How happy are you right now? A new iPhone-based research project aims to find out...and in doing so, help find out what makes you and others happy.

Track Your Happiness, a program started by Harvard University doctoral candidate Matt Killingsworth, is a psychological study that aims to find the factors influencing happiness. But rather than asking participants to complete surveys in a lab, Killingsworth wanted to gather data from the real world, throughout the day. Hence, he chose the iPhone.

The idea is simple: you sign up on the Track Your Happiness site, answer a few questions about yourself and say how often you'd like to receive happiness surveys during your day (between 3 and 5 times). These simple surveys, optimized for the iPhone's screen, are sent via text message. Questions include how happy you are, where you are, whether you're with others or alone, and whether you enjoy the task you're currently engaged in.

While the data you submit is used in Killingsworth's research, you also receive personal "happiness reports" like these from blogger Buster Benson (below). It goes without saying that the information could be used to improve your overall happiness - not to mention the glow you'll get from helping researchers understand the factors influencing human happiness.

[via NYTimes]