"Philosophers from Aristotle to al-Fārābī, a 10th-century scholar in what is now Iraq, have argued that virtue is vital for well-being. Yet others, such as Thomas Hobbes and Friedrich Nietzsche, have argued the opposite: Virtue offers no benefit to oneself and is good only for others. This second theory has inspired lots of research in contemporary psychology, which often sees morality and self-interest as fundamentally opposed."
"Many studies have found that generosity is associated with happiness, and that encouraging people to practice kindness increases their well-being. But other virtues seem less enjoyable. For example, a compassionate person wants to alleviate suffering or misfortune, but that requires there be suffering or misfortune. Patience is possible only when something irritating or difficult is happening. And self-control involves forgoing one's desires or persisting with something difficult."
Two complementary studies examined compassion, patience, and self-control across daily moments using experience sampling with adolescents and day-reconstruction with adults, totaling 43,164 moments from 1,218 people. Momentary reports assessed how compassionate, patient, and self-controlled people felt, alongside measures of pleasantness and perceived meaning. Acting compassionately, practicing patience, and exercising self-control frequently coincided with higher well-being, including increased positive affect and a greater sense of meaning. These virtues often occur during challenging circumstances but nonetheless relate to personal benefit, indicating that moral behavior can also enhance one’s own daily well-being.
Read at The Conversation
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