RE: Are You Happy?
February 21, 2014 at 1:01 pm
(This post was last modified: February 21, 2014 at 1:02 pm by Mister Agenda.)
(February 21, 2014 at 12:44 pm)rasetsu Wrote:
Perhaps this "I live in the first world therefore I shouldn't be unhappy" is a side effect of the idea that prosperity leads to happiness. There are plenty of psychological results that show this isn't true.
Hedonic treadmill. After a year or so, pretty much no matter what happens, you go back to your normal equilibrium. My therapy money was probably wasted.
And you are certainly correct about prosperity. I know refugee children who fondly remember the camps. I grew up poor myself (including months without electricity or running water on a farm and 'camping out for the summer') and didn't much mind it. Poverty is more disturbing for parents than children, I think.