Psychology Essay

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M o d u le 1 2 .5 : T h e P u r s u it o f H a p p in e s s

Although the study of stress and how it affects us physically and psychologically is fascinating, it is— adm ittedly— som ew hat of a grim topic.

Psychology is also interested in the study of a m ore upbeat and encouraging approach to hum an affairs— the quest for happiness.

Am erica's founders declared that its citizens have an unalienable right to pursue happiness. But w hat is happiness? W hen asked to deﬁne the

term , people em phasize different aspects of this elusive state. Indeed, happiness is som ew hat am biguous and can be deﬁned from different

perspectives. Som e people, especially those w ho are highly com m itted to their religious faith, view happiness in w ays that em phasize virtuosity,

reverence, and enlightened spirituality. O thers see happiness as prim arily contentm ent— the inner peace and joy that com e from deep

satisfaction w ith one's surroundings, relationships w ith others, accom plishm ents, and oneself. Still others view happiness m ainly as pleasurable

engagem ent w ith their personal environm ent— having a career and hobbies that are engaging, m eaningful, rew arding, and exciting. These

differences, of course, are m erely differences in em phasis. M ost people w ould probably agree that each of these view s, in som e respects,

captures the essence of happiness.

E le m e n ts o f H a p p in e s s

Som e psychologists have suggested that happiness consists of three distinct elem ents: the pleasant life, the good life, and the m eaningful life,

as show n in Figure 12.21. The pleasant life is realized through the attainm ent of day-to-day pleasures that add fun, joy, and excitem ent to our

lives. The good life is achieved through identifying our unique skills and abilities and engaging these talents to enrich our lives. The m eaningful

life involves a deep sense of fulﬁllm ent that com es from using our talents in the service of the greater good: in w ays that beneﬁt the lives of

others or that m ake the w orld a better place. In general, the happiest people tend to be those w ho pursue the full life— they orient their

pursuits tow ard all three elem ents.

For practical purposes, a precise deﬁnition of happiness m ight incorporate each of these elem ents: an enduring state of m ind consisting of joy,

contentm ent, and other positive em otions, plus the sense that one's life has m eaning and value. The deﬁnition im plies that happiness is a long-

term state rather than m erely a brief positive m ood w e all experience from tim e to tim e. It is this enduring happiness that has captured the

interests of psychologists and other social scientists.

The study of happiness has grow n dram atically in the last three decades. O ne of the m ost basic questions that happiness investigators routinely

exam ine is this: H ow happy are people in general? The average person in the w orld tends to be relatively happy and tends to indicate

experiencing m ore positive feelings than negative feelings. W hen asked to evaluate their current lives on a scale ranging from 0 to 10 (w ith 0

representing "w orst possible life" and 10 representing "best possible life"), people in m ore than 150 countries surveyed from 2010–2012

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Figure 12.21 Happiness is an enduring state of well-being involving

satisfaction in the pleasant, good, and m eaningful aspects of life.

reported an average score of 5.2. People w ho live in N orth Am erica,

Australia, and N ew Zealand reported the highest average score at 7.1,

w hereas those living Sub-Saharan Africa reported the low est average score

at 4.6. W orldw ide, the ﬁve happiest countries are D enm ark, N orw ay,

Sw itzerland, the N etherlands, and Sw eden; the U nited States is ranked 17th

happiest (Figure 12.22). 2017/7/27 PSY101 - Module 12.5

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Figure 12.22 (a) Surveys of residents in over 150 countries indicate that Denm ark has the happiest citizens in

the world. (b) Am ericans ranked the United States as the 17th happiest country in which to live. (credit a:

m odiﬁcation of work by "Jam esZ_Flickr"/Flickr; credit b: m odiﬁcation of work by Ryan Swindell)

Several years ago, a G allup survey of m ore than 1,000 U .S. adults found that 52% reported that they w ere "very happy." In addition, m ore than 8

in 10 indicated that they w ere "very satisﬁed" w ith their lives. H ow ever, a recent poll of 2,345 U .S. adults surprisingly revealed that only one-

third reported they are "very happy." The poll also revealed that the happiness levels of certain groups, including m inorities, recent college

graduates, and the disabled, have trended dow nw ard in recent years. Although it is diﬃ cult to explain this apparent decline in happiness, it m ay

be connected to the challenging econom ic conditions the U nited States has endured over the last several years. O f course, this presum ption

w ould im ply that happiness is closely tied to one's ﬁnances. But, is it? This question brings us to the next im portant issue: W hat factors

inﬂuence happiness?

