ABSTRACT
The relationship between the Aristotelian virtues and happiness has yet to be empirically studied. This chapter presents the results of an empirical study to corroborate the Aristotelian notion that a virtuous life leads to a sense of fulfillment and flourishing. A novel method was used to measure virtuous dispositions among individuals. Based on the collected survey data, the author tested whether the calculated (virtue) scores can successfully predict (1) how the participants rated their life satisfaction, and (2) how much emphasis they placed on individual motivation/intention when judging their actions. The study has found that the Virtue Scale developed to be positively associated with life satisfaction at the 5% level of statistical significance. Moreover, as expected, the Scale indicated a preference for character-based moral evaluations compared to rule-based and utilitarian (in which intentions do not matter).
