For those wanting to learn more about well-being research, here are some good starting points: books and articles that give an overview of the field, or some part of it. For the most part, readings focus on psychology and philosophy, as these fields have substantial and well-defined bodies of literature covering many aspects of the subject. We have also included titles from behavioral economics and other fields about irrationality and other sources of mistakes, which are central concerns for well-being research.

Note that this is just a small sampling of the literature; there are many other excellent sources. Most are written for academic audiences, but some are very accessible. All articles can be downloaded for free.

General

The Oxford Handbook of Happiness

Edited by Ilona Boniwell, Susan A. David, and Amanda Conley Ayers

Handbook of Well-Being

Edited by Ed Diener, Shigehiro Oishi, and Louis Tay

Open access

Happiness: A Very Short Introduction

Daniel M. Haybron

Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research

Edited by Alex C. Michalos

Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies

The Morality of Happiness

Julia Annas

A definitive work on Ancient Greek views of eudaimonia

Well-Being

Ben Bradley

Happiness: Classic and Contemporary Readings in Philosophy

Edited by Steven M. Cahn and Christine Vitrano

God and the Art of Happiness

Ellen T. Charry

The Philosophy of Well-Being: An Introduction

Guy Fletcher

The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Well-Being

Edited by Guy Fletcher

Happiness: A History

Darrin M. McMahon

Theories of Happiness: An Anthology

Edited by Jennifer Wilson Mulnix and M.J. Mulnix

Happy Lives, Good Lives: A Philosophical Examination

Jennifer Wilson Mulnix and M.J. Mulnix

An introductory textbook on the philosophy of happiness

A Brief History of Happiness

Nicholas P. White

Positive Psychology

The Science of Subjective Well-Being

Edited by Michael Eid and Randy J. Larsen

Well-Being: Foundations of Hedonic Psychology

Edited by Daniel Kahneman, Ed Diener, and Norbert Schwarz

The Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology (2 ed.)

Edited by Shane J. Lopez and C.R. Snyder

A Primer in Positive Psychology

Christopher Peterson

Handbook of Eudaimonic Well-Being

Edited by Joar Vittersø

The Best Within Us: Positive Psychology Perspectives on Eudaimonia

Edited by Alan S. Waterman

Behavioral Economics

A Course in Behavioral Economics

Erik Angner

Behavioural Economics: A Very Short Introduction

Michelle Baddeley

Well-Being Policy

Oxford Handbook of Well-Being and Public Policy.jpg

The Oxford Handbook of Well-Being and Public Policy

Edited by Matthew D. Adler and Marc Fleurbaey

Well-Being for Public Policy

Ed Diener, Richard Lucas, Ulrich Schimmack, and John Helliwell

The Pursuit of Happiness: An Economy of Well-Being

Carol Graham

Practical Advice

There are too many excellent books grounded in the science for us to list here, but below you will find a selection of titles by our advisory board members and grant winners.