The arts and humanities - collectively referred to as culture - are critical for human flourishing. Religion, philosophy, history, literature, music, art, theatre, film, and similar cultural pursuits play central roles in the education of children, the leisure time of adults, and the cohesion of communities, nations, and society at large. Yet we have little scientific knowledge about the relationship between cultural engagement and individual and collective human flourishing.
The Positive Humanities is an emerging new field bringing together the humanities (including the arts) and the sciences to understand, assess, and advance the role of culture in human flourishing. Foundational conceptual pieces (including conceptual models to support scientific research) have been published, and there is growing international interest in this field.
Having conducted foundational, interdisciplinary research since 2014, the Humanities and Human Flourishing Project seeks to explore the various ways the arts and humanities relate to well-being and are guided by the following research questions:
In what ways do the arts and humanities support flourishing?
Do they contribute to well-being in any unique ways in which other endeavors do not?
Do some forms of engagement in culture support human flourishing more effectively than others?
Are there ways in which the arts and humanities could be more effective in supporting well-being?
Are there ways in which they obstruct human flourishing?
How can we use cultural pursuits to cultivate well-being for individuals, communities, and society at large?
To learn more, visit the HHF YouTube channel, where you can watch interviews with Project Director James Pawelski and Founding Research Director Louis Tay, as well as with leaders in the arts and humanities.
CURRENT PROJECTS
Arts & Humanities Experience Study
To fill a large gap in empirical research on the relation between arts and humanities (A&H) engagement and wellbeing, we are conducting a large-scale survey study in which we characterize people’s most personally significant A&H experiences and everyday activities. Data collection from a representative American sample is now complete and has produced promising initial results. This study will allow us to address questions such as: What are the cognitive, affective and concrete situational features of such experiences and activities, and to what extent are the various features of these A&H-related activities associated with different facets of wellbeing?
Narrative Technologies Study
In collaboration with Dr. Angus Fletcher at The Ohio State University, we are planning empirical studies in which we will test the effects of exposure to different kinds of “narrative technologies” (e.g., narratives of luck vs. virtue rewarded or poetic justice) on wellbeing-related variables such as optimism and resilience. These narrative technologies will take the form of film or literature.
Humanities and Human Flourishing Book Series
Built into the fabric of the HHF Project is interdisciplinary partnership. The Humanities and Human Flourishing Book Series brings together new knowledge from nearly 100 contributors across the arts and humanities and focuses on the intersections of their research and well-being. Mindful of the complexity intrinsic to interdisciplinary work, the series came to fruition over the course of a multi-stage writing and editing process. In 2018 and 2019, we hosted a series of conferences - one in each of eight arts and humanities disciplines (religious studies and theology, philosophy, history, film and media studies, literary studies, theater and performance studies, music, and visual arts) in addition to a humanities-wide capstone meeting. Every conference brought together 10 leading scholars to present and workshop original papers. With guidance from each of the volume editors as well as series editor James Pawelski, those papers were revised for inclusion in the Humanities and Human Flourishing Book Series, with a volume for each of the aforementioned domains. At present, we are readying those edited volumes for publication and anticipate their release throughout 2021 and 2022.
The Oxford Handbook of the Positive Humanities
Edited by James Pawelski, HHF Project Director, and Louis Tay, HHF Founding Research Director, this handbook is an unprecedented collection of information covering dozens of lines of empirical research on various aspects of the eudaimonic value of the humanities. The overarching goal of this edited volume is to review and synthesize theory, research, and empirical evidence on how the arts and humanities can contribute to human flourishing. To this end, we have brought together essays from scholars, researchers, and other experts that address key themes and topics, including:
Historical and current trends on the relationship between the arts and humanities and human flourishing;
Flourishing outcomes of the arts and humanities;
Pathways from the arts and humanities to flourishing;
Disciplinary considerations; and
Public engagement and public policy
We are thrilled to be partnering with Oxford University Press in publishing this forthcoming volume.
Assessment Toolkit
We are in the process of finalizing an assessment toolkit consisting of an integrative suite of multi-mode assessments for measuring the well-being effects of the humanities. These assessments are empirically validated, reliable, convenient, scalable, and cost-effective, making it possible for social scientists to conduct further empirical research in these domains and as well as scholars in the humanities and leaders of cultural organizations to measure the well-being impact of their work. If you are a researcher or member of an organization interested in using these measurements, please contact us.