The Exeter-based social researcher, academic and novelist was thrilled to receive the third highest honour in the Order of Australia.

"I'm astounded, it made me wonder why," he said.

But he realised it was in recognition of the value of his years of social research in the country.

From the 1960s, he has researched Australian society, concerned with what we consider right or wrong, how to live a good life and what makes us happy.

He considers his timing extremely fortunate.

"I feel incredibly lucky to have studied Australian society over this 60 years, this was a period of revolutions," he said.

"It was a really fascinating time to be a researcher looking at the turbulence in Australian cultural, social and economic development."

He insisted the women's movement had the biggest impact on shaping modern Australia.

"The gender revolution was the biggest change, it [affected] society, politics, relationships, marriage and the birth rate," he said.

During the past few years, he maintained a growing cynicism with what he perceived as a national preoccupation with happiness.

"The happiness industry tries to set our default position. We must be happy, otherwise there's something wrong with us," he said.

"It's been damaging to the social fabric by making people feel self-conscious and individualistic."

In addition to founding the St James Ethics Centre, producing Australia's pre-eminent social research quarterly and penning newspaper columns, Mr Mackay has written 14 books including five fictional novels.

After collecting an armful of honorary doctorates from various NSW universities, Mr Mackay is currently the Honorary Professor of Social Science at the University of Wollongong.

Outside of the research sphere, he advises the Bell Shakespeare company and is a patron of the Asylum Seekers Centre.

Despite his vocal disapproval of asylum-seeker detention, he remains proud of Australia's multicultural tolerance.