Wellbeing Explained

Wellbeing Explained brings in the experts to answer the questions others won't, bust myths, and go deeper into the science of wellbeing at work.On the podcast, Be Well Co's Head of Research Dr Matthew Iasiello sits down with academics from different fields to unpack their work, the challenges they're facing, and what it actually means for the rest of us. Formerly Researching Happy.For workplace wellbeing practitioners, HR and people and culture teams, psychologists, coaches, and anyone in the wellbeing research space.Made by Be Well Co.

Wellbeing Explained is a health podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 75 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Unknown Host hosts Wellbeing Explained, a health show with 75 episodes published.

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  Episode #73

  Why does wellbeing science ignore the sacred? | A/Prof Vic Counted

  Sep 14, 20261h 23m

  In this episode Matt speaks with Associate Professor Vic Counted, a psychologist of religion at Regent University and a faculty affiliate of Harvard's Human Flourishing Program. Vic takes attachment theory, usually used to explain the bond between a child and a parent, and asks what happens when we apply it to our relationship with God or with whatever we hold sacred. It is a conversation about where meaning actually comes from, and why wellbeing science tends to leave this part alone. What we cover Why Vic defines God in a way that works for believersand non-believers alike, and why he often just says "the sacred"instead Safe haven and secure base, and how a relationship withthe sacred shifts from one to the other over time Why Vic argues the gym, academia and even politicsfunction as religions for the people inside them What happens when that bond is disrupted, and whyprotest, despair and detachment show up in faith the same way they show up in a breakup What the COVID lockdowns revealed about how attachedpeople were to their workplaces, schools and shopping centres Why Western countries score low on meaning in theGlobal Flourishing Study, and what Vic thinks that has to do with the sacred Whether some things are better or worse to hold sacred,and what that means for young people chasing influence Chapters 03:07 - Welcome, and what drawsVic to this work 07:13 - Is "science andreligion" an oxymoron? 09:54 - The Delphi study wherespirituality didn't reach consensus 11:28 - Five continents,displacement, and place attachment 17:34 - Defining God so it worksfor believers and non-believers 18:31 - God as an attachmentfigure 27:13 - Making it concrete forpeople with no belief 28:09 - Why the gym is areligion 34:41 - Is the sacred apsychological need? 39:56 - Safe haven and securebase, explained through a marriage 43:18 - The four kinds of placeswhere people sense the sacred 50:54 - "Nothing is sacredto me" 51:20 - Separation anxiety,protest, despair, detachment 57:00 - What COVID lockdownsrevealed about attachment to place 1:00:01 - Losing your faith as adetachment phase 1:05:33 - Does wellbeing scienceignore the sacred? 1:08:35 - Why the West scoreslow on meaning 1:09:40 - Are there better andworse things to hold sacred? 1:13:29 - Marx, Freud, andreligion as a character strength 1:18:49 - Contentment, and theChristian Flourishing Index 1:21:10 - Where to find Vic Watch episode #73 on YouTube Connect further Follow Vic on LinkedIn Vic's work, books and free flourishing self-assessment The Flourishing Journal Vic on YouTube Bonding with God book Follow Matt LinkedIn Substack Wellbeing Explained is hosted by Be Well Co's Head of Research & Translation. Better wellbeing practice starts with better conversations. We bring in the experts to answer questions that others won't, bust myths, and go deeper into the science. Be Well Co is a social enterprise by Camp Quality that focuses on proactive mental health and wellbeing care. Through evidence-based wellbeing workshops and programs to organisations, Be Well Co is on a mission to make an impact for the 5 million Australians currently languishing. Follow Wellbeing Explained by Be Well Co Substack Instagram Facebook LinkedIn Website Youtube

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  Episode #72

  What if work was the solution not the cause? | Dr Kat Page

  Aug 31, 202638 min

  In this episode Matt sits down with Dr Kat Page, organisational psychologist, author of Good Work, and one of the researchers behind the model that sits underneath most workplace mental health strategies in Australia. We get into why fixing the work is only half the job, what the new psychosocial legislation is actually producing on the ground, and what makes work good for the people doing it. What we cover • Where the integrated approach to workplace mental health came from, and how a 2014 paper ended up cited by the World Health Organisation, the International Labour Organisation and Beyond Blue • Why removing the harm from work does not guarantee thatanyone is well • The six C's of good work: clarity, control, connection,contribution, competence and care • The gap between having evidence in place for a regulator and actually doing the work • Why small businesses sit furthest from the minimum standard, and the one thing they can do that large organisations cannot • How to tell a credible wellbeing provider from snake oil • What Kat tells wellbeing and HR people who are worn out from trying to shift their leaders Chapters 00:16 - Welcome and introduction 01:31 - Meet Dr Kat Page 02:07 - Why she wrote Good Work 06:21 - Where protect, promote and respond came from 10:58 - The three threads, and how the model went global 12:39 - The craft table: the model in one analogy 14:12 - Distress at work that didn't come from work 16:31 - Individual or systemic, and why we pick sides 17:31 - The question she gets asked on every podcast 18:35 - Why fixing the work isn't enough on its own 19:47 - What the legislation is actually producing 22:07 - The six C's of good work 24:48 - Which occupations carry the most risk 27:11 - The small business gap 29:57 - Data, or just having the conversation 31:10 - How to spot wellbeing snake oil 33:37 - For the practitioners who are worn out 35:56 - Wellbeing's marketing problem 36:25 - Human happiness in anAI-led workplace 36:55 - The one thing Kat does for her own wellbeing You can also watch episode #72 on YouTube or join the community on Substack . Connect further Follow Dr Kat Page on Instagram : & LinkedIn Check out Kat's book Good Work ByMany Website Follow Matt LinkedIn Substack

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  Episode #71

  Is it Possible to Live Well with Cancer?

