Seven Reasons to Invest in Well-Being

Objective: This commentary reviews current conceptualizations of well-being, examines explanations for the lack of attention to well-being research, and provides justification for investing research time and funding into well-being studies. Opportunities for integrating factors related to well-being into prevention and intervention programs are also outlined. Key Points: Well-being may motivate people toward success, improve health and longevity, strengthen relationships, and boost the economy. Well-being can be enhanced in easy and inexpensive ways by incorporating facets of well-being into already-existing individual and systems-level intervention or prevention programs. Implications: Future research into this important construct should focus on objective means to assess and predict well-being, as well as strategies to enhance well-being across the life span. Investing more research time and financial resources into the study and promotion of well-being has the potential to lead to profound and enduring benefits to individuals, communities, and the larger society.