|
Does anyone here see a connection between this discussion and
the article about the neuroscientists study of Buddhists brains?
Selma
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, October 04, 2003 3:32
AM
Subject: [Futurework] How to be
happy
This week the New Scientist is starting a
series on happiness -- a complex subject which is coming under increasing
scrutiny by various life sciences (even economics!). This will be going into
my project database because the basis of my evolutionary economics hypothesis
is that we have now reached life-work constraints to the satisfactions given
by consumer goods and services, and thus that we might now be coming to the
end of their continuing efficacy in stimulating economic growth in the
conventionally measured way -- and this, quite besides the increasing scarcity
of cheap energy fuels in the coming decades.
One of the articles in the
NS series is "Reasons to be cheerful". Ten of these have been given,
and the rapporteurs have given them weightings after consultation with those
who are researching in the field. I have changed their graphic weightings into
numbers of asterisks below and rearranged them in order of what they consider
to be important.(The authors have scattered the order about -- goodness knows
why!)
My own main stimulus for happiness is not mentioned. This is to
think/ponder/soliloquise by myself early in the morning when no-one is around.
Some would say that this makes me an excessive introvert -- and thus likely to
be unhappy, as the first item below says. But a very close second cause of
happiness in my life is chatting with people I meet on my morning dogwalk.
When I meet people I know, or strangers who seem inclined to chat for a few
minutes, I stuff my Economist or Financial Times into my pocket
and engage. No matter how interesting or important an article may be, it's
nowhere near as fascinating as someone else's personality and experiences.
Thus I start every day with a double dose of happiness and I count myself a
lucky old man.
Keith Hudson
<<<<
REASONS TO BE
CHEERFUL
Bob Holmes, Kurt Kleiner, Kate Douglas and Michael Bond
1.
MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR GENES
Rating**********
Are some people born
happy or unhappy? David Lykken, a psychologist and behavioural geneticist at
the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, believes our feeling of well-being
at any moment is determined half by what is going on in our lives at that time
and half by a "set point" of happiness, which is up to 90 per cent genetically
determined and to which we eventually return after dramatic
events.
"Our happiness set point is largely determined by our
grandparents," says Lykken. "But whether we bounce along above it or slump
along under it depends on our -- or our parents' -- good sense and good
training." Lykken bases his claim on his study of more than 4000 adult twins
born in Minnesota between 1936 and 1955. He found that genetic variation
accounted for between 44 and 55 per cent of the difference in the twins'
happiness levels, while neither income, marital status, religion nor education
accounted for any more than about 3 per cent (Psychological Science,
vol 7, p 189).
Personality and happiness do seem to be linked: many
studies have shown that extroverts tend to be happier than most people, and a
lot happier than introverts. This could be because extroverts are more likely
to do the things that bring happiness, such as have friends, climb the job
ladder and get married. Or it could just mean that being happy makes you
extroverted. Several studies have found that putting people in a good mood
makes them more sociable. For example, Michael Cunningham at the University of
Louisville in Kentucky showed that people were more talkative and open with
others after watching a happy film than after watching a sad one
(Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol 14, p 283).
But
being an extrovert doesn't always equate to happiness: it depends on your
environment too. Gerhard Kette at Johannes Kepler University in Linz, Austria,
found that in prison, introverts are happier than extroverts.
2. GET
MARRIED
Weighting******
In an analysis of reports from 42 countries,
a team in the US found that married people are consistently happier than
singletons. The effect is small, accounting for between about 1 and 2 per cent
of the variance in subjective well-being. But that still begs the question:
does marriage make you happy, or are happy people simply more likely to get
married?
Both may be true. In a study that followed more than 30,000
Germans for 15 years, Diener and his colleagues, including Richard Lucas from
Michigan State University, found that happy people are more likely to get
married and stay married. But anyone can improve their mood by getting
married. The effect begins about a year before the "happy day" and lasts for
around a year afterwards. On average, satisfaction levels do return to their
baseline, but the researchers say this conceals the fact that a good marriage
has a permanent positive effect. Furthermore, people who are less happy to
begin with get a bigger boost from marriage (Journal ofPersonality and
Social Psychology, vol 84, p 527).
