A Unified Approach to Achieving Fulfillment and Happiness

iUniverse, Inc.

Contents

Dedication..................................................................................................................................................................v1.0 Prologue................................................................................................................................................................xiii2.0 Introduction............................................................................................................................................................xvii3.0 The Conceptual Framework................................................................................................................................................14.0 Some Real-Life Examples.................................................................................................................................................175.0 The State of Well-Being.................................................................................................................................................216.0 Quality of Life.........................................................................................................................................................337.0 Comparison of pfhs among Individuals and Societal Groups and Application of pfh Principles to Racial Discrimination, Nations, and Political Systems.....................438.0 Value System Temporal Regimes...........................................................................................................................................559.0 Conclusions.............................................................................................................................................................6110.0 Epilogue...............................................................................................................................................................63Appendix Quantitative Representation of Rules Governing a Unified Approach to Achieving Fulfillment and Happiness...........................................................65

Chapter One

I have sought to provide a framework for exploring the vast scope and complexity of human behavior in relativistic terms. The term relativistic in this context refers to how we're doing in relation to a subjective value system, which is described in Section 3.1, that provides a basis for establishing what is significant and important to most people, but even more so, what is significant and important to ourselves.

A subjective measure termed potential for fulfillment and happiness (pfh) is developed in conjunction with the value system. This is a gauge of the opportunities we are afforded to enjoy life at any point in time-for better or for worse. The true or underlying state-of-mind of individuals, termed actual fulfillment and happiness (afh) is then considered in the context of the pfh, which effectively establishes the practical constraints or effective limit of afh. This approach can be applied to individuals or to any level of society for which a value system has been established.

Building upon these principles, the objectives of this book are to

Enable the quality of life for individuals and societal groups to be gauged in quantitative terms either on a stand-alone basis (afh/pfh) or in contrast to one another (pfh1/pfh2 or afh1/afh2). Provide a basis for gauging how well individuals are faring with regard to maximizing their quality of life given the hand that he or she has been dealt. Provide a systematic approach, based on these observations, for establishing strategies and priorities to enhance the quality of life for both individuals and societal groups.

3.1 The Value System

A value system is first established, which is comprised of a set of value attributes and associated value measures that best define our perspectives on life. The set of value attributes collectively constitutes the "building blocks of life" or "what life is all about." A possible value system, including a representative set of value attributes and measures, is shown in Table 1:

Each value attribute (first column) is assigned an importance-weighting factor (second column). The sum of the importance-weighting factors is normalized to 100 percent (third column), and the individual importance factors associated with each attribute are scaled (adjusted) accordingly. Of particular interest is the relative distribution of the normalized (or importance-weighted) attributes (for either an individual, discussed in this section or for a societal group, as discussed in Section 6.0).

As indicated in Table 1, determination of pfh next involves assigning a value measure score or situation factor, ranging from 0 to 1, to each value attribute. As an example, let's consider a thirty-year-old woman called Simone and assess her Value System, shown in Table 2. We can most readily illustrate the pfh concept by actually calculating her pfh score. It should be emphasized that Simone's Value System encompasses value attributes that are important to her and reflects the relative importance of the values as well as the scores that she has assigned to each value attribute.

Simone's example, with a pfh percentile of 80, illustrates that she has quite a high potential for fulfillment and happiness. She is in good health, has a good family situation, is not wealthy, but is by no means lacking for resources, has a good apartment, has an extensive social network, is highly educated, and is highly Simone, but how does she actually feel about herself? Simone's actual fulfillment and happiness (her afh) may be at odds with or even incongruous with her pfh. This concept will be addressed in depth in Section 3.5.

3.2 ESTABLISHING THE PFH

The pfh is a means for characterizing a person's wellbeing, establishing a framework for making the most of the situation, and, accordingly, making the best choices in that context. The value system provides a basis for establishing the pfh. The following guidelines are useful in establishing rational value attributes and value measure scores that limit the degree of subjectivity (to the extent possible) in deriving the pfh:

Value attributes reflect relative importance in contributing to the potential for fulfillment and happiness (the pfh). For example, most persons would probably consider physical health the number one priority (largest importance weighting factor), since high pfh is difficult to achieve absent good health. Value measures conform to what a rational observer would conclude about the situation regarding the associated attribute and are the basis for establishing the score (and hence are most appropriately established by objective third parties). For example, rich is better (has a higher score) than poor. A subset of a value measure has lower potential than the value measures itself, and scores should be determined accordingly. For example, poor is a subset of rich, in that a rich man or woman can readily give his or her money away and become poor; but a poor man or woman cannot readily acquire wealth to become rich. Hence, rich, with the higher potential (or score), can devolve to poor, but the reverse is not true. Likewise, unskilled is a subset of skilled, and uneducated is a subset of educated, since skilled persons can perform unskilled jobs, and educated persons can choose not to apply their learned skills, but not visa versa. Value measures do not apply to a state of mind. Observations that put the state of mind in perspective are an output or result of the process. For example, a distinction should be made between physical health, per se, and mental health such as depression. In this regard, depression may be attributable either to events beyond our control (such as poor physical health or genetic predisposition) or to an inability to cope.