F a c to rs C o n n e c te d to H a p p in e s s

W hat really m akes people happy? W hat factors contribute to sustained joy and contentm ent? Is it m oney, attractiveness, m aterial possessions, a

rew arding occupation, a satisfying relationship? Extensive research over the years has exam ined this question. O ne ﬁnding is that age is related

to happiness: Life satisfaction usually increases the older people get, but there do not appear to be gender differences in happiness. Although it

is im portant to point out that m uch of this w ork has been correlational, m any of the key ﬁndings (som e of w hich m ay surprise you) are

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Fam ily and other social relationships appear to be key factors correlated w ith happiness. Studies show that m arried people report being

happier than those w ho are single, divorced, or w idow ed. H appy individuals also report that their m arriages are fulﬁlling. H appy people tend to

have m ore friends, m ore high-quality social relationships, and stronger social support netw orks than less happy people. H appy people also

have a high frequency of contact w ith friends.

Can m oney buy happiness? In general, extensive research suggests that the answ er is yes, but w ith several caveats. O n the w hole, residents of

aﬄ uent countries tend to be happier than residents of poor countries; w ithin countries, w ealthy individuals are happier than poor individuals,

but the association is m uch w eaker. Incom e w ithin societies appears to correlate w ith happiness only up to a point. In a study of over 450,000

U .S. residents surveyed by the G allup O rganization, Kahnem an and D eaton (2010) found that w ell-being rises w ith annual incom e, but only up

to $75,000. The average increase in reported w ell-being for people w ith incom es greater than $75,000 w as null. As im plausible as these ﬁndings

m ight seem , higher incom es m ay im pair people's ability to savor and enjoy the sm all pleasures of life.

W hat about education and em ploym ent? H appy people, com pared to those w ho are less happy, are m ore likely to graduate from college and

secure m ore m eaningful and engaging jobs. O nce they obtain a job, they are also m ore likely to succeed. W hile education show s a positive (but

w eak) correlation w ith happiness, intelligence is not appreciably related to happiness.

D oes religiosity correlate w ith happiness? In general, the answ er is yes. H ow ever, the relationship betw een religiosity and happiness depends

on societal circum stances. N ations and states w ith m ore diﬃ cult living conditions (e.g., w idespread hunger and low life expectancy) tend to be

m ore highly religious than societies w ith m ore favorable living conditions. Am ong those w ho live in nations w ith diﬃ cult living conditions,

religiosity is associated w ith greater w ell-being; in nations w ith m ore favorable living conditions, religious and nonreligious individuals report

sim ilar levels of w ell-being.

Clearly the living conditions of one's nation can inﬂuence factors related to happiness. W hat about the inﬂuence of one's culture? To the extent

that people possess characteristics that are highly valued by their culture, they tend to be happier. For exam ple, self-esteem is a stronger

predictor of life satisfaction in individualistic cultures than in collectivistic cultures, and extraverted people tend to be happier in extraverted

cultures than in introverted cultures.

So w e've identiﬁed m any factors that exhibit som e correlation to happiness. W hat factors don't show a correlation? Researchers have studied

both parenthood and physical attractiveness as potential contributors to happiness, but no link has been identiﬁed. Although people tend to

believe that parenthood is central to a m eaningful and fulﬁlling life, aggregate ﬁndings from a range of countries indicate that people w ho do

not have children are generally happier than those w ho do. And although one's perceived level of attractiveness seem s to predict happiness, a

person's objective physical attractiveness is only w eakly correlated w ith happiness.

L ife E v e n ts a n d H a p p in e s s

An im portant point should be considered regarding happiness. People are often poor at affective forecasting: predicting the intensity and

duration of their future em otions. In addition, w e are often incorrect w hen estim ating how our long-term happiness w ould change for the 2017/7/27 PSY101 - Module 12.5

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better or w orse in response to certain life events. For exam ple, it is easy for m any of us to im agine how euphoric w e w ould feel if w e w on the

lottery, w ere asked on a date by an attractive celebrity, or w ere offered our dream job. Likew ise, it easy to predict that w e w ould feel

perm anently m iserable if w e suffered a crippling accident or if a rom antic relationship ended.

H ow ever, som ething sim ilar to sensory adaptation often occurs w hen people experience em otional reactions to life events. In m uch the sam e

w ay our senses adapt to changes in stim ulation (e.g., our eyes adapting to bright light after w alking out of the darkness of a m ovie theater into

the bright afternoon sun), w e eventually adapt to changing em otional circum stances in our lives. W hen an event that provokes positive or

negative em otions occurs, at ﬁrst w e tend to experience its em otional im pact at full intensity. W e feel a burst of pleasure follow ing such things

as a m arriage proposal, birth of a child, acceptance to law school, or w inning the lottery. Likew ise, w e experience a surge of m isery follow ing

w idow hood, a divorce, or a layoff from w ork. In the long run, how ever, w e eventually adjust to the em otional new norm al; the em otional im pact

of the event tends to erode, and w e eventually revert to our original baseline happiness levels. Indeed, dram atic life events have m uch less

long-lasting im pact on happiness than m ight be expected.

