Ruut Veenhoven Explained

Ruut Veenhoven (born 1942) is a Dutch sociologist and a pioneer on the scientific study of happiness,[1] [2] [3] in the sense of subjective enjoyment of life. His work on the social conditions for human happiness at Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands has contributed to a renewed interest in happiness as an aim for public policy. He has shown that happiness can be used a reliable measure to assess progress in societies[4] which was one of the sources of inspiration for the United Nations to adopt happiness measures as a holistic approach to development.[5] Veenhoven is the founding director of the World Database of Happiness and a founding editor of the Journal of Happiness Studies.[6] He has been described as "the godfather of happiness studies",[7] and "a leading authority on worldwide levels of happiness from country to country",[8] whose work "earned him international acclaim".[9]

Biography

Veenhoven was born in The Hague in the Netherlands in 1942. He graduated in 1962 from the Nederlands Lyceum in The Hague and received a master's degree in sociology (specializing in public management) from Erasmus University in Rotterdam (1969). Subsequently, he completed a PhD in the Social Sciences also at Erasmus, with a dissertation on "The Condition of Happiness". He was also registered as a social-sexologist (1994–2000).[10] Between 1970 and 1990 Veenhoven was a leading advocate of abortion law reform and in promoting acceptance of voluntary childlessness in The Netherlands.[11] Since 2001 he was a special professor at North-West University in South Africa. After his retirement in 2007 he joined the Erasmus Happiness Economics Research Organization (Ehero). Since 1985 he has been director of the World Database of Happiness at Erasmus University Rotterdam.[12] From 1995 until 2002 he was extraordinary professor of Humanism at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands (Piet Thoenes chair).[13] His contribution to the field of happiness studies was described in the Festschrift The Pope of Happiness.[14]

In 1984 Veenhoven earned his doctorate on the dissertation ‘Conditions of Happiness’ that synthesized the results of 245 empirical studies on happiness. On that basis he developed the World Database of Happiness,[15] which now covers some 40,000 research findings taken from 8,000 empirical investigations. Veenhoven is mentioned in the top 5% of authors in his field (December 2012).[16]

Awards

The International Society for Quality of Life Studies (ISQOLS) has awarded Veenhoven several times:

