More than half of American teens are stressed and many don't know how to handle it. When school is in session, teens are the most stressed group in the country. The inability to reduce and cope with stress and anxiety can negatively impact different facets of a teen's life including their health, friendships, relationships with parents, and academic performance.
Happiness is associated with several positive health effects, according to the Journal of Happiness Studies, including less insulin resistance, better sleep, higher HDL cholesterol levels, and less reactivity to stress. Teens who identify as happy are more creative, more helpful, and more sociable.
The benefit of happier kids is a game changer, and LG Electronics USA is leading that change.
LG created the Life's Good: Experience Happiness platform to help bring scientific, evidence-based tools and sustainable happiness skills directly to young people. Backed by seventy years of scientific research showing that happy people are healthier, live longer, earn more, and do better in school and life - and that happiness skills can be learned - our platform aims to reach, teach and increase Sustainable Happiness.
Research shows that schools that teach happiness skills outperform schools that don't, and typically experience dramatic drops in bullying, absenteeism, and discipline issues. They also see impressive gains in student engagement, optimism, test scores, and executive functioning.
Over the next five years, we will deliver Sustainable Happiness skills to 5.5 million youth and help the next generation recognize that happiness is achievable and Life's Good.
LG's brand promise is 'Life's Good' and the Life's Good Experience Happiness mission is to bring that brand promise to the next generation. Over 70 years of research has revealed that happiness is achievable, and according to the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley, happiness skills can be learned, taught, and practiced. Working together with Greater Good Science Center, LG identified six skills to form the foundation of the LG Experience Happiness platform: mindfulness, human connection, positive outlook, purpose, generosity, and gratitude. Although each person may take a different path, the practice and pursuit of these six skills can help people on the path towards sustainable happiness.
1. Increasing youth access to programs that deliver the Sustainable Happiness Skills.
a. This is accomplished through the development of select partnerships with leading non-profit and educational resource providers. Partners are selected based on a wide variety of criteria; however, the most important criteria are alignment with the Six Sustainable Happiness Skills and a basis in the science and research behind social emotional well-being.
b. Non-Profit Partners:
i. Inner Explorer: The LG Experience Happiness partnership focuses ensuring we're providing resources in locations where LG has significant office locations and employee bases as well as addressing need based locations. To accomplish this LG works with Inner Explorer to bring the Mindfulness based program to schools in cities across the US.
ii. Project Happiness: This LG Experience Happiness partnership focuses on the development of High School Happiness Clubs. Recently expanded to 30 high schools across the US, these clubs have two main focuses. The club members focus on learning the Sustainable Happiness Skills through the Project Happiness program as well as highlighting and teaching these skills to the larger student population.
c. Educational Resource Partner: Discovery Education
i. LG partnered with Discovery Education and the Greater Good Science Center in the development of the 'Discover Your Happy' program for middle and high school kids. Available at to schools and parents across the US, this program provides an introduction to the Science of Happiness as well as in classroom and at home activities for teachers and parents to utilize to help kids integrate the Sustainable Happiness Skills into their lives.
2. Awareness: A lot can be accomplished through increasing awareness, including helping people recognize that Sustainable Happiness is achievable and that there is a set of skills that can be taught, learned and practiced to help you on the journey.
a. To increase awareness, LG Experience Happiness leverages its voice to highlight the science and research from the Greater Good Science Center and stories from the youth who are being directly impacted by learning about and practicing the Sustainable Happiness Skills.
Through education and awareness we will bring Sustainable Happiness Skills to 5.5 million youth over 5 years.
Youth Reached
During the 2017-18 school year, the first year of the LG Experience Happiness platform, we have reached over 530,000 youth and project it will reach an additional 1.3 million youth during the 2018-19 school year.
Partner Growth in Schools
The Discover Your Happy Virtual Field Trip has been viewed over 13,000 times and screened in school auditoriums across the country. The toolkits have been downloaded 6,700 times by students, educators, and parents.
Twenty new Project Happiness high schools will be added during the 1st semester of this school year with student-driven happiness clubs.
The Inner Explorer program has grown by 75% and implemented in 220 new schools.
Digital and Print
Since its debut, Experience Happiness has shared a multitude of social media posts and digital advertising featuring the sustainable happiness skills and information about our partners. The LG Experience Happiness platform has garnered over 49MM impressions and videos (31) featuring the sustainable happiness skills have been viewed over 37,175 times.
