and how they interact in public spaces. While research has uncovered a wealth of knowledge about the conditions for human happiness, actually making people happy is another thing. So how can we put the theory into practice?
Governments and organizations have long had a major influence on people’s behavior and happiness, but in recent years they have gone further. Today they increasingly put people at the very center of policy, and explicitly focus on themes such as happiness and positive behavior. For example, municipalities combat loneliness and debt, while housing associations focus on the needs of the elderly wanting to live independently for longer.
But making people happy is surprisingly complicated. Behavior and happiness are complex phenomena determined by hundreds of factors. This is a whole new world where new knowledge and methods are necessary.
Behavior and happiness are complex phenomena determined by hundreds of factors. This is a whole new world where new knowledge and methods are necessary.
Using state-of-the-art scientific knowledge about behavior and happiness, we are helping organizations tackle these kinds of issues. Our typology of thirteen fundamental needs that every person must fulfill in order to be happy is a start, but our work goes far beyond that. We systematically map out how an organization can positively influence these happiness factors. How? Through in-depth interviews, home visits, and other forms of research to connect with people and see the world through their eyes.
The key to our approach – and major reason for its success – is that we involve all the people within an organization and take the necessary steps together. So, for example, we do joint workshops, go to interviews together where possible, and co-create new solutions. In this way there is shared ownership of the results, and we learn from each other.
Rotterdam City Council’s service line is called over a million times a year by people from very different backgrounds with a wide variety of enquiries. We mapped their needs and redesigned the options menu. The result: Improved ratings and doubled efficiency.
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How can a metropolis like Rotterdam improve its services and make the wellbeing of citizens its central goal? Together with people of the municipality, we set up a collaborative lab to find the answers.
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