Professional Documents
Culture Documents
David G. Myers
Hope College
New studies are revealing predictors of subjective well- unhappy. Recent warm-hearted books for the would-be
being, often assessed as self-reported happiness and life happy (often written by people who generalize from their
satisfaction. Worldwide, most people report being at least counseling of the unhappy) concur. In Are You Happy?
moderately happy, regardless of age and gender. As part of Dennis Wholey (1986) reported that experts he interviewed
their scientific pursuit of happiness, researchers have ex- believed perhaps 20% of Americans are happy. 'Tin sur-
amined possible associations between happiness and (a) prised!" responded psychologist Archibald Hart (1988) in
economic growth and personal income, (b) close relation- his 15 Principles for Achieving Happiness. "I would have
ships, and (c) religious faith. thought the proportion was much lower!" In Happiness is
an Inside Job, Father John Powell (1989) agreed: "One-
third of all Americans wake up depressed every day. Pro-
fessionals estimate that only 10 to 15 percent of Americans
W
ho is happy? Is happiness showered on those
of a particular age, gender, or income level'? think of themselves as truly happy." Thomas Szasz (quoted
Does it come with certain genetically predis- in Winokur, 1987) spoke for many in surmising, "Happi-
posed traits? With supportive close relationships? With a ness is an imaginary condition, formerly attributed by the
spiritual perspective? living to the dead, now usually attributed by adults to
Such questions not only went unanswered during most children, and by children to adults."
of psychology's first century, they went largely unasked as However, when asked about their happiness, people
psychologists focused on illness more than health, on fear across the world paint a much rosier picture. For example,
more than courage, on aggression more than love. An in periodic National Opinion Research Center surveys 3 in
electronic search of Psychological Abstracts since 1887 10 Americans say they are "very happy." Only 1 in 10 say
turned up 8,072 articles on anger, 57,800 on anxiety, and they are "not too happy." The remaining 6 in 10 describe
70,856 on depression, while only 851 abstracts mentioned themselves as "pretty happy." Yet, the idea that others are
joy, 2,958 happiness, and 5,701 life satisfaction. In this not so happy persists: More than two thirds of a represen-
sampling, negative emotions trounced positive emotions by tative sample of Minnesotans rate their "capacity for hap-
a 14-to-1 ratio (even greater than the 7-to-1 margin by piness" in the upper 35% "of other people of your age and
which treatment exceeded prevention). sex" (Lykken, 1999).
Although human suffering understandably focuses Most people are similarly upbeat about their satisfac-
much of our attention on the understanding and alleviation tion with life (inglehart, 1990; Myers, 1993). In western
of misery, one sees harbingers of a more positive dimen- Europe and North America, 8 in 10 rate themselves as more
sion to psychology. For example, a new scientific pursuit of satisfied than dissatisfied. Fewer than 1 in 10 rate them-
happiness and life satisfaction (together called subjective selves as more dissatisfied than satisfied. Likewise, some
well-being) has begun with two simple questions: (a) How three fourths of people say yes, they have felt excited,
happy are people? and (b) who are the happy people--what proud, or pleased at some point during the past few weeks;
characteristics, traits, and circumstances mark happy lives? no more than a third say they have felt lonely, bored, or
depressed. Across languages, these self-reports seem to
How Happy Are People? retain the same meaning. Whether they are German-,
A long tradition views life as tragedy, extending from French-, or Italian-speaking, the Swiss report high levels of
Sophocles' observing (in Oedipus at Colonus) that "Not to life satisfaction--higher than the levels of their German,
be born is, past all prizing, best" to Woody Allen's dis- French, and Italian neighbors (Inglehart, 1990).
ceming (in Annie Hall) of two kinds of lives: the horrible Ed Diener (Myers & Diener, 1996) has aggregated
and the merely miserable. Albert Camus, Allen Drury, data from 916 surveys of 1.1 million people in 45 nations
Tennessee Williams, and other novelists and playwrights representing most of humanity. He recalibrated subjective
similarly give us images of unhappy people. well-being onto a 0-to-10 scale (where 0 is the low ex-
Many social observers concur. "Our pains greatly
exceed our pleasures," it seemed to Rousseau, "so that, all
My thanks go to Charlotte vanOyenWitvliet for her helpful commentson
things considered, human life is not at all a valuable gift." an earlier version of this article.
