The Science of Happiness

We all know what it feels like to be happy but what mechanisms inside our brain trigger such a positive emotion? What does it really mean to be happy—to desire and to enjoy; to experience the highs of love passion and friendship—and why can’t we feel that way all the time? Psychologists and neuroscientists have been studying negative emotions for decades but until recently few have focused on the subject of happiness. In this enthralling book one of the world’s leading science writers ranges widely across the frontiers of neuroscience and psychology to explain how happiness is generated in our brains what biological purpose it serves and the conditions required to foster the ‘pursuit of happiness’. A remarkable synthesis of a growing body of research that has rarely been brought together The Science of Happiness is ultimately a book that helps us to understand our most cherished quest.