What would make you happier? Perhaps a bigger house or a better car; a sexier or more understanding mate; surely, wealth and fame. Or maybe you would simply be happy with finishing everything on your to-do list. Well, stop deluding yourself. Psychological research suggests that none of these things is very likely to increase your happiness significantly.
Take money, for example. Using data from the 2000 U.S. Census, David G. Myers documented an interesting discrepancy between wealth and happiness. Myers, a psychologist at Hope College in Holland, Mich., found that the buying power of the average American had tripled since 1950. So were Americans three times happier in 2000 than 50 years earlier?
This article was originally published with the title Why It's So Hard to Be Happy.
See what we're tweeting about
4 Comments
Add CommentI don't think Americans have become three times happier since 1950, It is just harder to satiate the desire for material posssions.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI don't think Americans have become three times happier since 1950, It is just harder to satiate the desire for material posssions.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thishey demati, americans haven't become 3x happier.... you'd know that if you read the rest of the article.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI know exactly what makes me happy--i got on to it through Scientific American´s report on aging 3 or 4 years ago--50 gms modafinilo 2 or 3 times a month. I'm happy today because the waterman brought the right brand, the gleaner's kid brought fresh strawberries, and the coffee shop down the street has re-opened. Yesterday, I would've been pissed off because the waterman came at 7:30, the gleaner's kid didn't have the tomatoes I'd ordered, and the coffee shop will now be playing mariachi 'till 2 in the morning.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this