THE BENEFITS OF HAPPINESS

• Benefits to families, communities, and society at large

• More cooperation, pro-sociability, and charitableness

• Superior work outcomes

• Stronger immune system

• Longer life

• Larger social rewards  

• Better emotional health  

• More activity, energy, and flow

• Less symptoms of psychopathology

• Greater self-control and coping abilities

More likely to benefits their families, their  communities and society at large

        Lyubomirsky, S., King, L. A., & Diener, E. (2002). Is happiness a good thing? The benefits of long-term positive affect. Manuscript in preparation.  

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         More likely to be more cooperative, prosocial and charitable

       Cunningham, M. R., Shaffer, D. R., Barbee, A. P., Wolff, P. L., & Kelley, D. J. (1990). Separate processes in the relation of elation and depression to helping: Social versus personal concerns. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 26, 13-33.

        Isen, A. M. (1970). Success, failure, attention and reaction to others: The warm glow of success. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 15, 294-301.

       Kasser, T., & Ryan, R. M. (1996). Further examining the American dream: Differential correlates of intrinsic and extrinsic goals. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 280-287.

        Williams, S., & Shiaw, W. T. (1999). Mood and organizational citizenship behavior: The effects of positive affect on employee organizational citizenship behavior intentions. Journal of Psychology, 133, 656-668.

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    More likely to enjoy superior work outcomes

• Greater Creativity

• Increased Productivity

• Higher Quality of Work

• Higher Income

       Estrada, C., Isen, A. M., & Young, M. J. (1994). Positive affect influences creative problem solving and reported source of practice satisfaction in physicians. Motivation and Emotion, 18, 285-299.

       George, J. M. (1995). Leader positive mood and group performance: The case of customer service. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 25, 778-795.

        Staw, B. M., Sutton, R. I., & Pelled, L. H. (1995). Employee positive emotion and favorable outcomes at the workplace. Organization Science, 5, 51-71.

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 More likely to have a stronger immune system

 

Dillon, K. M., Minchoff, B., & Baker, K. H. (1985). Positive emotional states        and enhancement of the immune system. International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine, 15, 13-18.

        Stone, A. A., Neale, J. M., Cox, D. S., Napoli, A., Vadlimarsdottir, V., & Kennedy-Moore, E. (1994). Daily events are associated with a secretory immune response to an oral antigen in men. Health Psychology, 13, 440-446.  

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More likely to live longer

       Danner, D. D., Snowdon, D. A., & Friesen, W. V. (2001). Positive emotions in early life and longevity: Findings from the nun study. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80, 804-813.

       Maruta, T., Colligan, R. C., Malinchoc, M., & Offord, K. P. (2000). Optimists vs. pessimists: Survival rate among medical patients over a 30-year period. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 75, 140-143.

       Ostir, G. V., Markides, K. S., Black, S. A., & Goodwin, J. S. (2000). Emotional well-being predicts subsequent functional independence and survival. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 48, 473-478.

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More likely to enjoy larger social rewards

• More likely to marry

• Less likely to become divorced

• More likely to have more friends

• More likely to enjoy stronger social support

• More likely to enjoy richer social interactions   

       Berry, D. S., & Hansen, J. S. (1996). Positive affect, negative affect, and social interaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 71, 796-809.

       Harker , L., & Keltner, D. (2001). Expressions of positive emotions in women’s college yearbook pictures and their relationship to personality and life outcomes across adulthood. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80, 112-124.

       Marks, G. N., & Fleming, N. (1999). Influences and consequences of well-being among Australian young people: 1980-1995. Social Indicators Research, 46, 301-323.

       Okun, M. A., Stock, W. A., Haring, M. J., & Witter, R. A. (1984). The social activity/subjective well-being relation: A quantitative synthesis. Research on Aging, 6, 45-65.

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 More likely to be more emotionally healthy

     Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 542-575.

        Jahoda, M. (1958). Current concepts of positive mental health. New York: Bax

        Menninger, K. A. (1930). What is a healthy mind? In N. A. Crawford and K. A. Menninger (Eds.), The healthy-minded child. New York: Coward-McCann.

        Taylor, S. E., & Brown, J. D. (1988). Illusion and well-being: A social psychological perspective on mental health. Psychological Bulletin, 103, 193-210.  

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More likely to be more active, and have greater energy and flow

       Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Wong, M. M. (1991). The situational and personal correlates of happiness: A cross-national comparison. In F. Strack, M. Argyle, & N. Schwarz (Eds.), Subjective well-being: An interdisciplinary perspective (pp. 193-212). Elmsford, NY: Pergamon Press.

       Mishra, S. (1992). Leisure activities and life satisfaction in old age: A case study of retired government employees living in urban areas. Activities, Adaptation and Aging, 16, 7-26.

       Watson, D., Clark, L. A., McIntyre, C. W., & Hamaker, S. (1992). Affect, personality, and social activity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63, 1011-1025.

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Less likely to show symptoms of psychopathology

• Less Depression

• Less Suicide

• Less Paranoia

       Diener, E., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2002). Very happy people. Psychological Science, 13, 81-84.

        Koivumaa-Honkanen, H., Honkanen, R., Viinamaeki, H., Heikkilae, K., Kaprio, J., & Koskenvuo, M. (2001). Life satisfaction and suicide: A 20-year follow-up study. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158, 433-439.

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More likely to exhibit greater self-control and coping abilities

       Aspinwall, L. G. (1998). Rethinking the role of positive affect in self-regulation. Motivation and Emotion, 22, 1-32.

        Carver, C. S., Pozo, C., Harris, S. D., Noriega, V., Scheier, M., Robinson, D., Ketcham, A., Moffat Jr., A., & Clark, K. (1993). How coping mediates the effect of optimism on distress: A study of women with early stage breast cancer. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 375-390.

       Chen, C. C., David, A., Thompson, K., Smith, C., Lea, S., & Fahy, T. (1996). Coping strategies and psychiatric morbidity in women attending breast assessment clinics. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 40, 265-270.

        Fredrickson, B. L., & Joiner, T. (2002). Positive emotions trigger upward spirals toward emotional well-being. Psychological Science 13, 172-175.

        Keltner, D., & Bonanno, G. A. (1997). A study of laughter and dissociation: Distinct correlates of laughter and smiling during bereavement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73, 687-702.

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