VIDEO RECOMMENDATION: The Gratitude Experiment
Title: An Experiment in Gratitude – The Science of Happiness
Author: Mike Bernstein & Matt Pittman
Year: 2013
Ideal For: Everyone. Literally, everyone.
Trigger Warning / Caveats: Some explicit language
What’s It About?
This recommendation is truly a heartwarming one. Jumping off our blog from earlier this week (titled “How to Actually Practice Gratitude”), this short 7-minute video demonstrates a study exploring the effects of gratitude on overall happiness.
The experiment asks participants to write out a paragraph (or more) expressing their gratitude for the person who means the most to them. Unbeknownst to the participants, the second part of the study asked them to call the person they wrote about, on the spot, and read them their letter (cue the tears!). Before and after engaging in the gratitude letter-writing/reading exercise, participants are given a “happiness” test to measure how happy they feel (pre and post exercise) in order to truly find out if practicing gratitude in this way can impact overall happiness. This is a moving video, with a powerful lesson that we can all afford to learn. Gratitude is powerful, especially when practiced in this way.
Check it out!
Highlights:
The findings shared at the end of the video are incredibly valuable – so be sure to watch it all!
The findings demonstrated that: “The person who experienced the biggest jump in happiness was the least happy person who walked through the door. What does that mean? That means that if you’re having a particularly tough time, trying this out will more likely have a greater impact on you” (6:15-6:27)
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