The Virtual Happiness Project
Jim Stolze @ PicNic ‘08 www.virtualhappiness.org

2 observations
1 announcement

#1 Happiness?
[observation]

“Happiness is good health
and bad memory”
Albert Schweitzer (1875 - 1965)

 medicine
 nobel prize
 happiness research

50 years research

Happiness is not about
being in good health
winning the lottery
having power
living in a good neighbourhood

the difference

social factor

interact

#2 Internet Usage
[observation]

no surprise

We sing, we argue, we laugh and we talk...

We sing, we argue, we laugh, we talk
we dream, we love, and we turn strangers into friends.

We sing, we argue, we share, we talk,
we dream, we love, and turn strangers into good friends.
Just like our ancestors did by their campfires.

Except, we don’t live in the age of Kumbaya anymore.

Global Campfire

Shaping our minds and driving social interaction.

#1 Happiness
+
#2 Internet Usage

We are a social species
and need to interact to feel happy
and because it's lack of boundaries
the internet has become a popular place to do this.

So...
Does this mean that being online,
makes you feel happier?

So...
Do all these bits and bytes create a thing called

Virtual Happiness

Virtual Happiness Project
- hypothesis
- global survey
- two experiments

measurable

And if we find a correlation between spending time
online and feelings of happiness.
How is this related to things like:
- information stress
- friendship inflation
- continious partial apttention?

Continious Partial Attention?

Many questions...

February 2009

Survey
www.virtualhappiness.org

Happy PicNic!

Thank you
JimStolze@gmail.com www.virtualhappiness.org