Lecture 5: Happy people, stability and change

Question 1

What are the basic components of SWB?

Answer 1

Substantial heritability - 40-50%

• many individual genes influence (poorly understood tho)
• only applied to groups (not individuals), think utopian studies
• estimates vary
• plenty of room for change despite genes

Relatively stable over time - people remain at a certain level of happiness

Moderate associations with personality
- broader aspects of well-being (authenticity, meaning, self acceptance etc.)

Question 2

What are the big 5 personality factors?

Hint: CANOE or OCEAN

Answer 2

Conscientiousness 
Agreeableness 
Neuroticism 
Openness 
Extraversion

Question 3

What are the demographics impacting SWB? how strong are these correlations?

Answer 3

Gender - weak
Age - mid-life dip, older people (barring for health issues) are generally happier, stil weak
Intelligence & education - small positive correlation but inconsistent, weak
Physical health - little bit of a positive link, stronger if asked about subjective health but weaker w actual health, exception in severe illnesses
Marriage & parenting - weak
Religion & money - for people for whom these factors are really important there seems to be a positive correlation

Overarching msg - factors not as important as personal development

Question 4

What matters, beyond dispositions, to SWB?

Answer 4

life events

goals and efforts - well-doing vs. well-being, working on intrinsically valued projects

Question 5

Is it good to be happy? (effects of high SWB)

Answer 5

Consider (some) demographics and causal direction - positive emotions may be the factor that facilitates these outcomes (ex: marriage, health, income)

Other correlates/impacts of positive emotions
- productivity, pro-social behaviors, creativity, delay of gratification

Question 6

What is the very happy people (VHP) study? describe goal, methods and results

Answer 6

Goal - describe VHPs, necessary or sufficient factors for being VHP?

Methods - extensive SWB measurement to find top 10% (including ESM for daily emotions, compare VHP to others with

• personality measures
• social life measures
• Other lifestyle measures and activities

Results
Personality - big 5 had large impact, especially E N A, MMPI pathology revealed VHP bordered on some mania
No major effects of circumstances/activities (exercise, looks, etc)
Social relationships seem necessary (but not sufficient) to VHP - friends, family, romantic, peer rating, time use, the quality is important

Question 7

What broad personality traits (big 5) are the best predictors of SWB?

Answer 7

Low neuroticism - not feeling many negative emotions
High extraversion (especially in North America)
High agreeableness and conscientiousness - good predictors but moderately correlated
Openness to experience - less of a link but meta-analysis do show that it is somewhat of a predictor

Question 8

Explain in depth the relationship between marriage and SWB?

Answer 8

Married people = somewhat happier

• could b due to happier people being more likely to get married
• over time, is associated with a modest increase in happiness (only seems to last a couple of years)
• others experience immediate decrease in happiness

Question 9

What is the “hedonic treadmill”?

Answer 9

Adaptation to positive stimulus to the extent which we no longer respond to the stimulus in the way we did at first
Idea that happiness has a baseline to which we always return

Question 10

What does the Brickman, Coates & Janoff-Bulman study (1978) tell us about adaptation?

Answer 10

Studies lotta winners, controls and accident victims
- small samples, huge impact
- rated past, present and future happiness
- rated pleasure from everyday activities
People seem to adapt to even major life events

Limitations

• Study might contradict intuitions - yet results often overstated (spinal chord injury not easy, these events are still difficult)
• Issues around remembered and predicted happiness
• People seem to adapt to even major life events

Question 11

What is the modern view of adaptation? What are some additional considerations?

Hint: 5

Answer 11

1. Set points/happiness spot are not neutral (even under poor circumstances
2. substantial individual difference in set points (recall strong personality & SWB links)
3. probably multiple set points (pa, na, SWLS, stability & trajectory differences)
4. Happiness can change (major events)
5. individual differences in adaptation (ex: trajectories after marriage)

AC
Cross-cultural happiness differences (ex: new data on immigration)
Intentional change - happiness exercises, therapy