Introduction

Empirical happiness studies are, at present, at the forefront of discourse amongst researchers in psychology, and legal scholars entering the domain of psychology in search of greater meaning will inevitably have to confront such studies during their journey. Tim Kasser has referred to these positive happiness contributors as ‘psychological needs’. Importantly, what more recent empirical research has shown is that beyond the satisfaction of basic needs, in general terms money and the generation of wealth does not contribute to one’s level of happiness. Empirical happiness studies are, at present, at the forefront of discourse amongst researchers in psychology, and legal scholars entering the domain of psychology in search of greater meaning will inevitably have to confront such studies during their journey. The chapter also presents an overview on the key concepts discussed in this book.