Title: Volunteer work and happiness: a systematic literature review with sustainable development approach

Authors: Pedro Augusto Bertucci Lima; Enzo Barberio Mariano

Addresses: Department of Production Engineering, University State of São Paulo (UNESP), Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil ' Department of Production Engineering, University State of São Paulo (UNESP), Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract: A happier life has always been the goal of human society. This view has recently gained attention from the scientific world, which usually divides it into two principal groups: the hedonics, who believe that happiness is the balance of pleasures and dissatisfactions; and the eudaimonics who, based on the Aristotelian thought of virtues, focus on the good life of the majority of beings, not only the individual. These concepts can enhance economic studies about how issues such as unemployment, inflation and income can influence people's well-being. Also, in a period in which the economy is not the main reason for real happiness, and the world needs a closer approach to sustainable development practices, voluntary work can be a reliable way to help the increase of individual well-being as well as that of society, since there is evidence of a positive relationship between the practice of volunteer work and well-being. This paper concluded, based on a literature review, that volunteer work is an important factor for a more sustainable and happier world.

Keywords: happiness; well-being; volunteer work; sustainable development; review.

DOI: 10.1504/LAJMSD.2020.105794

Latin American Journal of Management for Sustainable Development, 2020 Vol.5 No.1, pp.17 - 36

Received: 10 Apr 2019
Accepted: 14 May 2019
Published online: 13 Mar 2020 *

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