HCP professor, Nicholas Christakis, MD, PhD, MPH, recently published the study, “The Dynamic Spread of Happiness in a Large Social Network” in the BMJ (British Medical Journal). Christakis collaborated with James H. Fowler, PhD, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of California at San Diego to complete the study. The objective of their study was to investigate if happiness can spread from person to person (an idea called social contagion) and whether pockets of happiness form within social networks. Additionally, they measured how long the effects of social contagion could last and who they affected.  

In his study, Christakis looked at 4,739 individuals from 1983-2003 who were participants in the Framingham Heart Study (the FHS is the same study he used to evaluate the spread of obesity in a social network).  He and Fowler defined happiness using scores on the CESD, a well known measure of depression, and they linked this measure to a wide range of social network attributes and diverse social ties. Christakis found a clear indication of happy and unhappy niches in the FHS network, and the spread of happiness among people can extend up to three degrees of separation (one’s friends’, friends’, friends’). Some major findings were that people who are surrounded by many happy people and those who are central in the network are more likely to become happy in the future. This supports the idea that happiness spreads via social contagion; that is, if one person is happy then they are likely to have a contagious effect on another person. Furthermore, the effects of this contagious happiness can last up to a year.  

Christakis has been featured in many news media publications such as The New York Times, The Boston Globe and The Los Angeles Times. This study is worth paying attention to as it has potential to bring a smile to your face, your friend’s face, and your friend’s friend’s face.