The Virtues of Well-being

A deep-rooted question, a new answer

"What does a good life look like?" — one of philosophy's oldest, perhaps most human questions. Aristotle answered it with eudaimonia: though often translated as "happiness," it really means a person's flourishing in a way that befits their nature — becoming the best they can be. For him, the good life was not a state of feeling but a way of doing: a fabric woven by exercising the virtues, again and again, in everyday life.

Twenty-three centuries later, a similar answer arrived — this time from a research desk.

More than five thousand people, twenty-four strengths

A study by Nansook Park, Christopher Peterson, and Martin Seligman, published in 2004 in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, asked 5,299 adults a simple question: which character strengths are most closely linked to the satisfaction a person takes in their life? By "character strengths" they meant twenty-four positive qualities regarded as virtues across cultures — courage, gratitude, curiosity, love, fairness, and the like.

The result is both plain and thought-provoking. The virtues most strongly and consistently tied to life satisfaction were: hope, zest (the joy of living), gratitude, love, and curiosity. By contrast, some intellectual strengths we hold in high regard — appreciation of beauty, creativity, sound judgment, love of learning — along with modesty, showed only a weak link. In other words, a virtue may be greatly valued by society yet add little to a person's own satisfaction with life.

There is a quieter but important finding, too: contrary to the "too much is harmful" expectation, having a great deal of any of these strengths did not lower satisfaction. On the contrary — the more, the better.

From findings to philosophical questions

The loveliest part is how the researchers read their own findings. To explain the link, they turn directly to Aristotle:

Well-being is not a reward that follows virtuous action, but something that lies within the action itself.

When we do someone a kindness, that kindness does not satisfy us at some later moment; the satisfaction is already part of acting well — just as grace is not the outcome of a well-danced dance, but a quality of the dance itself. This is the backbone of my own approach as well: well-being is not a having, but a way of doing. Modern science is rediscovering an old intuition of philosophy.

How, then? — Not a chart, but measure

An easy but mistaken conclusion could be drawn here: "Then let me collect hope, gratitude, curiosity." But virtue is not a matter of stockpiling. Aristotle's real lesson is measure: seeing which strength to show, when, toward whom, and how much. Philosophy calls this phronesis — practical wisdom. When is courage a virtue and when recklessness; when is tenderness kindness and when self-erasure? There is no ready-made answer; it asks to be thought through afresh in every situation.

In the same study, the researchers also speak of "signature strengths" — the few strengths that suit a person most, the ones they feel are "truly me." The way to flourish may run not through forcibly acquiring every virtue you think you lack, but through recognizing your own signature strengths and bringing them more fully into your life. And that, first of all, calls for knowing yourself.

An invitation

Perhaps what matters is not chasing happiness like a target, but living life by exercising the strengths that befit you — and letting satisfaction come, more often than not, as a by-product of that.

What are your own strengths? In which moments do you feel most fully "you"? These are questions worth thinking through together.

Source: Park, N., Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Strengths of Character and Well-Being. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 23(5), 603–619.

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