From colonial extraction to relational abundance: How structural inequality shapes well-being and why solidarity—not individualism—is the missing link in happiness research
Original framing: “How to be happy: Tips from the pioneers of well-being research” — The Conversation - Global
Marginalised communities have long developed resilience strategies that challenge the 'happiness' paradigm. For instance, Black feminist thought (e.g., Audre Lorde’s *zemi* or bell hooks’ *beloved community*) frames joy as an act of survival against systemic racism. In the Global South, movements like *La Via Campesina* use *agroecology* to rebuild communal well-being through sustainable farming, directly countering the loneliness of industrial agriculture. The article’s 'pioneers' are overwhelmingly white and male, erasing the contributions of women of colour (e.g., Maya Angelou’s *I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings* as a manifesto of joyful resistance) and Indigenous scholars who critique 'happiness' as a colonising concept. Without centring these voices, well-being research remains a tool of the powerful, not the people.
The 'happiness' research cited in the article is a product of colonial extraction—not just of land, but of knowledge—where Indigenous and Afrocentric philosophies of communal well-being were dismissed as 'primitive' to legitimise individualistic capitalism.
The 'pioneers' of well-being, from Maslow to Seligman, emerged in the shadow of structural violence: Maslow’s hierarchy was developed during the Cold War, when psychological security was a luxury for the few, while Seligman’s 'learned optimism' was marketed to corporate America as a tool for productivity. The article’s focus on 'other people' as the key to happiness obscures how these relationships are shaped by systems of oppression—from racist housing policies that isolate communities to neoliberal austerity that erodes public services. Without addressing these structural barriers, 'happiness' remains a privilege, not a right. The trickster perspective reveals how even the solemn language of 'research' masks a performative industry: from mindfulness apps sold by tech giants to 'well-being' metrics designed by think tanks aligned with market fundamentalism. The path forward lies in decolonising well-being, integrating marginalised knowledge systems, and designing economic and labour structures that prioritise collective flourishing over individual consumption. This requires auditing the power structures behind 'happiness' research, centring voices that have long navigated oppression with joy, and using art and satire to disrupt the very systems that create misery in the first place.