Clinical Topics & Methods Category

Happiness: The Science Behind Your Smile

5 CE Hours
171 members have taken this course

This course has been retired. We regularly update our course catalog to ensure relevance.

Try these categories:

About the Course

Bringing together the latest insights from psychiatry, psychology, and philosophy, Daniel Nettle sheds light on happiness, the most basic of human desires. Nettle examines whether people are basically happy or unhappy, whether success can make us happy, what sort of remedies to unhappiness work, why some people are happier than others, and much more.
The book is packed with fascinating observations. We discover the evolutionary reason why negative thoughts are more powerful than positive ones. We read that happiness varies from country to country; for example, the Swiss are much more happy than Bulgarians. And we learn that, in a poll among people aged 42 years old—peak mid-life crisis time—more than half rated their happiness an 8, 9, or 10 out of 10, and 90% rated it above 5. Nettle, a psychologist, is particularly insightful in discussing the brain systems underlying emotions and moods, ranging from serotonin, to mood enhancing drugs such as D-fenfluramine, which reduces negative thinking in less than an hour; to the part of the brain that, when electrically stimulated, provides feelings of benevolent calm and even euphoria. In the end, Nettle suggests that we would all probably be happier by trading income or material goods for time with people or hobbies, though most people do not do so.
Happiness offers a remarkable portrait of the feeling that poets, politicians, and philosophers all agree truly makes the world go round.

This course is based on the book, Happiness: The Science Behind Your Smile created by Nettle, Daniel

Publication Details

Journal/Publisher: Oxford Press
Publication Date: 2005

Course Material Author

Nettle, Daniel
Daniel Nettle is Reader in Psychology at the University of Newcastle. He is the author of Strong Imagination: Madness, Creativity, and Human Value and co-author of Vanishing Voices (with Suzanne Romaine). He runs the psychological research website www.psychresearch.org.uk.

Nettle, Daniel authored the material only, and was not involved in creating this CE course. They are identified here for your own evaluation of the relevancy of the material this course is based on.

Target Audience

This course is recommended for health care professionals, especially psychologists, counselors, social workers, and nurses who seek knowledge about recent developments in the scientific study of happiness. It is appropriate for all levels of participants' knowledge.

Learning Objectives

After taking this course, you should be able to:

  1. 1 Describe the author's view of the concept of happiness.
  2. 2 Examine the questions of whether or not people are basically happy and why some people seem to be intrinsically happier than others.
  3. 3 Identify the brain systems responsible for regulating moods and emotions.
  4. 4 Evaluate the suggestions offered regarding ways people can be happier and apply them as you deem appropriate to work with clients/patients.
  5. 5 Summarize information presented about what is known regarding the paradoxical nature of human happiness.

Disclosure to Learners

CE Learning Systems adheres to the ACCME's Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Medical Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity – including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others ― are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with ineligible entities (formerly known as commercial interests).

The following relevant financial relationships have been disclosed by this activity's planners, faculty, and the reviewer:

Planners and Reviewers

The planners of this activity have reported that they have no relevant financial relationships.

Material Authors

There are no known relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Commercial support

There is no commercial support for this distance-learning course.

$45

Course Details

5 CE Hours
Book
Course 101528

Availability

This course is retired. It is no longer available.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, most likely. Look Up Your State Board for more detailed information. Logged-in site members will see the relevant approval information displayed in the Approvals tab for every course.

If you are having trouble using Impact CE, please contact us! We would be happy to accommodate your needs right away, and your input will help us make Impact CE more accessible for future users too.

Use the Enroll In This Course button and just follow the instructions! You don't pay anything until you're ready to take an exam.

To complete the course, review the course objectives, then review the material, and then pass the exam with a score of 75% or greater and lastly complete an evaluation.

Most of our self-paced courses are based on online articles available for free to the public. Some courses, such as those based on books, require that you purchase the material. Use the Materials tab for more info. Live courses simply require that you attend.

Your certificate(s) will be available to download or email immediately when you pass the course exam and complete the evaluation.

Yes! Use the Help widget at the bottom-right of the screen anywhere on Impact CE to search our help docs, or to ask our support team for help. Unlike most of our competitors, Impact CE has live US-based support reps to help you by email, chat, or phone.

Start your CE Journey now - complete your first course today, on us.

Try for free - no commitment required.

Start a Free Trial Course

Continuing Education

Confirm Action