"We are not born for happiness," agreed Samuel Johnson. Correspondenceconcerningthis article shouldbe addressed to David
In his book The Conquest of Happiness, philosopher Ber- G. Myers, Hope College, P.O. Box 9000, Holland, MI 49422-9000.
trand Russell (1930/1985) echoed that most people are Electronic mail may be sent to myers@hope.edu.
140
120
100
80
©
60
40
Z
20
0
1.50 2.50 3.50 4.50 5.50 6,50 7.50 8.50
2.00 3.00 4.00 5.00 6,00 7.00 8.00
David G.
Myers Subjective Well-Being
Note. As self-reported in 916 surveys of 1.1 million people in 45 nations (with
answers calibrated on a 0 to 10 scale, with 5 being neutral and 10 being the
high extreme). Figure by Ed Diener, from data collated by Ruut Veenhoven and
treme, such as ve©, unhappy or completely dissatisfied with reported in Myers & Diener, 1996 (i.e., from "The Pursuit of Happiness," by
life, 5 is neutral, and 10 is the high extreme). As shown in D. G. Myers & E. Diener, 1996, Scientific American, pp. 54-56. Copyright
1996 by E. Diener. Adapted with permission). Average subjective well-being
Figure 1, the average response is 6.75. was 6.75.
These bullish self-reports were vividly illustrated in a
survey of Detroit area residents. Asked which of the faces
in Figure 2 "comes closest to expressing how you feel
about your life as a whole," more than 9 in 10 people
picked one of the happy faces. A 1998 survey of 1,003 deeper and more lasting than a momentary good mood, our
American adults by Opinion Research Corporation painted working definition is simply whatever people mean when
a similarly upbeat picture (Black & McCafferty, 1998). describing their lives as happy.
Asked "Who of the following people do you think is the Self-reports of happiness are, in fact, reasonably reli-
happiest?" people responded "Oprah Winfrey" (23%), able over time, despite changing life circumstances (Die-
"Bill Gates" (7%), "the Pope" (12%), "Chelsea Clinton" net, 1994). Moreover, there is convergent validation for
(3%), and "yourselF' (49%), with the remaining 6% an- self-reported happiness. Those who report they are happy
swering "don't know." also seem so to their family members and close friends
These positive reports characterize all ages, both (Pavot, Diener, Colvin, & Sandvik, 1991; Sandvik, Diener,
sexes, all races studied, and all strategies for assessing & Seidlitz. 1993). Their daily mood ratings reveal mostly
subjective well-being, including those that sample people's positive emotions. Further, their self-reported happiness
experiences by paging people to report their moods. (The predicts other indicators of well-being. Compared with
few exceptions to these happiness statistics, noted Diener those who are depressed, happy people are less self-fo-
& Diener, 1996, include hospitalized alcoholics, newly
incarcerated inmates, new therapy clients, South African
blacks under apartheid, and students living under condi- I
80%
"- 70%
~ 60%
~ 50%
~ e
~ ~, 40%
Develop a meaningful philosophy of life
~ ~ 30%
e 20%
e~
10%
0"/.
1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000
Year
Note. From annual surveys of more than 200,000 U.S. students entering college (total sample approximately 6.5 million students), Data from Dey, Astin, and Kern,
1991, and subsequent annual reports, including Sax et al., 1998.
The Swiss and Scandinavians, for instance, are generally does predict greater well-being (Argyle, 1999). Psycholog-
prosperous and satisfied. When people in poorer nations ically as well as materially, it is better to be high caste than
compare their lifestyles with the abundance of those in rich low. However, in affluent countries, where most can afford
nations, they may become more aware of their relative life's necessities, affluence matters surprisingly little. In the
poverty. However, among nations with a gross national United States, Canada, and Europe, the correlation between
product of more than $8,000 per person, the correlation income and personal happiness, noted Ronald Inglehart
between national wealth and well-being evaporates (Figure (1990), "is surprisingly weak (indeed, virtually negligible)"
4). Better (so far as happiness and life satisfaction go) to be (p. 242). Happiness tends to be lower among the very poor.