Research on happiness

His main research subject is happiness in the sense of subjective enjoyment of life. His main aim is to add to happiness for as much people as possible, by allowing individuals and organizations to make better informed decisions. Worldwide he is seen as a pioneer in that field.[18] [19] [20]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Rojas. Mariano. Inspiring Economics. Journal of Happiness Studies. 2007-06-01. 8. 2. 293–98. 10.1007/s10902-007-9048-3. 147561805.
  2. Chekola. Mark. An Entertaining Travelogue. Journal of Happiness Studies. 2009-10-01. 10. 5. 631–33. 10.1007/s10902-009-9136-7. 143216442.
  3. Web site: Frisch. Michael. Professor. The meaningful life project. Frisch, Michael B. (2008). The Oral History and Education Project of the International Society for Quality of Life Studies and the Gallup Institute for Global Well Being: A Way to Honor Distinguished Researchers and to Preserve their Legacies. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 2 (4), 223–38.. 2013-05-22.
  4. Web site: OECD. 2nd world forum. Measuring and fostering the progress of societies. Measures of Gross National Happiness. oecd. 2013-05-22.
  5. Web site: Ki-moon. Ban. Happiness: towards a holistic approach to development. Sixty-seventh session Agenda item 14. United Nations. 22 May 2013.
  6. Web site: Anonymous. Anonymous. University of Alberta. call for papers. University of Alberta. 16 April 2013.
  7. Weiner, Eric, The geography of bliss: one grump's search for the happiest places in the world, pp. 20–33, p. 20 quoted, 2008, Random House,,, google books
  8. 'Zuckerman, Phil, 'Society Without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us about Contentment, p. 7, 2008, NYU Press,, ISBB 978-0814797273, google books
  9. Robert Biswas-Diener, Ben Dean, Positive Psychology Coaching: Putting the Science of Happiness to Work for Your Clients, (e-book, no page numbers, section "A Scientific History of Happiness", 2010, John Wiley & Sons,,, google books
  10. Book: Deflem, Mathieu. Sociologists in a global Age: Biographical Perspectives. 2007. Ashgate. Farnham. 978-0754670377. 175–186.
  11. Web site: Ruigrok. Paul. Abortus. Andere tijden. VPRO Geschiedenis 24. 23 May 2013.
  12. Book: Den Boer, Bert. Leef je Verlangen, Zestien Interviews. 2006. ASPEKt. Soesterberg. 978-90-5911-314-5. 32.
  13. Web site: Volkskrant. Dutch Newspaper. Persoonlijk. 2012-12-12.
  14. Book: Michalos, Alex C. . 2021 . The Pope of Happiness: A Festschrift for Ruut Veenhoven . Cham . Springer . 324 . 9783030537784.
  15. Veenhoven . Ruut . Buijt . Ivonne . Burger . Martijn. May 2021. ONLINE 'FINDINGS-ARCHIVE': A NEW TOOL FOR RESEARCH SYNTHESIS . International Journal of Innovation Scientific Research and Review . 04 . 5 . 2774–2784 .
  16. Web site: Ideas. RePEc. Research Papers in Economics. 2012-12-12.
  17. Web site: isqols, International Society for Quality of Life Studies. Awards. 2012-12-09.
  18. Book: Van Praag, Bernard. Quantified: A Satisfaction Calculus Approach. 2007. Oxford University Press. p. vi. 978-0199226146.
  19. Book: Biswas-Diener, Robert. Positive Psychology Coaching. 2010. John Wiley & Sons. p. 35. 978-0470893081. 272.
  20. Book: Oishi, Shigehiro. The Psychological Wealth of Nations: Do Happy People Make a Happy Society. 2012. Wiley-Blackwell. p 105. 978-1405192101.
  21. Veenhoven. Ruut. Is happiness relative. Social Indicators Research. February 1991. 24. 1. 1–34. 16 April 2013. 10.1007/bf00292648. 1765/16148. 18774960. free.
  22. Veenhoven. Ruut. The four qualities of life: Ordering concepts and measures of the good life. Journal of Happiness Studies. March 2001. 1. 1. 1–39. 10.1023/A:1010072010360. 142090332. 16 April 2011.
  23. Book: Sheldon, Kennon M.. Designing Positive Psychology: Taking Stock and Moving Forward'. 2011. Oxford University Press. New York. 978-0-19-537358-5. 396–409.
  24. Book: Berg, Maarten. Geluk in Landen. 2010. Erasmus University. Rotterdam.
  25. Book: Ott, Jan. An Eye on Happiness; Happiness as an additional goal for citizins and governments. 2012. Beta communications. Den Haag. 978-90-5335-589-3.
  26. Brulé. Gaël. Veenhoven. Ruut. 2014. Freedom and happiness in nations: why the Finns are happier than the French. Psychology of Well-Being. en. 4. 1. 10.1186/s13612-014-0017-4. 2211-1522. free. 1765/77253. free.
  27. News: Bergsma. Ad. Smeed je eigen geluk. 16 April 2013. Volkskrant. 18 April 2008.
  28. Book: Bergsma, Ad. Wat bezielt de psycholoog. 2001. Nieuwezijds. Amsterdam. 978-90-5712-110-4. 230–236.
  29. Bergsma A, Veenhoven R. The happiness of people with a mental disorder in modern society. Psychology of Well-Being: Theory, Research & Practice. 2011. 1. 2. 2. 10.1186/2211-1522-1-2. free.
  30. Bergsma A, Ten Have M, Veenhoven R, De Graaf R. Happy life expectancy associated with various mental disorders. Netherlands Journal of Psychology. 2011. 66. 1. 33–36. 16 April 2013.
  31. Veenhoven. Ruut. Life is Getting Better: Societal Evolution and Fit with Human Nature. Social Indicators Research. May 2010. 97. 1. 16 April 2013. 10.1007/s11205-009-9556-0. 20390030. 2848343. 105–122.

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