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Helping others makes us happier— but it matters how we do it - Elizabeth Dunn

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One of the best ways to increase your own happiness is to help other people. This turns out to be a cultural universal— an aspect of human nature that scientists have detected around the world. But, giving to others doesn’t always make people happier. So, what are the factors that determine whether good deeds produce good feelings? Elizabeth Dunn shares how we can make a greater impact— and boost our own happiness along the way.

Additional Resources for you to Explore

The speaker and her collaborators wrote about helping and happiness for the United Nations’ World Happiness Report; this article provides an accessible overview of the key findings in this area: Happiness and Prosocial Behavior: An Evaluation of the Evidence. The speaker and her collaborator wrote a New York Times article about why we often spend money in the wrong ways: "Don't Indulge. Be Happy."

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