Irish than Bulgarian. But whether one is Irish, Belgian, Once comfortable, however, more money provides dimin-
Norwegian, or American hardly matters. Indeed, the Irish ishing returns on happiness. Summarizing his own studies
during the 1980s reported consistently greater life satisfac- of happiness, David Lykken (1999) observed that "People
tion than did the doubly wealthy but less satisfied West
who go to work in their overalls and on the bus are just as
Germans (Inglehart, 1990). Moreover, noted Diener, Die-
happy, on the average, as those in suits who drive to work
ner, and Diener (1995), national wealth is entangled with
in their own Mercedes" (p. 17).
civil rights, literacy, and the number of continuous years of
Even very rich people--the Forbes 100 wealthiest
democracy. For a clearer look at money and happiness,
researchers have therefore asked whether, across individu- Americans surveyed by Diener, Horwitz, and Emmons
als and over time, people's well-being rises with their (1985)--are only slightly happier than the average Amer-
wealth. ican. Although they have more than enough money to buy
many things they don't need and hardly care about, 4 in 5
Are Rich People Happier? of the 49 super-rich people responding to the survey agreed
In poor countries such as India, where low income threat- that "Money can increase OR decrease happiness, depend-
ens basic human needs more often, being relatively well off ing on how it is used." Some were indeed unhappy. One
70 Canada W. Germany
• •
• France
• Spain • Italy
63
• Austria
X • Poland • E. Germany
O 56 - - Argentina Japan
"10
f- Chile • ~BBrazil S. Korea
•Mexico N
03
¢.. 49 Portugal
• Turkey
J~ 42 - - • China
i
O
35 - - • Nigeria
;= • Czechoslovakia
°m
¢J • S. A f r i c a
28 --•India • Hungary
..Q • Estonia
(/) 21 --
14-- OLithuania
• Latvia
7--
•Moscow
Belarus
O "-'] Bulgaria • • R u s s i a
le I I I I I I I 1 1 I I I I I I I I
GNP/Capita in 1991
Note. From World Bank data and the 1990-1991 World Values Survey. The subjective well-being index combines happiness and life satisfaction (average of
percentage describing themselves as [a] "very happy" or "happy" minus percentage "not very happy" or "unhappy," and as [b] 7 or above minus 4 or below on
Q l O-point life satisfaction scale). Figure from Culture Shift in Advanced Industrial Society (p. 62), by R. Inglehart, 1997, Princeton, NJ, Princeton Universily Press.
Copyright 1997 by R. Inglehart. Reprinted with permission.
fabulously wealthy man could never remember being influence our moods, and people will often seize on such
happy. One woman reported that money could not undo short-run influences to explain their happiness. Yet, in less
misery caused by her children's problems. When sailing on time than most people suppose, the emotional impact of
the Titanic, even first class cannot get you where you want significant events and circumstances dissipates (Gilbert,
to go. Pinel, Wilson, Blumberg, & Wheatley, 1998). In a society
Our human capacity for adaptation (Diener, 2000, this where everyone lived in 4,000-square-foot houses, people
issue) helps explain a major conclusion of subjective well- would likely be no happier than in a society in which
being research, as expressed by the late Richard Kammann everyone lived in 2,000-square-foot houses. Thanks to our
(1983): "Objective life circumstances have a negligible role capacity to adapt to ever greater fame and fortune, yester-
to play in a theory of happiness." Good and bad events day's luxuries can soon become today's necessities and
(e.g., a pay hike, being rejected for tenure) do temporarily tomorrow's relics.
If enduring personal happiness generally does not rise declined slightly between 1957 and 1998, from 35% to
with personal affluence, does collective happiness float 33%: We are twice as rich and no happier. Meanwhile, the
upward with a rising economic tide? Are Americans hap- divorce rate doubled. Teen suicide tripled. Reported violent
pier today than in 1940, when two out of five homes lacked crime nearly quadrupled. Depression rates have soared,
a shower or bathtub, heat often meant feeding a furnace especially among teens and young adults (Seligman, 1989;
wood or coal, and 35% of homes had no toilet ("Tracking Klerman & Weissman, 1989; Cross-National Collaborative
the American Dream," 1994)? Consider 1957, when econ- Group, 1992). Compared with their grandparents, today's
omist John Galbraith was about to describe the United young .adults have grown up with much more affluence,
States as The Affluent Socie~. Americans' per person in- slightly less happiness, and much greater risk of depression
come, expressed in today's dollars, was about $9,000. and assorted social pathologies. I call this conjunction of
Today, it is $20,000, thanks to increased real wages into the material prosperity and social recession the American par-
1970s, increased nonwage income, and the doubling of adox (Myers, in press). The more people strive for extrinsic
married women's employment. Compared with 1957, to- goals such as money, the more numerous their problems
day's Americans are therefore part of "the doubly affluent and the less robust their well-being (Kasser & Ryan, 1996).
