New Podcast Episode on Social and Collective Well-being Featuring Director Viswanath
A new episode of Frontiers in Health & Happiness is now live!
In this special bonus episode, host Ayla Fudala speaks with Dr. K. “Vish” Viswanath, Director of the Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness, about why our health and happiness are shaped by more than individual choices and feelings.
Drawing on his book chapter, “Beyond Individual Happiness: Understanding the Role of Social in Health and Well-Being,” Dr. Viswanath explores the importance of social connection, trust, inclusion, community participation, and the broader social conditions that influence whether people and communities can flourish.
In this episode, Dr. Viswanath discusses:
Practical ways to strengthen social connection and contribute to the well-being of others
- What social well-being means, and why it’s just as important as physical and mental well-being
- The difference between social integration and true social inclusion
- How trust, reciprocity, social capital, and community ties support health
- When social media can strengthen connection—and when it may undermine community participation
- Why collective well-being is more than the sum of individual happiness
