Happiness is a basic human emotion, but people often make assumptions about
happiness that empirical research does not support. For example, people often assume
that most people feel unhappy and dissatisfied with their lives, but research shows
this is not true. Most people describe themselves as fairly happy even if they are
in less than ideal circumstances. Surprisingly, researchers have not found a
consistent positive correlation between happiness and factors such as wealth, age,
intelligence, physical attractiveness, or parenthood—factors that many people
commonly associate with happiness.
Although circumstances do not reliably predict happiness, some circumstances
do correlate with increased happiness. These include having a good social network,
being married, having a satisfying job, and having strong religious convictions.
These circumstances, however, are only correlated with happiness. As explained on
page 10, correlation does not necessarily mean causation. Research also shows that
happiness tends to depend on people’s expectations of life and on how people compare
themselves to their peers.