society," with double what money buys. Although income It is hard to avoid a startling conclusion: Our becom-
disparity has increased between rich and poor, the rising ing much better off over the last four decades has not been
tide has lifted most boats. Americans today own twice as accompanied by one iota of increased subjective well-
many cars per person, eat out more than twice as often, and being. The same is true of European countries and Japan,
often enjoy microwave ovens, big-screen color TVs, and according to Richard Easterlin (1995). In Britain, for ex-
home computers. From 1960 to 1997, the percentage of ample, sharp increases in the percentages of households
homes with dishwashers increased from 7% to 50%, with cars, central heating, and telephones have not been
clothes dryers increased from 20% to 71%, and air condi- accompanied by increased happiness. The conclusion is
tioning increased from 15% to 73% (U.S. Commerce De- startling because it challenges modem materialism. So far
partment, Bureau of the Census, 1979, Table 1383; 1998, as happiness goes, it is not "the economy, stupid." Eco-
Table 1223). So, believing that it is "very important" to be nomic growth in affluent countries has provided no appar-
very well-off financially and having seen their affluence ent boost to human morale.
ratchet upward little by little over four decades, are Amer-
Close Relationships and Well-Being
icans now happier?
They are not. As Figure 5 indicates, the number of One can easily imagine why the stress of close relation-
people reporting themselves "very happy" has, if anything, ships might exacerbate illness and misery. "Hell is other
~a 3% 2.40%
2% 1.50%
,<
1%
0%
I
Divorced Cohabit Divorced Never Married
Twice Once Married
Note. Data from Robins and Regier, 1991, p. 72.
& Kuykendall, 1990). Among mothers of developmentally leading one of the first groups of Puritans to shore, de-
challenged children, those with a deep religious faith are clared, "We must delight in each other, make others' con-
less vulnerable to depression (Friedrich, Cohen, & Wil- ditions our own, rejoyce together, mourn together, labor
turner, 1988). People of faith also tend to retain or recover and suffer together, always having before our eyes our
greater happiness after suffering divorce, unemployment, community as members of the same body" (p. 92). Penn-
serious illness, or bereavement (Ellison, 1991; McIntosh, sylvania's old-order Amish, who are known for their agrar-
Silver, & Wortman, 1993). For people later in life, accord- ian, nonmaterialistic culture, their pacifism, and their self-
ing to one meta-analysis, the two best predictors of life sufficient communal life, suffer low rates of major depres-
satisfaction have been health and religiousness (Okun & sion (Egeland & Hostetter, 1983; Egeland, Hostetter, &
Stock, 1987). Eshleman, 1983).
In surveys taken in various nations, religiously active Another possible explanation for the faith-well-being
people also report somewhat higher levels of happiness correlation is the sense of meaning and purpose that many
(Inglehart, 1990). Consider a U.S. Gallup Organization people derive from their faith. Seligman (1988) has con-
(1984) survey. Those responding with highest scores on a tended that a loss of meaning feeds today's high depression
spiritual commitment scale (by agreeing, e.g., that "My rate, and that finding meaning requires
religious faith is the most important influence in my life")
an attachment to something larger than the lonely self. To the
were twice as likely as those lowest in spiritual commit-
extent that young people now find it hard to take seriously their
ment to declare themselves "very happy." National Opin- relationship with God, to care about their relationship with the
ion Research Center surveys reveal higher levels of "very country or to be part of a large and abiding family, they will find
happy" people among those who feel "extremely close to it very difficult to find meaning in life. To put it another way, the
God" (41%) rather than "somewhat close" (29%) or not sell" is a very. poor site tk~r finding meaning. (p. 55)
close or unbelieving (23%). Self-rated spirituality and hap-
piness may both be socially desirable responses, however. For Rabbi Harold Kushner (1987), religion satisfies "the
Would the happiness correlation extend to a behavioral most fundamental human need of all. That is the need to
measure of religiosity? As Figure 8 indicates, it does. know that somehow we matter, that our lives mean some-
Seeking to explain these associations between faith thing, count as something more than just a momentary blip
and well-being, researchers have considered several possi- in the universe."
