CONDITIONS OF HAPPINESS

CONDITIONS OF HAPPINESS

CONDITIONS OF HAPPINESS RUUT VEENHOVEN Erasmus University Rotterdam, Department of Sociology D. REIDEL PUBLISHING COMPANY A MEMBER OF THE KLUWER ACADEMIC PUBUSHERS GROUP DORDRECHT I BOSTON I LANCASTER

library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Veenhoven, R. Conditions of Happiness. Bibliography: p. Includes indexes. 1. Happiness. 1. Title. BJ1481.v44 1984 152.4 84-8300 ISBN-l3: 978-94-009-6434-1 e-isbn-13: 978-94-009-6432-7 DOl: 10.1007/978-94-009-6432-7 Published by D. Reidel Publishing Company, P.O. Box 17, 3300 AA Dordrecht, Holland Sold and distributed in the U.S.A. and Canada by Kluwer Boston Academic Publishers, 190 Old Derby Street, Hingham, MA 02043, U.S.A. In all other countries, sold and distributed by Kluwer Academic Publishers Group, P.O. Box 322, 3300 AH Dordrecht, Holland 2-1189-100 ts First published 1984 Reprinted 1989 All Rights Reserved 1984 by D. Reidel Publishing Company Solkover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1984 No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner

TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION iv 1 Chapter 2 THE CONCEPT OF HAPPINESS 2/1 The various meanings of the word happiness 2/2 Happiness defined 2/3 Components of happiness 2/4 Adjacent concepts 2/5 Synonyms of happiness 2/6 Summary 12 13 22 25 32 36 38 Chapter 3 CAN HAPPINESS BE MEASURED? 3/1 Validity problems 3/2 Reliability problems 3/3 Problems of comparison 3/4 Summary 39 40 55 58 62 Chapter 4 INDICATORS OF HAPPINESS 4/1 Indicators of overall happiness 4/1.1 Direct questions 4/1.2 Indirect questions 4/1.3 Ratings by others 4/2 fudicators of hedonic level of affect 64 65 65 77 83 84

vi 4/2.1 Direct questions 4/2.2 Indirect questions 4/2.3 Ratings by others 4/3 Indicators of contentment 4/4 Composites 4/5 Do the three kinds of indicators tap different phenomena? 4/6 Summary 85 91 95 97 101 106 113 Chapter 5 GATHERING THE AVAILABLE DATA 5/1 Searching empirical happiness studies S/2 The studies found S/3 Presenting the fmdings S/4 limitations of the data SIS Summary 115 11S 119 123 133 139 Chapter 6 HAPPINESS AND LIVING CONDmONS 6/1 Happiness and society 6/1.1 Economic conditions 6/1.2 Political conditions 6/1.3 Peace and war 6/1.4 Some regional differences in happiness 6/2 Happiness and one's place in society 6/2.1 Gender 6/2.2 Age-differences 6/2.3 Minority status 6/2.4 Income 6/2.5 Education 6/2.6 Occupational prestige 6/2.7 Global social rank 6/3 Happiness and work 6/3.1 Having ajob or not 6/3.2 Occupation 6/3.3 Voluntary work 141 142 147 159 170 172 177 177 182 187 192 198 205 208 21S 215 225 229

vii 6/4 Happiness and intimate ties 232 6/4.1 Marriage 233 6/4.2 Children 249 6/4.3 Friends and relatives 254 6/5 Summary 258 Chapter 7 HAPPINESS AND INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS 266 7/1 Happiness and personal resources 268 7/1.1 Physical health 268 7/1.2 General mental effectiveness 273 7/1.3 Specific abilities 279 7/1.4 Activity level 282 7/1.5 Richness of mental life 287 7/2 Happiness and some personality traits 291 7/2.1 Perceived fate control 291 7/2.2 Defensive strategies 294 7/2.3 Tendencies to like things 297 7/2.4 Time orientation 300 7/3 Happiness and lifestyle 304 7/4 Happiness and longings 309 7/5 Happiness and convictions 320 7/5.1 Happiness and ethical values 320 7/5.2 Religion 324 7/5.3 (Un).conventionality of outlook 328 7/5.4 Views on happiness 330 7/6 Happiness and appreciations 334 7/6.1 Appreciation of oneself 335 7/6.2 Appreciation of other people 337 7/6.3 Appreciation of society 340 7/6.4 Appreciation of one's social position 342 7/6.5 Appreciation of one's work 344 7/6.6 Appreciation 9fleisure 345 7/6.7 Appreciation of one's living environment 346 7/6.8 Appreciation of one's health 347 7/6.9 Which globallife.aspect.satisfactions are most closely related to happiness? 348