Continuing with Table 1, the step-by step procedure for determining the pfh involves

Establishing a score for each value measure (the fourth column in Table 1) on a scale from 0 to 1. For example, a score for very good health might correspond to 0.9, whereas a score for poor health might correspond to 0.3. Multiplying the importance-weighted value measure (the second column) by the corresponding score (the fourth column), yielding a product corresponding to an importance-weighted score (the fifth column). Calculating the pfh as the sum of the importance-weighted scores. With this methodology, the closer the pfh is to 100 percent, the better the quality of life.

3.3 Understanding the Value System

The value system may be comprised of a wide range of value attributes and importance factors. The value attributes define the scope of what's important. To most of us, life is multi-faceted, and there may be a number of attributes that warrant inclusion. At the other extreme, to the simplest person, life may be reduced to relatively few attributes. In this manner, the pfh of even the most disadvantaged person can be defined, and even he or she can be fulfilled and happy in his or her own way.

From our subjective viewpoint this would not be our way, and it would not necessarily be perceived as the highest form of fulfillment and happiness by our standards; but who's to say who is the most blessed in that regard? As a case in point, consider this:

To one person, being "close to nature" and "a free spirit" can be critical in defining their pfh. This person would be stifled in an urban environment. To another person access to culture and the arts is a requisite for "the good life." That person would find the opportunities afforded by a sophisticated urban environment essential toward realization of his or her life pursuits.

Which is the better way from your perspective? To ascertain which lifestyle you would prefer, you would select your value attributes accordingly. Being "close to nature" and having "accessibility to culture and the arts" are not necessarily mutually exclusive. In this example, both value attributes can play important roles in defining our pfh. That's how the importance factor comes into play. To one person being "close to nature" has an importance weighting of 30 and "access to culture and art" has a weighting of 10; to the other person, it may be reversed.

Thus the characterization of pfh is unique to each individual. No judgments need to be made as to what's best. Just be honest with yourself in determining what's important, so that the pfh as a reference framework is particularly meaningful.

3.4 The pfh Variability and pfh Curves

The pfh is a dynamic that can change substantially over time as the score is adjusted to reflect the prevailing set of circumstances. For example, there can be significant fluctuations in the state of a person's health; wealth can come and go; and changing health and financial circumstances can impact the wellbeing of close family members, all affecting the pfh. As such, in order to develop a comprehensive understanding of factors shaping the quality of life over an extended period, it would be necessary to determine pfh at a number of points during the course of time-each reflecting a particular state of being.

By establishing pfh values at various times (e.g., at the present time, retrospectively as a histogram, or prospectively as a forecast), a pfh curve can be constructed that approximates the pfh continuum. In general, such a pfh curve would tend to rise during youth, reach a plateau during the prime of life, and then begin to taper off at some point as age and, possibly, health-related problems begin to take their toll. The shape of the curve would have abrupt changes (discontinuities) coincident with defining moments that caused major shifts in the scores upon which the pfh is based, either up or down (e.g., marriage, divorce, illness, births, and deaths, etc.).

The following hypothetical scenarios contrasting two individuals serve to illustrate the afh and pfh concepts as discussed earlier. Consider two subjects, Subject A (SA) in Group A, which corresponds to a high pfh population, and Subject B (SB) in Group B, which corresponds to a low pfh population. The circumstances of SA and SB are as follows:

SA is a married man in robust health. Heis blessed with a wonderful wife, four gifted and successful children, substantial wealth, and a beautiful home. He has a large close-knit circle of relatives, is well educated, and has a high occupational skill level. Based on the value system, SA's life is potentially full and rewarding, and, accordingly, SA has an extraordinarily high pfh. SB, in contrast, is a man in poor health. He has no family, little financial resources, and subsists in a boarding house. He is virtually alone in the world, has a low education level, and has limited vocational skills. His life is painful, and every day is a struggle. Based on the value system, SB's life is potentially severely limited and unrewarding. Accordingly, SB has a very low pfh level.