bilities. A partial explanation seems to be that faith com- Many religious worldviews not only propose answers
munities provide social support (Ellison, Gay, & Glass, to some of life's deepest questions; they also encourage
1989). Religion is usually practiced communally, involving hope when confronting what Sheldon Solomon, Jeffery
"the fellowship of kindred spirits," "the bearing of one Greenberg, and Tom Pyszczynski (1991) call "the terror
another's burdens," "the ties of love that bind." This was resulting from our awareness of vulnerability and death."
the vision of John Winthrop (1630/1965), who, before Aware as we are of the great enemies, suffering and death,
39%
~, 40%
35%
~t
31%
3O% 28% .....
>.
: 20%
10%
0%
religion offers a hope that in the end, the very end, "all shall Argyle, M, (1999). Causes and correlates of happiness. In D. Kahneman,
be well, and all shall be well, all manner of things shall be E. Diener, & N. Schwartz (Eds.), Well-being: The .foundations oJ
hedonic psychology. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
well" (Julian of Norwich, 1373/1901). Astin, A. W_ Green, K. C., & Korn, W. S. (1987). The American
//eshman: Twenty year trends. Los Angeles: Higher Education Re-
Conclusion search Institute, Graduate School of Education, University of Califor-
The correlational evidence that marks this young enterprise nia, Los Angeles.
Bacon, F. (1625). Of friendship. Essays.
leaves many fields for future researchers to plow as they Batson, C. D., Schoenrade, P. A., & Ventis, W. L. (1993). Religion and
explore the roots and fruits of happiness. However, this the individual: A social psyehological perspective. New York: Oxford
much we now know: Age, gender, and income (assuming University Press.
people have enough to afford life's necessities) give little Baumeisl:er, R. F.. & Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for
clue to someone's happiness. William Cowper's 1782 interpersonal attachment as a fundamental human motivation. Psycho-
logical Bulletin, 117, 497-529.
hunch appears correct: "Happiness depends, as Nature Black, A. L., & McCafferty, D. (1998, July 3-5). The age of contentment.
shows, Less on exterior things than most suppose." Better USA Weekend, pp. 4 - 6 .
clues come from knowing people's traits and the quality of Brickman, P., Coates, D., & Janoff-Bulman, R. J. (1978). Lottery winners
their work and leisure experiences (Csikszentmihalyi, and accident victims: ls happiness relative? Journal of'Personality and
1999; Diener, 2000, this issue), knowing whether they Social Psychology, 36, 917-927.
Campbell, A. (1981). The sense of well-being in America. New York:
enjoy a supportive network of close relationships, and
McGraw-Hill.
knowing whether the person has a faith that encompasses Case, R. B., Moss, A. J., Case, N., McDermott, M., & Eberly, S. (1992).
social support, purpose, and hope. Research on subjective Living alone after myocardial infarction: Impact on prognosis. Journal
well-being complements society's emphases on physical of the American Medical Association, 267, 515-519.
and material well-being and psychology's historic preoc- Cohen, S. (1988). Psychosocial models of the role of social support in the
etiology of physical disease. Health Psychology, 7, 269-297.
cupation with negative emotions. By asking who is happy
Colasanto, D., & Shriver, J. (1989, May). Mirror of America: Middle-aged
and why, those engaged in the scientific pursuit of happi- face marital crisis. Gallup Report, No. 284, pp. 34-38.
ness can help our culture rethink its priorities and envision Colon, E. A., Callies, A. L., Popkin, M. K., & McGlave, P. B. (1991).
a world that enhances human well-being. Depressed mood and other variables related to bone marrow transplan-
tation survival in acute leukemia. Psychosomatics, 32, 420-425.
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