viii 7/7 Summary 352 Chapter 8 ANTECEDENTS OF HAPPINESS 359 8/1 Happiness and earlier living conditions 359 8/1.1 Conditions in youth 360 8/1.2 Earlier conditions in adulthood 366 8/2 Happiness and earlier personal characteristics 369 8/3 Summary 372 Chapter 9 CONCLUSIONS 374 9/1 Conditions of happiness 375 9/1.1 Which correlates represent causes? 375 9/1.2 Variations in correlations 383 9/1.3 The correlates in context 385 9/1.4 Some lines for further research 392 9/2 Myths about happiness 395 9/2.1 The myth that modern western society is a sink of unhappiness 395 9/2.2 Myths about things that make for happiness in western societies 397 9/2.3 The myth that living conditions do not matter 399 9/2.4 The myth that happiness is not a significant matter 401 Appendix 405 References 412 Author index 429 Subject ind.ex 434

ix PREFACE This book is about the degree to which people take pleasure in life: in short 'happiness'. It tries to identify conditions that favor a positive appreciation of life. Thus it hopes to shed more light on a longstanding and intriguing question and, possibly, to guide attempts to improve the human lot. During the preceding decades a growing number of investigations have dealt with this issue. As a result there is now a sizable body of data. Yet it is quite difficult to make sense of it. There is a muddle of theories, concepts and indicators, and many of the findings seem to be contradictory. This book attempts to bring some order into the field. The study draws on an inventory of empirical investigations which involved valid indicators of happiness; 245 studies are involved, which together yield some 4000 observations: for the main part correlational ones. These results are presented in full detail in the simultaneously published 'Databook of Happiness' (Veenhoven 1984). The present volume distils conclusions from that wealth of data. It tries to assess the reality value of the findings and the degree to which correlations reflect the conditions of happiness rather than the consequences of it. It then attempts to place the scattered findings in context. As such, this work is not a typical study of literature on happiness. It does not review all concepts, theories and observations ever associated with the term. In fact, it covers only a part of that field (life satisfaction) and aims at laying a solid basis of facts rather than at the demonstration of some theory. The book is primarily written for a scholarly audience: in particular for social scientists in the field of 'quality of life'. Considerable parts of it aim also at social scientists in other fields: especially the sections covering the consequences which 'social inequality', 'work', 'intimate networks' have on the appreciation of life and the chapters that deal with effects of 'early' experience', 'personality differences' and 'value priorities'. Philosophers may take an interest in the work insofar as it allows a look at the reality value of antique theories of happiness. I also hope that some of the conclusions will reach polidy makers in one way or another: not least the conclusion that socioeconomical issues are no longer the most relevant to happiness in contemporary western society. This book is one of the products of a broader research program on happiness at the Erasmus University of Rotterdam. Funds were provided by the Department of Sociology of the University, while the Du tch Ministry of Social Affairs allotted assistance. The project was supervised by prof. dr.

x R. Went holt. Though rather severe sometimes, his comments corrected my thinking on crucial points. Several people assisted in the gathering of the data. Ton Jonkers in particular did a great deal of that work. Technical advice was given by Liesbeth Nuyten and Jacques Tacq. The various drafts were typed by Jeanne Hidskes and for the major part by Elly Graven. Janet van der Does de Willebois looked over the English and Saskia Chin-Hon-Foei drew up the index. Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands. January, 1984 Ruut Veenhoven Preface to the second print This second print is identical to the first one. The accompanying sourcebook (Databook of Happiness: Veenhoven 1984) has almost sold out at this moment and will not be reprinted. The data collection is available in another way, however. It is now part of wider 'World Data of Happiness' kept at Erasmus University Rotterdam. For information please contact me at the address below. Rotterdam, September 1989 Ruut Veenhoven Address: Ruut Veenhoven Erasmus University Rotterdam, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands Telephone: (0)10-4081111.