And it seems there's something
special about signing that piece of paper: the research shows that you can't
get as much benefit from simply cohabiting. "My hunch is that cohabiting
couples lack the deeper security that comes with the formal band of gold, and
that is why they are not quite so happy," says Oswald. "Insecurity, we know
from all data, is bad for human beings."
3. MAKE FRIENDS AND VALUE
THEM
Weighting*****
It is hard to imagine a more pitiful existence
than life on the streets of Calcutta or in one of its slums, or making a
living there as a prostitute. Yet despite the poverty and squalor they face,
such people are much happier than you might imagine.
Diener interviewed
83 people from these three groups and measured their life satisfaction using a
scale where a score of 2 is considered neutral. Overall, they averaged 1.93 --
not great, but creditable, compared with a control group of middle class
students in the city who scored 2.43. And the slum dwellers, who were happiest
of the three disadvantaged groups, scored 2.23, which is not significantly
different from the students' score (Social Indicators Research, vol 55,
p 329).
"We think social relationships are partly responsible," says
Diener. He points out that all three deprived groups got high satisfaction
-ratings in specific areas such as family (2.5) and friends (2.4). Slum
dwellers did particularly well, perhaps because they are most likely to be
able to cash in on the social support that arises from the importance of the
extended family in Indian culture. "This is what the American homeless do not
have, and they are unhappy despite better material conditions," says Diener.
His latest, still unpublished, findings seem to bear this out.
4.
DESIRE LESS
Weighting****
Wise men down the ages have said that
curbing your desires is a surer route to happiness than a fat bank balance --
and they may be right.
In the 198os, political scientist Alex Michalos,
now at the University of Northern British Columbia in Prince George, asked
18,000 college students in 39 countries to rate their happiness on a numeric
scale. Then he asked them how close they were to having all they wanted in
life. He found that the people whose aspirations -- not just for money, but
for friends, family, job, health, money, the works -- soared farthest beyond
what they already had tended to be less happy than those who perceived a
smaller gap. Indeed, the size of the gap predicted happiness about five times
as well as income alone. "The gap measures just blow away the absolute
measures of income," says Michalos.
This "aspiration gap" might explain
why most people fail to get much happier as their salaries rise. Instead of
satisfying our desires, most of us merely want more. In surveys by the Roper
polling organisation in 1978 and 1994, for example, Americans were asked to
list the material goods they thought important to "the good life". The
researchers found that the more of these goods people already had, the longer
their list was, so the good life remained always just out of reach.
5.
FIND GOD (OR A BELIEF SYSTEM)
Weighting***
Karl Marx was close to
the mark when he described religion as an "opiate for the masses". Of the
dozens of studies that have looked at religion and happiness, the vast
majority have found a positive link. Harold Koenig at Duke University Medical
Center in Durham. North Carolina, uncovered 100 papers on the subject, 79 of
which showed that people who get involved in a religion are happier or more
satisfied with their lives -- or have more positive emotions - than
others.
But why? Believing in God or an afterlife can give people
meaning and purpose and reduce the feeling of being alone in the world, says
Koenig, especially as people get older. "You really see the effect in times of
stress. Religious belief can be a very powerful way of coping with
adversity."
And it seems you're better off adhering to some belief
system than none at all. Gary Reker at Trent University in Peterborough,
Ontario, says this is most apparent when it comes to fear of death. Those who
are deeply religious and those who are deeply irreligious have described
themselves as less fearful of death than others, he says. "The most fearful
are those who are uncertain, or uncommitted, to any specific belief
system."
Another reason why being religious improves well-being is the
social interaction and support it brings. "Just seeing other people go up to
the altar and come back with some sort of refreshment gives people a strong
sense of satisfaction," says Abbott Ferriss at Emory University in Atlanta,
Georgia. "Many people attend religious services for their social strengths.
This is something few religious figures acknowledge."
Koenig believes
it is not just about receiving support. "It's really about giving. Studies
have shown that people who provide support to others are better off
themselves. They even live longer." This, researchers agree, makes religious
involvement a source of greater satisfaction than other socially inclusive
activities, such as joining a football supporters' club.