Recently, som e have raised questions concerning the extent to w hich im portant life events can perm anently alter people's happiness set points.

Evidence from a num ber of investigations suggests that, in som e circum stances, happiness levels do not revert to their original positions. For

exam ple, although people generally tend to adapt to m arriage so that it no longer m akes them happier or unhappier than before, they often do

not fully adapt to unem ploym ent or severe disabilities.

Figure 12.23, w hich is based on longitudinal data from a sam ple of over 3,000 G erm an respondents, show s life satisfaction scores several years

before, during, and after various life events, and it illustrates how people adapt (or fail to adapt) to these events. G erm an respondents did not

get lasting em otional boosts from m arriage; instead, they reported brief increases in happiness, follow ed by quick adaptation. In contrast,

w idow s and those w ho had been laid off experienced sizeable decreases in happiness that appeared to result in long-term changes in life

satisfaction. Further, longitudinal data from the sam e sam ple show ed that happiness levels changed signiﬁcantly over tim e for nearly a quarter

of respondents, w ith 9% show ing m ajor changes. Thus, long-term happiness levels can and do change for som e people.

In c re a s in g H a p p in e s s

Som e recent ﬁndings about happiness provide an optim istic picture, suggesting that real changes in happiness are possible. For exam ple,

thoughtfully developed w ell-being interventions designed to augm ent people's baseline levels of happiness m ay increase happiness in w ays

that are perm anent and long-lasting, not just tem porary. These changes in happiness m ay be targeted at individual, organizational, and societal

levels. Researchers in one study found that a series of happiness interventions involving such exercises as w riting dow n three good things that

occurred each day led to increases in happiness that lasted over six m onths.

M easuring happiness and w ell-being at the societal level over tim e m ay assist policy m akers in determ ining if people are generally happy or

m iserable, as w ell as w hen and w hy they m ight feel the w ay they do. Studies show that average national happiness scores (over tim e and across

countries) relate strongly to six key variables: 2017/7/27 PSY101 - Module 12.5

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Figure 12.23 This graphs shows life satisfaction scores several years before and after three signiﬁcant life events

(0 represents the year the event happened) (Diener et al., 2006).

1. Per capita gross dom estic product (G D P,

w hich reﬂects a nation's econom ic standard

of living)

2. Social support

3. Freedom to m ake im portant life choices

4. H ealthy life expectancy

5. Freedom from perceived corruption in

governm ent and business

6. G enerosity

Investigating w hy people are happy or

unhappy m ight help policym akers develop

program s that increase happiness and w ell-

being w ithin a society. Resolutions about

contem porary political and social issues that

are frequent topics of debate— such as

poverty, taxation, affordable health care and

housing, clean air and w ater, and incom e

inequality— m ight be best considered w ith

people's happiness in m ind.

P o s itiv e P s y c h o lo g y

In 1998, Seligm an (the sam e person w ho

conducted the learned helplessness

experim ents m entioned earlier), w ho w as

then president of the Am erican

Psychological Association, urged psychologists to focus m ore on understanding how to build hum an strength and psychological w ell-being. In

deliberately setting out to create a new direction and new orientation for psychology, Seligm an helped establish a grow ing m ovem ent and ﬁeld

of research called positive psychology. In a very general sense, positive psychology can be thought of as the science of happiness; it is an area

of study that seeks to identify and prom ote those qualities that lead to greater fulﬁllm ent in our lives. This ﬁeld looks at people's strengths and

w hat helps individuals to lead happy, contented lives, and it m oves aw ay from focusing on people's pathology, faults, and problem s.

Som e of the topics studied by positive psychologists include altruism and em pathy, creativity, forgiveness and com passion, the im portance of

positive em otions, enhancem ent of im m une system functioning, savoring the ﬂeeting m om ents of life, and strengthening virtues as a w ay to

increase authentic happiness. Recent efforts in the ﬁeld of positive psychology have focused on extending its principles tow ard peace and w ell- 2017/7/27 PSY101 - Module 12.5

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being at the level of the global com m unity. In a w ar-torn w orld in w hich conﬂict, hatred, and distrust are com m on, such an extended "positive

peace psychology" could have im portant im plications for understanding how to overcom e oppression and w ork tow ard global peace.

