Ben-Shahar, who has taught popular courses on positive psychology at Harvard University, told reporters in Taipei that he would “very strongly recommend” that the government introduce such courses from kindergarten to university level.

As students become happier, they will also become smarter and more creative, focused and resilient, said Ben-Shahar, who is visiting Taiwan to promote the Chinese version of his new book “Choose the Life You Want: 101 Ways to Create Your Own Road to Happiness.”

Positive psychology emphasizes positive experiences and human strengths to improve people's lives.

In a positive psychology course, students learn how to become more confident, how to deal with failure and how to cultivate healthy relationships, which are no less important than traditional subjects, Ben-Shahar said.

In addition to education, the author said, governments should also increase the happiness levels of their people by building more public parks, which provides more space for exercise and for people to meet each other.

Asked about his advice to employers in Taiwan, where people often work long hours, Ben Shahar pointed out that longer working hours do not always lead to better results or higher productivity.

Like race cars, which have to take breaks at pit stops, people also need to take breaks to recover or they will pay the price, he said. “The tires will blow up. It will run out of fuel.”

He said companies will gain more by giving their employees adequate break times because by doing so, employees will be less likely to leave the workplace and will be more engaged, creative and motivated.

The author also believes that the quality time people spend with their loved ones is the most important predictor of happiness. Countries such as Denmark, Israel, Australia and the Netherlands are consistently happier than other countries because they emphasize social relations, he added.

A day earlier, the author addressed company managers, teachers and other professionals on the topic of positive leadership and gave another speech to a general audience on how to lead a happy life.

Ben-Shahar is best known for teaching the highly popular “Positive Psychology” and “The Psychology of Leadership” courses at Harvard. He now teaches in Israel at the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya — an elite private university.