Do some
religions make you happier than others? Ferriss looked at the US General
Social Survey, an ongoing study that measures attitudes and behaviours across
American society (Journal of Happiness Studies, vol 3, p 199). He found
that Protestant Christians were happiest of any religious denomination, though
not by much. There was a stronger link with the doctrinal nature of worship:
evangelicals and fundamentalists, with their conviction that they are on the
only true path, are significantly the happiest worshippers.
6. DO
SOMEONE A GOOD TURN
Weighting***
Religions teach that charity is
good for the soul. It might also make you happier.
Several studies have
found a link between happiness and altruistic behaviour. But as with many
behavioural traits, it is not always clear whether doing good makes you feel
good, or whether happy people are more likely to be altruistic.
Again,
both could be true. In a study of 3617 people who were each interviewed once
and then three years later, Peggy Thoits and Lyndi Hewitt ofVanderbilt
University in Nashville, Tennessee, found that happy people were more likely
to sign up for volunteer work. But they also found that volunteers became
happier, and the more voluntary work they did the happier they got (Journal
of Health and Social Behavior, vol 42, p 115).
James Konow, an
economist at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, tried to
tease apart cause and effect in a lab experiment. He recruited subjects to
answer questionnaires, and towards the end of the session gave half of them
$10 and half of them nothing. He then told the subjects who had been paid that
they could share their money with those who hadn't been paid. Konow found that
the more satisfied a student was with their life overall, the more likely they
were to share the money. However, being in a happy mood on the day of the test
did not make them any more generous, and students who gave did not report any
immediate increase in happiness -- in fact, they were slightly less
happy.
But those who shared their money were more likely to show the
personality traits of a "self-actualiser"-- someone concerned with their own
personal growth and improvement. Among other things, such people experience
deep interpersonal relationships and empathy for others (American Economic
Review, vol 90, p 1072). Konow thinks that while a single act of
generosity did not make his subjects happier, the cumulative effects of being
a generous person did.
7. STOP COMPARING YOUR LOOKS WITH
OTHERS
Weighting**
First the bad news: good-looking people really
are happier. When Diener got people to rate their own looks, both with and
without make-up, there was a "small but positive effect of physical
attractiveness on subjective well-being".
Perhaps the explanation is
that life is kinder to the beautiful. Or it could be more subtle than that.
The most attractive faces are highly symmetrical, and there is evidence from
animal research that symmetry reflects good genes and a healthy immune system.
So perhaps beautiful people are happier because they are healthier: many
studies have found that health and happiness go hand in hand.
The good
news is that you can cash in on beauty's emotional high, even if you are no
oil painting. The secret is to believe you look great. Unfortunately, this is
harder than it sounds. Only 1 in 20 people accurately judges where they lie on
an attractiveness ratings scale. Most have a distorted self-image that errs on
the side of loathing, rather than loving, according to a meta-analysis
published by Alan Feingold at Yale University (Psychological Bulletin,
vol 111, p 304). Women tend to think they are too fat and men worry about
being puny.
In a new study, Laurie Mintz and her colleagues from the
University of Missouri- Columbia found that women who saw advertisements
featuring lithe and flawless young models for just one to three minutes rated
their own bodies more negatively and showed an increase in depression. Mintz
was alarmed how quickly the women's self-esteem was undermined. And she
believes people are becoming more dissatisfied as new technology allows the
media to create ever more unrealistic images.
What can be done? One
published round-up of patients' reactions suggests that a successful nose or
boob job can leave you happier in the long term. But the fact that many
patients keep coming back for more implies that they are still not happy with
how they look.
Mintz recommends less drastic steps to contentment:
avoid unrealistic media images; understand that such pictures are airbrushed
and "Photoshopped" to perfection; appreciate your body for what it does rather
than how it looks.
8. EARN MORE MONEY (UP TO A
POINT)
Weighting*
Can money buy happiness? The short answer is, yes
-- but it doesn't buy you very much. And once you can afford to feed, clothe
and house yourself, each extra dollar makes less and less
difference.
Whenever and wherever they look, researchers find that, on
average, wealthier people are happier. "There are rich people who are
miserable. There are poor people who are happy all the time. But if you're an
unhappy rich person, you're going to be happier than if you were poor," says
Robert Frank, an economist at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. The same
seems to be true of people who suddenly strike it rich. Lottery winners and
people who come into large inheritances end up somewhat happier than they were
before, according to studies by Andrew Oswald, an economist at Warwick
University.
