The Human Flourishing Program

The Human Flourishing Program carries out scholarship and scientific research for the advancement of knowledge and the benefit of the common good. Founded in 2016, the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard’s Institute for Quantitative Social Science has a twofold mission to study and promote human flourishing, and to develop systematic approaches to the synthesis of knowledge across disciplines. Many topics that are fundamental to human well-being such as happiness itself, virtue, religious community, meaning, and purpose have traditionally been viewed as principally falling within the purview of the humanities, often of philosophy or theology. However, a robust empirical research literature on these topics has now developed from sociology, political science, economics, education, psychology, medicine, public health, and other empirical sciences. The program’s research contributes to the broad question of how knowledge from the quantitative social sciences can be integrated with that of the humanities on questions of human flourishing and how best to carry out this synthesis of knowledge across disciplines. The program produces research publications and sponsors educational activities, such as courses, seminars, and conferences, for the Harvard University community and beyond. The program has a range of initiatives designed to increase public awareness of the science of human flourishing and the adoption of practices that can improve it throughout society.