Scientists may be on the verge of discovering the secret to happiness in the largest study of its kind ever undertaken

It is a question that has eluded philosophers, scholars and scientists for thousands of years.

But now researchers may be close to discovering the true secret of happiness.

More than 1,000 scientists from more than 70 countries have come together to lead the largest ever happiness study.

A minimum of 30,000 participants from around the world will be recruited to take part in the ‘Global Happiness Megastudy’.

Each participant is assigned a short, daily “happiness intervention,” ranging from quick yoga routines to making time to call a family member.

By recruiting their subjects from a mix of different backgrounds and nationalities, the researchers hope to find some universal trends that could reveal the secret of what really makes people happy.

Professor Elizabeth Dunn, a University of British Columbia psychologist working on the study, said: ‘Our goal is for this to be the largest, most comprehensive and most diverse experiment on happiness ever conducted.

“If we find things that are universally effective, or that are at least effective in certain places, and identify what kinds of places those are, or what kinds of people benefit from them, that will be a huge leap forward for the science of happiness.’

Over the past year, more than 1,000 scientists submitted their proposals for what the research should look at.

Those ideas have now been reduced to just 24 interventions, divided into seven different categories.

Each participant is either assigned to a control group that will live their lives as before, or to a group that will receive one of these interventions.

These are designed to take no more than 25 minutes per day, require no special equipment and can be performed entirely indoors.

The treatments include daily exercises such as yoga or high-intensity interval training and social changes such as calling a loved one or talking to an AI chatbot.

Lead researcher Dr Barnabás Szászi, from Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, said The Guardian: ‘All interventions can be done at home, people don’t need anyone to watch or help. That was a very conscious choice on our part.’

By recording a self-reported happiness rating from each of the participants as they make these changes, the researchers hope to see what really makes a difference to someone’s happiness.

But what makes this study different from early studies is the scale and diversity of the sample size.

The researchers point out that these previous studies have generally focused on countries that are “STRANGE”: Western, educated, industrialized, wealthy, and democratic.

However, when it comes to happiness, what brings a smile to someone from Manchester or New York may not be as effective for someone from Mombasa or New Delhi.

By expanding their scope to include people from as many different backgrounds as possible, the researchers hope to pick up trends that apply to someone no matter where they live.

Professor Dunn says, ‘What will we have at the end of it? We will have the largest and most diverse data set ever collected on the strategies that promote happiness.

‘How effective are these strategies? Do they work everywhere? Do some people work very well for a small group of people and do hardly anything for many others?’

Already, more diverse happiness studies are helping scientists understand the mysteries of happiness.

Earlier this year, researchers from Barcelona and Canada surveyed 2,966 people from indigenous and local communities in 19 locations around the world.

Their results showed that people in these small, indigenous communities showed surprisingly high levels of happiness, despite living in relative poverty.

Economic growth and higher household incomes have traditionally been seen as a way to increase people’s well-being – and global studies have shown that people in high-income countries tend to report higher levels of happiness than people in low-income countries.

However, this evidence could challenge assumptions that higher gross domestic product (GDP), a monetary measure of the value of a country’s annual output, is a reliable measure of happiness.

Instead, researchers suggest that factors like a connection to nature and a strong social network may be much more valuable than material wealth.

If their research is successful, the Global Happiness Megastudy could lead to even more valuable insights into low-cost, reliable ways to noticeably improve people’s lives.

With the groundwork complete, Professor Dunn, Dr Szászi and their co-researchers are looking for funding to take the project to the next step.

According to their plans, a report describing the intended methods will be published in a major academic journal, with actual research beginning shortly afterwards.