Small Acts of Joy Bring Big Gains

A community science project finds that modest reminders to find joy in the day can have benefits on a par with those of more ambitious well-being interventions

- BY DARWIN A. GUEVARRA, XUHAI "ORSON" XU AND EMILIANA SIMON-THOMAS

THERE IS NO SHORTAGE of programs or practices that promise to increase happiness. People may meditate for 30 minutes every morning, block off full evenings to deeply connect with close friends or commit to a 12-week daily gratitude journaling exercise. Some of these activities, which emerged from the field of positive psychology, can reliably and sustainably boost psychological well-being, a technical term for happiness. But let's be honest. Most people feel too busy, tired or overwhelmed to add on—and then keep up with—new and demanding routines in day-to-day life.

What if finding more happiness did not require a major time commitment or lifestyle overhaul? What if instead it could come from simple, brief actions such as texting a genuine “thank you” to a colleague, asking a friend to share something that made them feel proud, looking at the sky's vastness with wonder or marveling at the intricate details of a wildflower?

We set out to explore this question by investigating whether brief daily activities, or “micro acts,” can affect overall happiness in life. We also aimed to investigate how doing happiness-promoting micro acts might ripple outward in ways that enhance mutual care, compassion and generosity.

Our research began as a spin-off from the 2021 film Mission: Joy—Finding Happiness in Troubled Times, in which the 14th Dalai Lama and the late archbishop Desmond Tutu talk about their friendship and offer lessons on creating joy for oneself and others regardless of circumstances. Producer and co-director Peggy Callahan and impact producer Jolene Smith teamed up with psychologist Elissa Epel and one of us (Simon-Thomas) to develop a meaningful way for people to act on the film's messages.