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What 85 years of research says is the real key to happiness | Robert Waldinger: Full Interview
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July 25, 2025
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1:01:38Now PlayingBecome a Big Think member to unlock expert classes, premium print issues, exclusive events and more“We can make ourselves more likely to be happy by building a life that includes the conditions that make for happiness.”
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What if the secret to lasting happiness has been hiding in plain sight? Harvard psychiatrist Robert Waldinger reveals insights from the world’s longest study on adult life, 85 years of data that challenge our assumptions about success, health, and fulfillment.
Waldinger shares how our relationships and connections – not our wealth, fame, or success, directly boosts our minds, bodies, and longevity.
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About Robert Waldinger:
Robert Waldinger, MD is a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, a practicing psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and a Zen teacher and practitioner.
For the last two decades, Waldinger has been the director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development. This study, conducted over more than 85 years, has analyzed the entire lives of 724 families to determine the activities, behaviors, and dynamics that enhance a person’s life-long well-being. Waldinger has dedicated his career to examining these elements and discovering what brings true fulfillment to human existence.
He is the author of several books, including his most recent, The Good Life: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness.
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