  Aug 16, 202658 min

  Matt sits down with A/Prof Hannah Wardill, who leads the Supportive Oncology Research Group at the University of Adelaide and SAHMRI, and Natalie Tuckey, a health and clinical psychologist finishing a PhD on multiple myeloma. Together they've spent the past few years taking a wellbeing skills program built for workplaces and rebuilding it for people living with a rare, incurable blood cancer. It's delivered in peer groups by specialist myeloma nurses, and it exists because consumers asked for it. Their answer so far is yes, it's possible. But not by accident, and not by waiting until someone falls apart first. What we cover: Why mental health support in Australia mostly arrives once someone is already in crisis, and what a program built for the years before that point looks like. Why specialist myeloma nurses turned out to be the right people to deliver it, and what it did for the nurses themselves. Why this program landed when similar content struggled in workplaces and universities. The friction between a flexible, individualised wellbeing program and the fixed endpoints of a randomised controlled trial. What came out of 40+ interviews about end of life, and why "fear of recurrence" might be the wrong phrase for what people actually mean. Chapters: 00:00 Meet Hannah and Nat 03:04 A PhD in multiple myeloma and smouldering myeloma 07:44 What the program is, and why it runs as a peer group 09:05 The three aims of the project 11:00 Dom, and the consumers who asked for mental health care 12:19 Why support only arrives once you're in crisis 17:14 "We already do wellbeing" 19:03 The unsung heroes of supportive care 24:52 Why this landed when the workplace programs didn't 29:11 What surprised a lab scientist about wellbeing research 34:20 Fitting a wellbeing program into a clinical trial 38:06 The participant who dropped out and still benefited 45:50 The Death Festival 52:04 The loneliness nobody talks about 55:06 Fear of recurrence, or fear of dying? Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZKJumS7dKzrB6stwsrnNV33fEd5lVe9M Join the community on Substack: https://wellbeingexplained.substack.com/podcast Follow Matt on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-iasiello/ Follow Matt on Substack: https://substack.com/@mattiasiello Follow Hannah Wardill: https://au.linkedin.com/in/hannahrosewardill Follow Natalie Tuckey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-t-68712035/ Researching Happy is hosted by Be Well Co's Head of Research & Translation. Be Well Co is a social enterprise by Camp Quality that focuses on proactive mental health and wellbeing care. Through evidence-based wellbeing workshops and programs to organisations, Be Well Co is on a mission to make an impact for the 5 million Australians currently languishing. Website: https://www.bewellco.io/

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  Episode #68

  068 - Flourishing with AI: Virtue Ethics and the Risks of Outsourcing Our Humanity

  Jun 29, 20261h 7m

  In this episode of Researching Happy, Dr. Matthew Iasiello speaks with Dr. Anco Peeters, philosopher and cognitive scientist at Radboud University. Anco’s work sits at the intersection of embodied cognition, virtue ethics, human-centered design, and AI — with a focus on care robots, education, and the societal impacts of intelligent systems. Starting from a prescient thought experiment about “Google Morals,” Anco explains how we’ve rapidly moved from hypothetical worries about outsourcing ethics to everyday reality with large language models. The conversation explores: The risks of de-skilling critical thinking, moral reasoning, and reflection by over-relying on AI Why friction, pushback, and discomfort are often essential for personal growth and flourishing Virtue ethics as a practical framework for evaluating AI in healthcare, education, and mental health Lessons from care robots and sex robots for today’s AI companions Practical ways to design “frictional AI” that supports — rather than replaces — human connection and development The balance between efficiency and human well-being in professional and personal contexts Whether you’re optimistic or concerned about AI’s role in our lives, this episode offers nuanced, thought-provoking insights grounded in philosophy and cognitive science. Anco makes a compelling case for human-centered AI development that prioritizes long-term flourishing over short-term convenience.

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  Episode #67

  067 - Building Societies for Human Wellbeing: Stress, Social Conditions, and Flourishing | Dr. Matthew Fisher

  Jun 8, 20261h 9mS0

  <p>In this episode of Researching Happy, host Dr. Matthew Iasiello interviews Dr. Matt Fisher, philosopher, artist, and senior research fellow in public health at Adelaide University. </p><p>They discuss Fisher’s book How to Create Societies for Human Well-being, which integrates philosophy, psychology, and public health to argue that societies must be intentionally designed to support human flourishing rather than undermine it.</p><p>The conversation explores how social environments drive chronic stress through threats to coping ability and social standing, contributing to widespread mental ill-health (especially among young people). Fisher presents wellbeing as an active process—the develo...

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