Wheatley Institute and the David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies welcomed Jeff Rosen to BYU campus on Nov 13, 2025 as he spoke on his recent book, "The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America," a New York Times bestseller and an enriching examination of what “the pursuit of happiness” meant to our nation’s Founders and how that famous phrase defined their lives and became the foundation of our democracy.

Wheatley Institute Director Paul Edwards gave a devotional at Ensign College about becoming Disciple-Citizens. He emphasized the importance of active civic participation for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the ways that responsible citizens can support American democracy.

Wheatley Institute and the BYU College of Life Sciences welcomed Yale Professor Dr. Samuel Wilkinson to BYU campus on Oct 17, 2024 as he shared an insightful lecture on the purpose of our existence.

"There are many reasons people choose not to have children or not to get married, but false messages about happiness should not be one of them. The articles I read long ago were right that parenting (and marriage) can often be exhausting. But they ignored the sense of meaning that comes from parenthood and the connection of physical touch at the core of family life."

Magnify the Podcast featured Wheatley Family Fellow Jenet Erickson discussing findings from a recent Pew Research study on women of faith. Latter-Day Saint women were found to have very high rates of happiness and spiritual well-being, in sharp contrast to negative pop culture depictions. Pew Research concluded: "“It may be the confluence of the religious values and practices, reinforced by social ties and norms, that give religious communities their powerful effects on so many aspects of human flourishing.”

Brian Willoughby, a Wheatley Institute Family Fellow, contributed an article to the Deseret News about a sharp decline in dating among young American adults. Willoughby cites financial pressures, low confidence, and shifting priorities as factors in this "disconnect from romance, dating and marriage."