There is no exact formula for happiness. If you came to this article looking for it, I’m sorry to disappoint you. However, even without the key to happiness Thus, science has studied which qualities are most common in people who consider themselves happy.
Contrary to what many people think, one of these qualities is not money, although we cannot deny that money helps us, for example, pay for private psychological therapy. It’s very close to being the key to happiness. The money also pays for bills, cars and mortgages. It doesn’t bring happiness, but it can be very useful for eliminate stress. And at the end of the day, our mental health is also a social issue. At this moment, money matters a lot. But leaving this aside, science has also used other qualities.
Many studies have been carried out in this regard, but above all Harvard University Adult Development Studystarted in 1938. This study was never completed. It’s still ongoing, which is why, almost 90 years later, it’s considered the longest-running happiness study in history. The key to happiness is not found in it, but there is a quality that is fundamental.
Steps in the Longest Research to Find the Key to Happiness
This research actually began as two different projects that were eventually combined. The first, carried out mainly by an anthropologist George Vaillantfocused on 269 menthey are all students at Harvard University. In the second case, however, observation was carried out. 456 men Boston’s central districts. The goal was to collect healthy men from different social classes who could be followed for most of their lives. But, of course, they forgot one small detail. A very common mistake at that time. These did not include women.
Currently, none of the participants who began the study are still alive, so years have passed since the start of the second generation of the study, which included children of the participants. And also daughters. Finally.
It is logical that the original investigators are also no longer alive. Therefore, the psychiatrist took the witness. Robert Waddingerwho recently wrote a book collecting much of the results. They include a lot of data that doesn’t tell us what the key to happiness is, but it does point to something very interesting.
Don’t forget to take care of your social relationships
Some of the participants in the original study went on to become famous people. This is, for example, the case with a journalist from Washington Post Ben Bradleyand the President of the United States John F. Kennedy. We don’t know if they were the key to happiness, but we know that they were very sociable people. According to the researchers involved in this project, if good social relationships are chosen, this appears to be the closest thing to the key to happiness. for decades.
In fact, other studies unrelated to this study point to the serious harms of loneliness. It has been observed that this may increase the risk of heart disease or stroke. It even seems that the mortality risk is comparable to the risk of smoking. 15 cigarettes a day.
Over nearly 90 years of research, these scientists have seen that people who consider themselves happier tend to be strong social connections. This doesn’t mean you need a lot of friends. A few are enough, as long as they are good. In short, quality is more important than quantity.
We may have money and success, but if there are no people around us who listen, support and accompany us, we will not be able to achieve the happiness we desire.
Yes, there are other factors, but none of them are the key to happiness.
The study concluded that there are other factors that help achieve happiness. These include practicing exercise, eating healthy and avoiding habits such as use of tobacco or alcohol. In this case, preference is given to physical health, which, logically, is also associated with happiness. But even this is not enough if we are alone. And be careful, this doesn’t mean we have to be in a marriage or relationship. Much less with someone we don’t like or who treats us badly. Relationships can be of many different types, and what matters is that they benefit us. Otherwise, we will be very far from the desired happiness.
Source: Hiper Textual