D ig D e e p e r

The Center for Investigating H ealthy M inds

O n the cam pus of the U niversity of W isconsin–M adison, the Center for Investigating H ealthy M inds at the W aism an Center

conducts rigorous scientiﬁc research on healthy aspects of the m ind, such as kindness, forgiveness, com passion, and

m indfulness. Established in 2008 and led by renow ned neuroscientist D r. Richard J. D avidson, the Center exam ines a w ide

range of ideas, including such things as a kindness curriculum in schools, neural correlates of prosocial behavior,

psychological effects of Tai Chi training, digital gam es to foster prosocial behavior in children, and the effectiveness of yoga

and breathing exercises in reducing sym ptom s of post-traum atic stress disorder.

According to its w ebsite, the Center w as founded after D r. D avidson w as challenged by H is H oliness, the 14th D alai Lam a,

"to apply the rigors of science to study positive qualities of m ind". The Center continues to conduct scientiﬁc research w ith

the aim of developing m ental health training approaches that help people to live happier, healthier lives).

P o s itiv e A ffe c t a n d O p tim is m

Taking a cue from positive psychology, extensive research over the last 10-15 years has exam ined the im portance of positive psychological

attributes in physical w ell-being. Q ualities that help prom ote psychological w ell-being are linked w ith a range of favorable health outcom es

(especially im proved cardiovascular health) m ainly through their relationships w ith biological functions and health behaviors (such as diet,

physical activity, and sleep quality).

The quality that has received attention is positive affect, w hich refers to pleasurable engagem ent w ith the environm ent, such as happiness, joy,

enthusiasm , alertness, and excitem ent. The characteristics of positive affect, as w ith negative affect (discussed earlier), can be brief, long-

lasting, or trait-like. Independent of age, gender, and incom e, positive affect is associated w ith greater social connectedness, em otional and

practical support, adaptive coping efforts, and low er depression; it is also associated w ith longevity and favorable physiological functioning.

There has also been m uch w ork suggesting that optim ism — the general tendency to look on the bright side of things— is also a signiﬁcant

predictor of positive health outcom es. Although positive affect and optim ism are related in som e w ays, they are not the sam e. W hereas positive

affect is m ostly concerned w ith positive feeling states, optim ism has been regarded as a generalized tendency to expect that good things w ill 2017/7/27 PSY101 - Module 12.5

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happen. It has also been conceptualized as a tendency to view life's stressors and diﬃ culties as tem porary and external to oneself. N um erous

studies over the years have consistently show n that optim ism is linked to longevity, healthier behaviors, few er postsurgical com plications,

better im m une functioning am ong m en w ith prostate cancer, and better treatm ent adherence.

F lo w

Another factor that seem s to be im portant in fostering a deep sense of w ell-being is the ability to derive ﬂow from the things w e do in life. Flow

is described as a particular experience that is so engaging and engrossing that it becom es w orth doing for its ow n sake. It is usually related to

creative endeavors and leisure activities, but it can also be experienced by w orkers w ho like their jobs or students w ho love studying.

W hen people experience ﬂow , they becom e involved in an activity to the point w here they feel they lose them selves in the activity. They

effortlessly m aintain their concentration and focus, they feel as though they have com plete control of their actions, and tim e seem s to pass

m ore quickly than usual. Flow is considered a pleasurable experience, and it typically occurs w hen people are engaged in challenging activities

that require skills and know ledge they know they possess.

Although w ealth and m aterial possessions are nice to have, the notion of ﬂow suggests that neither are prerequisites for a happy and fulﬁlling

life. Finding an activity that you are truly enthusiastic about, som ething so absorbing that doing it is rew ard itself is perhaps the real key.

According to Csikszentm ihalyi (1999), creating conditions that m ake ﬂow experiences possible should be a top social and political priority. H ow

m ight this goal be achieved? H ow m ight ﬂow be prom oted in school system s? In the w orkplace? W hat potential beneﬁts m ight be accrued from

such efforts?

In an ideal w orld, scientiﬁc research endeavors should inform us on how to bring about a better w orld for all people. The ﬁeld of positive

psychology prom ises to be instrum ental in helping us understand w hat truly builds hope, optim ism , happiness, healthy relationships, ﬂow , and

genuine personal fulﬁllm ent.

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Dir ect io n s: Ch oose one o f t he fo ur s cen ar ios. F or eac h s cen ar io, s el ec t t he m ost ap propriat e

sec tion o f t he d iag ram b el ow t o iden tify w hich k ind o f l ife t he i ndividual in t he s cen ar io is

ex em plify ing.

Scen ario s: O n e Tw o Th ree Fou r

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M odule 12.4