But since all men are created equal, how do such differences in pfh come about?

Some pfh factors are attributable to circumstances beyond our control or our "fate." Such factors include genetics, appearance, age, inherited family fortune, and just plain luck. Other pfh factors are attributable to causal relationships that follow in the wake of past decisions. Although these are a consequence of those decisions, once defining choices are made, a trajectory is established that effectively constrains the future options that are available. In other words, "the die has been cast." Defining choices that profoundly affect our pfh include career selection, commitment to education, acquired social skills, and the significant other we choose.

The following example, highlighted in Table 3, contrasts the value measure scores for establishing the pfh for SB relative to SA (the baseline for comparison) in the aforementioned example:

Incremental analysis, focusing on differences among the pfhs, can be useful in understanding how specific value attributes and value measures affect the pfhs among different individuals (e.g., the difference attributable to health in Table 2).

3.5 The Relationship Between afh and pfh

Whereas determination of the pfh was arrived at through a structured value system procedure, afh is a subjective measure. In contrast to the bottom-up approach used in establishing the pfh, afh is a top-down assessment that reflects the way we feel about our lives. In other words it reflects our innermost thoughts.

Although afh and pfh are arrived at from diametrically opposite directions, they are closely intertwined, with the pfh providing a context for considering afh. To further illustrate this point, consider SA-1 and SA-2, two members of Group A (high pfh) and SB-1 and SB-2, two members of the Group B (low pfh):

SA-1 enjoys life to the fullest and has a high afh, close to his pfh level. In contrast, SA-2 is utterly bored and frustrated, and afh falls well below the pfh level (although SA-2's pfh is virtually the same as SA-1's). SB-1 has a low pfh level and is a "lost soul," utterly miserable, wallowing in his misfortune. SB-2, with essentially the same pfh level, by contrast, is a resolute optimist having faith and conviction that things will somehow improve. SB-2 sincerely believes that the best things in life are free and enjoys nature to the fullest.

The following comparison in Table 4 summarizes the four combinations of afh/pfh values:

The matrix includes the pfh, afh, and afh as a percentage of the pfh, comparing potential fulfillment and happiness to actual fulfillment and happiness. The two SA subjects and the two SB subjects have identical pfhs. Also, "afh as a percentage of pfh" is identical for SA-1 and SB-2, and for SA-2 and SB-1. The point is that although SA-2 and SB-2 have substantially diff erent circumstances (coming from diametrically opposite pfh populations) they have identical afhs. In this circumstance, an outsider having no knowledge of underlying circumstances would not distinguish any difference in the state of wellbeing between SA-2 and SB-2.

Yet, in view of their pfh levels, the two situations diff er profoundly:

SB-2 has virtually no prospect of realizing the good life-but he is making the most of the situation. This could be a result of resolute optimism, deep religious belief (faith), and affiliation with an effective support group (such as twelve-step programs). In contrast, SA-2 suffers from serious psychological problems that are depriving him of the joys of life-even though there are substantial resources and opportunities from which to obtain support. Intervention would be warranted in this situation.

As observed, the pfh changes over time, often as a result of events that are beyond our control. To this point, consider postscripts to the scenarios for SA-1 and SB-1 (depicted in Table 4):

At some point SA-1 becomes seriously ill, with a debilitating disease. As a result, SA-1's pfh decreases from 90 to 30. He is devastated by the unfortunate turn of events and disengages from family and friends. In contrast SB-1's health recovers, and some time afterward he marries. SB-1's situation is vastly improved; nevertheless, he is insecure, being fearful as the relationship is fragile and may somehow unravel.

The matrix in Table 4, as a result of these changes, is updated in Table 5, as follows:

With the aforementioned defining moments, the fortunes (pfh) of SA-1 and SB-1 have been dramatically altered, with accompanying changes to afh.

SA-1 is under severe health-related stress and has not functioned well under adversity. This is reflected in the significant gap between afh and pfh. As SA-1 is unable to cope, he is in dire need of psychiatric help. Remedial therapy would hopefully enable SA-1 to make the most of the situation and deal with his illness more constructively. SB-1's pfh has increased substantially and his spirits have been uplifted by the favorable turn of events. However, afh still is well below the pfh. He still has a way to go and requires a transition period to make the most of this situation.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from A Unified Approach to Achieving Fulfillment and Happinessby Martin Skeer Copyright © 2010 by Martin Skeer, PhD, MBA, CMC. Excerpted by permission.
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