But the link between money and happiness is a bit more
complex than that. In the past half-century, average income has skyrocketed in
industrialised countries, yet happiness levels have remained static. It seems
absolute income doesn't make much difference once you have enough to meet your
basic needs. Instead, the key seems to be whether you have more than your
friends, neighbours and colleagues. "Human beings make the mistake that they
think another X thousand dollars in an absolute sense will make them better
off. It's not that. It's that dollars buy status, and status makes them better
off," says Oswald. This helps explain why people who can seek status in other
ways -- scientists or actors, for example -- may happily accept relatively
poorly paid jobs.
Oswald's research bears this out. In lab tests, he
asked college undergraduates how satisfied they would be with various salary
offers for a hypothetical job. He found that the offer's ranking within a
range of possible salaries made a huge difference to the students'
satisfaction: they rated a particular salary much more favourably if it was
one of the top ones on offer rather than one of the lower ones. Similarly, in
a recent survey of more than 16,000 workers in the UK, Oswald found they
reported being more satisfied with a given salary if it ranked higher in the
company's salary hierarchy.
He has developed a "happiness equation"
that prices the ingredients of happiness. This allows him to ask, for example,
how much additional money it would take, on average, to make a single person
as happy as a married one. The answer puts money firmly in its place: it would
take an additional £70,000 per year, far more than most people's annual
salary. Similarly, the happiness benefits of having a job far exceed the
actual income involved (International Journal of Epidemiology, vol 31,
p 1139). "Money matters, but it's not as important as the average citizen
thinks," Oswald concludes.
9. GROW OLD
GRACEFULLY
Weighting*
Old age may not be as bad as people presume.
Elderly people are on average just as happy as the young, and actually rate
themselves more satisfied with their lives overall. "People refer to it as the
paradox of ageing. Given all the problems of ageing, how could they be more
satisfied?" asks Laura Carstensen, a psychology professor at Stanford
University in California.
In one study, Carstensen gave pagers to 184
people between the ages of 18 and 94, and paged them five times a day for a
week, asking them to fill out an emotions questionnaire each time. Old people
reported positive emotions just as often as young people, but they reported
negative emotions much less frequently (Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, vol 79, p 644).
In a larger study using survey data
from 2727 people aged between 25 and 74, Daniel Mroczek and Christian Kolarz
of Fordham University in New York City got similar results. But they also
found that other things such as gender, personality type and social factors
affect how you will feel as you get older. For instance, both men and women
tended to experience more positive emotions as they aged, but only married men
experienced fewer negative ones (Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, vol 75, p 1333).
Why are old people so happy? Some
researchers suggest they may expect life to be harder and learn to live with
it, or they're more realistic about their goals, only setting ones that they
know they can achieve. But Carstensen thinks that with time running out, older
people have learned to regulate their own emotions, focusing on things that
make them happy and letting go of those that don't.
"People realise not
only what they have, but also that what they have cannot last forever," he
says. "A goodbye kiss to a spouse at the age of 85, for example, may elicit
far more differentiated and complex emotional responses than a similar kiss to
a spouse at the age of 20."
10. DON'T WORRY IF YOU AREN'T A
GENIUS
Weighting
Though few surveys have examined whether smart
people are happier, they have usually found that intelligence has no effect.
At first glance that seems surprising, since brighter people tend to earn more
money and richer people tend to be happier. "I think if you were entering the
world today with a choice between being born smart and not smart, it wouldn't
be a hard choice," says Frank.
Some researchers think there must be
some other, unmeasured factor messing up the lives of smarter people, but so
far they have only been able to speculate about what it is. Brighter people
could have higher expectations and thus be dissatisfied with anything less
than the highest achievements.
Or, perhaps it is simply that
psychologists have been measuring the wrong kind of intelligence. "Maybe
scoring high on an IQ test -- which means you know a lot of vocabulary and can
rotate things in your mind -- doesn't have a lot to do with your ability to
get along well with people," says Ed Diener, a psychologist at the University
of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He speculates that "social intelligence"
could be the real key to happiness.
>>>>
New
Scientist -- 4 October 2003
Keith Hudson, Bath,
England, <www.evolutionary-economics.org>, <www.handlo.com>, <www.property-portraits.co.uk>
|
