Happiness is an Art of Living: Towards a Contemplative Perspective on Economy as Relational Work

The aim of this presentation is to show how the traditions of wisdom in human culture can be of help in understanding well being and its pursue at an individual as well as at a societal level. I divide my argumentation in three parts. In part one the first point is to specify what we can intend with the previous terms and specifically what are contemplative knowledge and its practices. I will point out the processes of westernization and secularization which characterize them currently. In part two I deal with the definition of economic activity. The utilitarian model of homo economicus must be overcome in favour of more realistic frames of interpretation. Recent developments in economic sociology are encouraging. I’ll firstly rely on Viviana Zelizer’s relational work model. Secondly, once addressed the main questions it left unresolved, I’ll suggest a positive step in their solution through the re-evaluation of William James’ contribution in the field of theory of action, choice, emotions and the self, as reconstructed by Jack Barbalet. Both happiness studies and research in social suffering create some embarassement in social sciences for different reasons. If one could be the “sociology of misery” perspective, another one on which I wish to focus is the difficulties of being as close as possible to the experiential level. At this point, the role that narrative methods can play for a better understanding of what is suffering in the economic and social spheres is undeniable. In part three I will argue that if narratives are fundamental tools of inquiry, nevertheless they cannot represent the basic and unique method of self-reflective observation, as many scholars sustain. I will take the exampe of Richard Sennett’s The Corrosion of Character to make my point. In the last three decades we viewed the encounter between contemplative practices and science, with both taking advantage on it. More specifically, from one side the opening of the definition of consciousness, self and experience and, viceversa, scientific observation and measurements begun to look carefully at the contemplative process itself. As I will show at the end of this presentation, narrative skills can be complemented by human inner observational skills, in which attention and acceptance play a key part. Recent neuroscientific studies seem to support this view and call for an integration with social sciences tools of inquiry for a better understanding of individual well being and its consequences at societal levels.