
Happier?
The History of A Cultural Movement that Aspired to Transform America
Daniel Horowitz(Author)
Oxford University Press Inc
Published on 4. January 2018
Book
Hardback
320 pages
978-0-19-065564-8 (ISBN)
Description
When a cultural movement that began to take shape in the mid-twentieth century erupted into mainstream American culture in the late 1990s, it brought to the fore the idea that it is as important to improve one's own sense of pleasure as it is to manage depression and anxiety. Cultural historian Daniel Horowitz's research reveals that this change happened in the context of key events. World War II, the Holocaust, post-war prosperity, the rise of counter-culture, the crises of the 1970s, the presidency of Ronald Reagan, and the prime ministerships of Margaret Thatcher and David Cameron provided the important context for the development of the field today known as positive psychology.
Happier? provides the first history of the origins, development, and impact of the way Americans -- and now many around the world -- shifted from mental illness to well-being as they pondered the human condition. This change, which came about from the fusing of knowledge drawn from Eastern spiritual traditions, behavioral economics, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and cognitive psychology, has been led by scholars and academic entrepreneurs, as they wrestled with the implications of political events and forces such as neoliberalism and cultural conservatism, and a public eager for self-improvement.
Linking the development of happiness studies and positive psychology with a broad series of social changes, including the emergence of new media and technologies like TED talks, blogs, web sites, and neuroscience, as well as the role of evangelical ministers, Oprah Winfrey's enterprises, and funding from government agencies and private foundations, Horowitz highlights the transfer of specialized knowledge into popular arenas. Along the way he shows how marketing triumphed, transforming academic disciplines and spirituality into saleable products. Ultimately, Happier? illuminates how positive psychology, one of the most influential academic fields of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, infused American culture with captivating promises for a happier society.
Happier? provides the first history of the origins, development, and impact of the way Americans -- and now many around the world -- shifted from mental illness to well-being as they pondered the human condition. This change, which came about from the fusing of knowledge drawn from Eastern spiritual traditions, behavioral economics, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and cognitive psychology, has been led by scholars and academic entrepreneurs, as they wrestled with the implications of political events and forces such as neoliberalism and cultural conservatism, and a public eager for self-improvement.
Linking the development of happiness studies and positive psychology with a broad series of social changes, including the emergence of new media and technologies like TED talks, blogs, web sites, and neuroscience, as well as the role of evangelical ministers, Oprah Winfrey's enterprises, and funding from government agencies and private foundations, Horowitz highlights the transfer of specialized knowledge into popular arenas. Along the way he shows how marketing triumphed, transforming academic disciplines and spirituality into saleable products. Ultimately, Happier? illuminates how positive psychology, one of the most influential academic fields of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, infused American culture with captivating promises for a happier society.
Reviews / Votes
Horowitz's study is primarily an intellectual one. Indeed, now that he has laid the groundwork with this thorough intellectual history of the movement, scholars can turn their efforts to understanding how Americans used what they learned in happiness-oriented therapies, training, and books. * The American Historical Review * Horowitz helps us see the extensive reach of psychology into American lives. And he raises the provocative question of whether happiness studies have really made us happier or whether they have lulled us into the false sense that social reforms are unnecessary. * Journal of American History * Happier contributes to a rethinking of how to periodize the history of psychology. Horowitz's analysis suggests psychology underwent an effective revolution around the turn of this century. The history of this effective revolution remains unwritten, but Happier along with other recent titles is suggestive of its broad contours. As such, the book is essential reading for historians of psychology. * Journal of The History of the Behavioral Sciences *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 241 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 35 mm
Weight
561 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-065564-8 (9780190655648)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
11/2017
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€9.99
Available for download

E-Book
11/2017
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€9.99
Available for download
Person
Daniel Horowitz is the Mary Huggins Gamble Foundation Chair and Professor of American Studies Emeritus at Smith College. He is a historian whose work focused on the history of consumer culture and social criticism in the U.S. during the 20th century. He has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Among his publications are a biography of Betty Friedan and three books on how American and European writers, from the 1830s to the late twentieth century wrestled with the onsequences of affluence.
Author
Mary Huggins Gamble Foundation Chair and Professor of American Studies EmeritusMary Huggins Gamble Foundation Chair and Professor of American Studies Emeritus, Smith College
Content
Introduction
Chapter 1: From Helplessness to Optimism: Martin Seligman and the Development of Positive Psychology
Chapter 2: Misery and Pleasure in the Origins of Happiness Studies, 1945-70
Chapter 3: Crisis of Confidence? 1970-83: Providing the Groundwork for the Study of Positive Happiness
Chapter 4: Morning in America, 1984-98: Assembling Key Elements in the Study of Happiness and
Positivity
Chapter 5: Drawing (and Crossing) the Line: Academic and Popular Renditions of Subjective Well-Being, 1984-98
Chapter 6: Building A Positively Happy World View
Chapter 7: The Future in Here: Positive Psychology Comes of Age
Chapter 8: The Business of Happiness
Coda: The Happiest Place on Earth
Chapter 1: From Helplessness to Optimism: Martin Seligman and the Development of Positive Psychology
Chapter 2: Misery and Pleasure in the Origins of Happiness Studies, 1945-70
Chapter 3: Crisis of Confidence? 1970-83: Providing the Groundwork for the Study of Positive Happiness
Chapter 4: Morning in America, 1984-98: Assembling Key Elements in the Study of Happiness and
Positivity
Chapter 5: Drawing (and Crossing) the Line: Academic and Popular Renditions of Subjective Well-Being, 1984-98
Chapter 6: Building A Positively Happy World View
Chapter 7: The Future in Here: Positive Psychology Comes of Age
Chapter 8: The Business of Happiness
Coda: The Happiest Place on Earth