Happiness

About: Happiness is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 22093 publications have been published within this topic receiving 728411 citations. The topic is also known as: joy & happy.

Lay theories of happiness.

Abstract: Over 230 young people completed a battery of questionnaires measuring personality, self-esteem, and happiness as well as one developed specifically for this study on their “theories of the causes of happiness”. The 36 causes factored into six internally coherent and interpretable factors. Self-reported happiness, extraversion and sex were correlated with the lay theory factors. Four of the six factors were modestly (r < 0.20) correlated with the Oxford Happiness Inventory (OHI) scores. Path analysis, using the OHI as the dependent variable, showed self-esteem, extraversion and neuroticism direct predictors of happiness but that among the lay theories, only lay theories about optimism and contentment were direct predictors. Personality and demographic variables did predict the lay theories but the latter did not act as moderator or mediating factors between the former and happiness. The role and function of lay theories with respect to happiness are discussed.

Convergence of Character Strengths in American and Japanese Young Adults

Abstract: We investigated cultural influences on the distribution of character strengths, gender differences in character strengths, and the relationship of happiness to character strengths. Young adults from the United States (n=1099) and Japan (n=308) completed the English or Japanese versions of the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths. American and Japanese showed similar distributions of the 24 strengths measured: Higher strengths included love, humor and kindness, and lesser strengths included prudence, self-regulation, and modesty. Gender differences across cultures were also similar: Females were more likely than males to report strengths of love and kindness, whereas males were more likely to report bravery and creativity. In both samples, associations with happiness were found for zest, hope, curiosity and gratitude. The present study is a first step in an international study of character strengths, and we discuss the ubiquity and variation of character across culture.

The Quest for Conviction: Motivated Cognition in Romantic Relationships

Abstract: In this article I explore the motivated construalprocesses that allow individuals to dispel doubt and sustain conviction in the face of less-than-pegectpartners and relationships. The surface features of conviction are discussedfirst with a focus on the positive illusions that predict relationship well-being and stability. The structural underpinnings of conviction are then discussed with a focus on the cognitive mechanisms that contain the implications of negativity within positive relationship representations. I conclude by discussing possible self-evaluation motives that may interfere with intimates dispelling doubt andfinding the sense of conviction needed to sustain satisfying, stable romantic relationships. "Love is a gross exaggeration of the dtfference between oneperson and everybody else. " The idea that individuals in satisfying, trusting relationships idealize their romantic partners permeates lay conceptions of love, as Shaw's quip illustrates. Such references usually seem tongue in cheek as they typically warn individuals of the risks of putting imperfect partners on pedestals. In fact, many psychologists argue that relationship well-being and stability depend on individuals relinquishing such seemingly naive perceptions in favor of more accurate and realistic appraisals of their partners' true virtues and faults (e.g., S. S. Brehm, 1992; Brickman, 1987). Such admonitions, however, ignore a curious phenomenon that emerges as relationships develop. Declines in satisfaction consistently accompany individuals' keener insight into the negative aspects of their partners and relationships (Huston & Vangelisti, 1991). How then are individuals to resolve the tension between the practical necessity of insight and their hopes for happiness? Should they simply try to minimize the risk of disappointment by resigning themselves to their partners' weaknesses early on? Or does lasting happiness actually necessitate benevolent transformations of a partner's perceived virtues and faults? In this article I attempt to answer these questions and, in so doing, provide a prescription for the nature and structure of relationship representations that foster well-being and stability without sacrificing insight into a partner's more obvious flaws.

Happy People or Happy Places? A Multilevel Modeling Approach to the Analysis of Happiness and Well-Being

Abstract: This article aims to add a regional science perspective and a geographical dimension to our understanding of substantive questions regarding self-reported happiness and well-being through the speci...

Relative payoffs and happiness: an experimental study

Abstract: Some c urrent utility models presume that people a re c oncerned with their r elative standing in a reference group. If this is true, do certain types care more about this than others? Using simple binary decisions and self-reported h appiness, we investigate both the prevalence of “difference aversion” and whether happiness levels influence the taste for social comparisons. Our decision tasks distinguish b etween a person’s desire to achieving the social optimum, equality or advantageous relative standing. Most people appear to disregard relative payoffs, instead typically making choices resulting in higher social payoffs. While we do not find a strong general correlation between happiness and concern for relative payoffs, we do observe that a willingness to lower another person’s payoff below one’s own (competitive preferences) seems correlated with unhappiness.