Outreach About Us


Scientific Studies Show Benefits of Happiness

  • Happiness brings large social rewards and interactions, superior work outcomes including higher income, more energy and activity, greater self-control and coping abilities, a bolstered immune system, and longevity.1

  • Happy people demonstrate a self-serving bias, believing they are healthier, able to get along better with others, are more fun, have good ideas, are more intelligent, and are more ethical than others.2

  • People who are positive about aging live 7.5 years longer than those with less positive perceptions. Interestingly, this benefit surpasses the results for smoking cessation, exercise, and obesity control.3

  • People with increased SWB (subjective well-being) demonstrate high personal confidence, self-esteem, personal mastery, and control.4

  • Happy people feel like they are in control and are empowered.5

  • Characteristics related to positive affect include confidence, optimism, self-efficacy, likability, prosocial behavior, activity, energy, physical well-being, flexibility, creativity, and the ability to cope with stress.6

  • People who experience positive emotions, namely joy and contentment, right after experiencing negative emotions recover faster cardiovascularly than ones who have no positive emotional experience.7 This suggests that positive emotions may fuel psychological resilience.

  • In a longitudinal study of older Mexican Americans, individuals with higher reported positive affect versus lower positive affect were half as likely to have become disabled or dead during a two-year follow-up.8

Notes

1 Lyubomirsky, Sonja, Sheldon, Kennon, and Schkade, David. (2005). Pursuing Happiness: The Architecture of Sustainable Change. Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 111-131.
2 Myers, David G. and Diener, Ed. (1995). Who Is Happy? Psychological Science, 6:1, 10-19.
3 Lyubomirsky, Sonja, King, Laura, and Diener, Ed. (2005). The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to Success? Psychological Bulletin, 131:6, 803-855.
4 Ibid.
5 Myers, David G. and Diener, Ed. (1995). Who Is Happy? Psychological Science, 6:1, 10-19.
6 Lyubomirsky, Sonja, King, Laura, and Diener, Ed. (2005). The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to Success? Psychological Bulletin, 131:6, 803-855.
7 Fredrickson, Barbara L. (2001). The Role of Positive Emotions in Positive Psychology. American Psychologist, 56:3, 218-226.
8 Ostir, G.V., Markides, K.S., Black, S.A., and Goodwin, J.S. (2000). Emotional well-being predicts subsequent functional independence and survival. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 48, 473-478.

Sandi Smith is COO of the American Happiness Association.

 

  Privacy  |  Legal  |  SiteMap  |  © 2010 American Happiness Association All Rights Reserved | Delivering the Science of Happiness, Resilience and Emotional Intelligence to Individuals and Organizations
VIP Login   |   Store   |   Contact Us

Happiness delivered every other Monday morning

Need a Happiness Boost - for free?

Get our highly acclaimed report, completely free: Top 10 Happiness Boosters

Enter your primary email below and you'll also be added to our newsletter list. What could be better than happiness delivered to your inbox?

Make the world
a happier place

Help AHA fund our programs. We are a 501(c)3 charity. Thank you for making a difference in world happiness and peace.