Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search
 

Proserpina

(2,352 posts)
54. Americans over 30 are more miserable than they’ve ever been
Sun Dec 6, 2015, 11:13 AM
Dec 2015
gee, I wonder why

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/americans-over-30-are-more-miserable-than-theyve-ever-been-2015-11-09?siteid=YAHOOB


It all goes downhill after 30 — at least when it comes to happiness.

“Adults over 30 are less happy than their predecessors,” concludes a study published online Thursday in the journal Social Psychology and Personality Science, which examined happiness data from more than 50,000 adults, gleaned from the General Social Survey, carried out by NORC at the University of Chicago, a nonpartisan, independent research organization, which has collected information about American adults since 1972.

From 2010 to 2014, adults over 30 had an average happiness score of just 2.18, compared with 2.24 a decade ago. That’s significant considering happiness scores were measured on a tiny scale from just 1 to 3, with 1 being “not too happy” and 3 being “very happy.” (The data used five-year cohort periods so that single year fluctuations were smoothed out.)



What’s perhaps even more interesting is that, for the first time ever, adults ages 18 to 29 were happier than adults over 30. “The happiness advantage of mature adults over adolescents has dwindled,” write the authors of the study, entitled “More Happiness for Young People and Less for Mature Adults: Time Period Differences in Subjective Well-Being in the United States, 1972 - 2014.”

While the authors don’t know for sure why younger adults are happier than older ones for the first time in at least 40 years, they do have some theories. First, rising inequality may have more of an impact on the well-being of older adults than on younger ones, who are more apt to think they can overcome such things given that they have more time. And older adults may be more disappointed by the “increasingly unrealistic expectations for educational attainment, jobs, material goods and relationships,” the authors write, while younger adults still have hope for these things.

That said, there are plenty of studies that show we get happier as we get older (including a study published in 2011 in the journal Psychology and Aging, which revealed that “emotional experience improves with age”).



In general, women are slightly happier than men, the authors found — a finding that’s backed up by other research, including a worldwide survey by Gallup, which found that 40% of women were very happy, compared with only 34% of men. Researchers aren’t quite sure why this is, but the differences between the genders in terms of happiness tend to be fairly small.

lower expectations...we are grateful to be alive, and able to take care of basic needs
Madoff victims get holiday treat with $1.1 million checks Hotler Dec 2015 #1
More music......Some blues featuring Steve Earle Hotler Dec 2015 #2
Ask me what I am drinking. What are you drinking Hotler? Hotler Dec 2015 #3
Well, I first saw this post after some vodka... MattSh Dec 2015 #47
Good combination! hamerfan Dec 2015 #4
Demeter's status is sadly unchanged... MattSh Dec 2015 #6
or PPRd without being PPRd...check this out magical thyme Dec 2015 #13
I can't believe she got a time out for posting a legitimate article from a legitimate source. mother earth Dec 2015 #19
What? What? Someone clue me in? bread_and_roses Dec 2015 #43
Happened last weekend... MattSh Dec 2015 #45
Thanks, MattSh (n/t) bread_and_roses Dec 2015 #46
Here's a link to the Hall of Infamy post... MattSh Dec 2015 #48
"Combo ski trip/mass murder" Thats funny, cracks me up .... Hotler Dec 2015 #60
Shows you have a sense of the ridiculous Proserpina Dec 2015 #63
Great song, real heart breaker n/t Hotler Dec 2015 #15
Well... MattSh Dec 2015 #5
Unlike mainstream prognosticators, who seem to always find a silver lining. Or 100... MattSh Dec 2015 #7
As long as the printing presses keep going, hamerfan Dec 2015 #10
Yeah... but... MattSh Dec 2015 #12
A currency fails when the banks stop using it Proserpina Dec 2015 #32
What Forbes is predicting... MattSh Dec 2015 #8
Don't bet on it: These 2015 predictions were way off base Proserpina Dec 2015 #51
US economy recession odds '65 percent': Investor Proserpina Dec 2015 #52
Closing the 'Collapse Gap': the USSR was better prepared for collapse than the US MattSh Dec 2015 #9
A must read. I agree that when.... Hotler Dec 2015 #17
TY, hotler, for being another really good reason to love this group. :) mother earth Dec 2015 #25
I agree.. haikugal Dec 2015 #58
The Countries With The Highest Levels Of Poverty For Retirees [Infographic] - Forbes MattSh Dec 2015 #11
Musical Interlude - In the Year 2525 MattSh Dec 2015 #14
God, that's a depressing song Proserpina Dec 2015 #33
Here's why Wall Street is worried about 2016 Hotler Dec 2015 #16
Hotler! We need your quote! hamerfan Dec 2015 #18
This one? Hotler Dec 2015 #20
Bingo! hamerfan Dec 2015 #23
A quote I did not write. Posted just for fun. Hotler Dec 2015 #22
I have no hope. I see no future. Fuddnik Dec 2015 #24
Sometimes societies just go crazy. MattSh Dec 2015 #21
I gained a lot more respect for the Soviet Union when... MattSh Dec 2015 #26
Musical Interlude hamerfan Dec 2015 #27
Queen: "Is This the World We Created?" antigop Dec 2015 #28
That song makes me sad. The question it asks is valid today... Hotler Dec 2015 #61
"Is peace, love, kindness, understanding too much to ask for from a society." antigop Dec 2015 #62
Pot breathalyzer may be coming soon to police near you Hotler Dec 2015 #29
Are you in love? Remember being in love? Hotler Dec 2015 #30
I know you loved him. A long time ago..... Hotler Dec 2015 #31
STOCKS GO NUTS AFTER THE JOBS REPORT: Here's what you need to know Proserpina Dec 2015 #34
US fund manager accused of faking own death is convicted of fraud Proserpina Dec 2015 #35
Inequality isn't just unfair — it's making people sick Proserpina Dec 2015 #36
Commodity prices and exchange rates Proserpina Dec 2015 #37
The Federal Reserve Board's 8 Percent Hike in the Social Security Tax / Dean Baker Proserpina Dec 2015 #38
Most of What You Learned in Econ 101 Is Wrong Proserpina Dec 2015 #39
Not so smart: Why two big banks failed Proserpina Dec 2015 #40
I don't know about predictions, but here's some analysis Proserpina Dec 2015 #41
And that's what Mom had selected for today... Proserpina Dec 2015 #42
Musical Interlude II hamerfan Dec 2015 #44
Maybe if by Tuesday morning... MattSh Dec 2015 #49
Tumblr the new tool for teenage thieves — RT News MattSh Dec 2015 #50
Baby Boomers' Social Security Woes Summed Up in 1 Chart Proserpina Dec 2015 #53
Americans over 30 are more miserable than they’ve ever been Proserpina Dec 2015 #54
Also, see post 11. MattSh Dec 2015 #55
And more... MattSh Dec 2015 #56
Musical Interlude - 21st Century Digital Boy MattSh Dec 2015 #57
Koch-funded center approved at Western Carolina University antigop Dec 2015 #59
Latest Discussions»Issue Forums»Economy»WEE December 4, 2015 I'll...»Reply #54