A lot of the research literature on well-being distinguishes between “hedonic” and “eudaimonic” forms of happiness. While hedonic wellbeing often stems from minor and fleeting pleasures, such as the enjoyment people get from eating delicious food or watching something funny, eudaimonic pleasures refer to experiences that provide a deeper, more profound sense of accomplishment or contentment.
Hobbies, which some researchers refer to as “serious leisure pursuits,” seem to scratch this eudaimonic itch.
“They support the more authentic dimensions of life and create conditions for self-actualization,” says Yazdan Mansourian, a senior lecturer and leisure researcher at Charles Sturt University in Australia. “People are not only doing what they enjoy, but becoming who they really want to be.”
For many people, hobbies help satisfy needs left unfulfilled by paid work and passive free-time pursuits. “At work, achievements are typically tied to income, performance metrics, or career progress,” Mansourian says. But when it comes to our hobbies, our accomplishments retain their meaningfulness without the same need for external validation. “This allows people to pursue excellence for its own sake, which can be satisfying and restorative,” he says.