What did 3 million people learn from this online happiness course? The course curriculum is adopted from one of the most popular classes ever offered at Yale about an hour ago Molly Oswaks The curriculum asks students to, among other things, track their sleep patterns, keep a gratitude journal, perform random acts of kindness, and take note of whether, over time, these behaviors correlate with a positive change in their general mood. Illustration: Andrea Chronopoulos/The New York Times
The Yale happiness class, formally known as Psyc 157: Psychology and the Good Life, is one of the most popular classes to be offered in the university’s 320-year history. The class was only ever taught in-person once, during the spring 2018 semester, as a 1,200-person lecture course in the largest space on campus.