Age and Happiness Essay - 2338 Words

Teenagers and young adults are commonly presumed to be shallow — preferring hedonic happiness over eudaimonic happiness, suffering violent mood swings, taking many risks, rebelling, and being constantly depressed. However, the real answers are quite contrary to the stereotype. A survey of adolescents and young adults were asked to rate several items based on importance (relationships, money, learning, work, free time, and possessions), on a scale of 1-6 with 6 being the least important. The following were most commonly rated as the most important in the following order: relationships and learning, money, work and free time and possessions. The following were the most frequently rated as the least important: free time and work,†¦show more content†¦The adults were also more prone to thinking that things would get better if they were currently bad. Overall, it is hard to judge how happy one age group is compared to another, and since the questions were not weighed, the results can be considered inconclusive in some cases. For all of the questions, none of them had ever reached an overall average below 2—indicating that overall people tended to no more than moderately disagree with the statements provided in the survey. Adults tended to enjoy their current occupations more than teenagers, were more likely to feel that they were working to the best of their potential, less likely to say that they didnt have many close friends, less likely to say that they dont focus on positive events, less likely to say that someone always has it worse, more likely to say that today is a good day, more likely to say that having an extra 10,000 would solve all of their problems, more likely to say that they own enough things, more likely to say that they have a plan for the end of the day, less likely to say that they use their time wisely, less likely to say that they want things, more likely to say that they feel fortunate, less likely to say that they have enough leisure time, less likely to say that its easier to ruin a good mood for them, and more likely to say that they are living a fulfilling life. While it does seem that older adults tend to be happier than teenagers, it is very close, and since happinessShow MoreRelatedThe Secret Of Happiness : Wisdom Of The Ages And Modern Sages1206 Words   |  5 PagesThe Secret of Happiness - Wisdom of the Ages and Modern Sages On How to Achieve Happiness By JD Meier | Submitted On November 06, 2011 Recommend Article Article Comments Print Article Share this article on Facebook Share this article on Twitter Share this article on Google+ Share this article on Linkedin Share this article on StumbleUpon Share this article on Delicious Share this article on Digg Share this article on Reddit Share this article on Pinterest Expert Author JD Meier What is theRead MoreThe Effects Of Routine Activities On Happiness Essay1348 Words   |  6 PagesIt has been argued that happiness demonstrates significant variability across time, age, and contexts. 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