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effects of happines

effects of happines Levels of Happiness Between Gender and Race A fifth teen question questionnaire was handed out to shoppers in the Colonial Bel Air Mall, to measure the levels of happiness between gender and race. It was determined that there were no significant differences of happiness between the two. Although women happiness ratings were slightly higher than men and blacks were higher than whites it was not significant enough to make a difference. Books, books, and more books have analyzed human misery. During its first century, psychology focused far more on negative emotions, such as depression and anxiety, than positive emotions, such as happiness and satisfaction. Even today, our texts say more about suffering than about joy. That is now changing. During the 1980sm the number of Psychological Abstract citations of “well-being,” “happiness,” and “life satisfaction” quintupled, to 780 articles annually. Social scientists, policy makers and laypeople express increasing interest in the conditions, traits, and attitudes that define quality of life. Studies (see Diener& Diener, 1994) reveal that happiness is more abundant than believed by writers from Samuel Johnson (“That man is never happy for the present is so true”; Boswell, 1776/1973, Vol. 2, p. 37) to John Powell(“Professionals estimate that only 10 to 15 percent of Americans think of themselves as truly happy”, Powell,1989 p. 4). Recognizing that most people are reasonably happy, but that some people are happier than others, researchers are offering a fresh perspective on an old puzzle: Who are the happy people? Does happiness favor those of a particular age, sex, or race? Does wealth enhance well-being? Does happiness come with having certain traits? A particular job? Close friends? And active faith? Are those people who go to work in suits happier and more fulfilled than those who go in overalls? Do people higher on the socioeconomic ladder enjoy life more than those lower down? Can money buy happiness? As a consequence of racism and relative poverty, are black Americans less contented on average than white Americans? Because men still hold the reins of power, are men happier than women? Myers and Diener 1995, indicated that the answers to these questions is surprisingly no. These authors pointed out that people have remarkable ability to adapt, both to bad fortune and to good, so that one’s life circumstances, unless they are very bad indeed, do not seem to have lasting effects on one’s mood. Yet some people do seem to be happier on average than other people are. Although people adapt surprisingly quickly to both good news and bad, the set point around which happiness varies from time to time apparently differs from one person to another. Thirty five adults participated in this study to determine whether the levels of happiness of women is higher than men and whether race plays a role in the degree of happiness. The subjects were selected by choice of the experimenter in the Colonial Bel Air Mall. A questionnaire was used to collect data on the levels of happiness. Each subject answer question about how happy they were. Some questions were worded in a positive way toward happiness and others were worded negatively. The questionnaire consisted of fifth teen question which were measured on a five point scale, disagree, slightly disagree, neutral, slightly agree, agree. Positive worded question were given maximum points if answered positive 5 (agree) and minimum points were given if the question was answered negatively 1 (disagree). Positive worded question emphases on the subjects outlook on life, is the subject happy with their career choice, do the subject feel healthy and do the subject engages in fun activities. They also focus on do the subject have a happy past or do the subject love him/herself. The negative worded question asked do the subject enjoy life, do they suffer from any type of health problems, their income status, whether or not they suffer from low self esteem or depression. Subjects were asked to answer fifth teen questions to determine their level of happiness. After they finish a code was placed on the questionnaire on their sex and race for further data review. The questionnaire was not allowed to be taken home it was to be answered on the spot to obtain a more accurate answer. It was suspected that men had a higher happiness level than women but no significant difference was detected. It also was suspected white Americans would have higher happiness levels than black Americans but again there was no significant difference to support that finding. An Independent T test was used in this experiment. The main effect of Gender F*1; Race F(1,25) = 1.17 not significant. The Interaction F(1,25) = 2.61 not significant. The means for Gender Male 56.9, Female 59.6, the means for Males black 62.8 white 51. The means for Female black 58.5 white 60.83 , means for Race black 60.65 white 55.92. Although some averages are higher than other ones there was no significant differences between these grouping variables to make a connection. This data omits to Asian participants due to the lack of male Asian subjects. There was no interaction between gender and race while determine the levels of happiness. By knowing a person’s sex, race and income (assuming the person has enough to afford life’s necessities) hardly gives a clue. Better clues may come from knowing a person’s traits, whether the person enjoys a supportive network of close relationships, whether the person’s culture offers positive interpretations for most daily events, whether the person is engaged by work and leisure, and whether the person has a faith that entails social support, purpose, and hope. Happiness can only be determine by the person ability to adapt to any of life obstacles. Diener, E., & Diener, C. (1996). Most People Are Happy. Developmental Psychology, Diener, E. & Sandvik, E., & Larsen , R.J., (1985). Age and sex effects for emotional Intensity. Developmental Psychology, 21, 542-548. Lykken, D.T., Bouchard, T.J., McGue, M.T., (1992).Emergenesis: Genetic traits that may -not run in families. American Psychologist, 7, 186-189. Lykken, D.T., & Tellegen, A., (1996). Happiness Is A Stochastic Phenomenon. Psychological Science, 47, 1565-1577. Myers, D.G. & Diener, E. (1995). Who Is Happy? Psychological Science, 6, 10-17 Schkade, D.A., & Kahneman, D. (1998) Does Living In California Make People Happy? Waston, D., & Tellegen, A. (1985). Toward a consensual structure of mood. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 219-235. Bibliography:

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