CHAPTER 4

THE HUMAN PERSON

FLOURISHING IN
TERMS OF SCIENCE
AND TECHNOLOGY
KENT W. DEPAYSO
 WHAT IS
HAPPINESS?
PSYCHOLOGIST

BEHAVIORIST

NEUROLOGISTS
IN PSYCHOLOGY:

Happiness is a mental or emotional state

of well-being which can be defined by,
positive or pleasant emotions ranging
from contentment to intense joy. 1
TO BEHAVIORISTS

Happiness is a cocktail of
emotions we experience when
we do something good or
positive.
ASSUMPTIONS:

 All learning occurs through

interactions with the
environment
 The environment shapes
behavior 2
TO NEUROLOGISTS

Happiness is the experience of a

flood of hormones released in the
brain as a reward for behavior
that prolongs survival.
 WHAT IS
HUMAN
FLOURISHING?
 HUMAN
FLOURISHIN
Ga person is
occurs when
concurrently doing what
he ought to do and doing
what he wants to do. 3
 TWO WAYS THAT
PEOPLE TEND TO GO
ABOUT ACHIEVING
HAPPINESS OR WELL-
BEING
THE HEDONIC
APPROACH

OBJECTIVE:
to experience as much
pleasure as possible while
generally avoiding any
painful experiences. 4
 THREE COMPONENTS OF HEDONIC
WELL- BEING

1. Positive emotions presence: Joy, gratitude,

serenity, interests, hope

2. Negative emotions absence: Anger, Shame,

Contempt, disgust, embarrassment, guilt, hate

3. Life satisfaction: Overall evaluation of life,

Appraisal of life as good or bad, comparison to
self- created standards.
 THE DEGREE TO WHICH A
PERSON EXPERIENCE MORE
POSITIVE AND LESS NEGATIVE
EMOTIONS DETERMINES HIS OR
HER HAPPINESS.
THE EUDAIMONIC
APPROACH

Refers to the effectiveness

of an individual’s
psychological functioning
in which individuals
realize their true potentials
 SIX COMPONENTS OF EUDAIMONIC
WELL- BEING
1. Autonomy

2. Environmental Mastery

3. Personal Growth

4. Positive relations

5. Purpose in life

6. Self-Acceptance
Hedonic or Eudaimonic:
which is real happiness?
It is wise to consider happiness as a
multidimensional phenomenon that includes
 More positive emotions
 Less negative emotions
 Life satisfaction
 Autonomy
 Environmental Mastery
 Personal Growth
 Positive relations
 Purpose in life
 Self- acceptance
FROM NICOMACHEAN ETHICS
(philosophical inquiry into the nature of the
good life for a human being.)

Human flourishing arises as a result of different

components such as:

 Phronesis
 Friendship
 Wealth
 Power
 EASTERN VS
WESTERN
CONCEPTION
REGARDING
SOCIETY AND
HUMAN
EASTERN CONCEPTION

 focus is community-centric
 individual should sacrifice himself
for the sake of society
 Chinese Confucian system
 Japanese Bushido
 Encourage studies of literature,
sciences, and art for a greater cause
WESTERN CONCEPTION

 more focused on the individual

 human flourishing as an end
 Aristotelian view
 Aims for Eudaimonia as the
ultimate good