What price happiness?

It's not as high as you think, scientists say

By Lisa Marshall, Special to the Rocky

Published January 12, 2009 at 6 p.m.

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Sept. 17: "Dow falls 449 points."

Sept. 29: "House rejects Wall Street bailout plan."

Dec. 11: "New jobless claims reach 26-year high."

According to the Gallup-Healthways Mood Measure, a daily poll tracking the happiness level of the nation's adults, the above headlines coincided with the most sour dispositions of 2008, with just 35 percent of Americans experiencing "a lot of happiness or enjoyment without a lot of stress or worry" on Dec. 11 - marking it the "unhappiest" day of 2008.

With more grim economic news in the forecast, one might assume that joy also will be hard to find in 2009.

But not so fast, say scientists in the burgeoning field of happiness research.

"In reality, research shows that money has a small and temporary effect on whether or not we will be happy," says James Fowler, an economic behaviorist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who has found that things like whom we associate with can have a far greater impact on our mental state than our pocketbook does.

"An extra $5,000 in annual income increases the likelihood that we will be happy by about 2 percent."

If we get a pay cut, "we may get a change in our material circumstances, but we tend to adapt to it," Fowler says. "It has an effect (on our happiness level), but it is smaller than people expect."

Fowler is among a growing number of researchers exploring not only what makes us happy but also what happiness brings us in terms of health and success.

Research shows that those with positive attitudes return to a resting heart rate more quickly after stress from exercise than those in a grumpy mood. Those with a hopeful attitude also tend to produce more infection fighters, called natural killer cells, and heal more quickly from injuries.

"Happy people on average live longer and, in most cases, have better health," says Ed Diener, Ph.D., a pioneer in the field of happiness research and co-author of the new book Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth (Blackwell, 2008).

For a sentinel 2003 study by Carnegie Mellon, researchers assessed 334 healthy volunteers to see whether they tended to be positive or negative, then exposed them to a common-cold virus and quarantined them.

Across the board, they found that those higher in positive emotions were less likely to get sick, and those who did experienced milder symptoms.

But how do you turn that frown upside down when your 401(k) lost half its value?

For starters, be around happy people. The analysis of 4,739 people over 20 years found that if a friend who lives nearby becomes happy, it boosts your chance of happiness by 25 percent; if your spouse has a good day, it boosts your chance of a good mood 16 percent.

Researcher Robert Biswas-Diener, co-author (with his father) of the book Happiness and program director with the Center for Applied Positive Psychology in England, has traveled the world, from the slums of Calcutta to the African bush, to glean what drives happiness.

One common trait among those above average on happiness scales: the ability to feel joy in one area of life even when another area is painful.

"One of the most instructive groups is the slum dwellers of Calcutta," he says. "They live in deplorable conditions, they have serious health problems, but when you go to them and say, 'How happy are you?' They say, 'There are some things we are extremely satisfied with and some things we hate.' "

Herein lies the root of happiness in dire economic situations, he adds. Sure, have a good cry about your shriveling bank account. But then spend some time with those great kids, take a hike or go see a show.

"Don't allow your attention to be sucked into the economy every single morning," says Biswas-Diener. "It will seem like an enormous part of your life even though it is just one element."

How to get happy on a budget:

* Spend your discretionary income (even if that's the $10 you spend on Starbucks every week) on experiential purchases. Studies show that experiences, such as a $100 sky-diving trip, reap more happiness than things, such as that new pair of $100 leather boots.

* Do something new: Studies show that novel experiences (a new hiking trail, a different route to work) boost happiness scores.

* Spend time with people: Research shows that even self- described introverts boost their happiness levels when around other people.

* Surround yourself with happy people: Research shows that happiness is contagious.

* Lighten up your attention, interpretation and memory: Try to home your attention on positive things in your life, not just negative. If a situation or a comment is neutral or ambiguous, give yourself a break and choose to interpret it as positive. Get out the photo albums and take time to reflect on happy times.

* Even if you're already happy, challenge yourself: "Happiness is a process, not a destination," says happiness researcher Ed Diener. "It has to evolve with new goals, fresh projects and novel activities."

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