Amna Rizvi
1/11/25
“Does money equal happiness?” has been an age-old question that doesn’t seem to have a clear answer. While some studies argue that money correlates with happiness, others emphasize that true happiness can’t be fulfilled by simply buying things. In addition, people find happiness in a multitude of ways—whether it’s through hobbies, family, or seeking new experiences. Because this topic has so many perspectives where one cannot necessarily be applied to every person, it’s important to take into consideration all points of view.
According to Berkely, a recent survey held in small communities challenged the assumption that money correlates to happiness. Three thousand subjects were asked to rate their happiness on a scale from 0-10, and their responses would be compared to subjects in Western countries. Surprisingly, it was found that although their income was much lower (living on approx. $1,000 per year), happiness was much higher on average in the communities despite the massive wealth gap (Suttie). Although there isn’t a clear reason why the happiness gap is so prevalent, many researchers argue that it could be because “living in a consumer-based, ad-filled world is making us think we need more money than we have,” which in reality doesn’t matter much for increasing happiness (Suttie). According to author Eric Galbraith, a potential reason why happiness was not correlated to wealth in the communities was because of their emphasis on “being in close connection with nature, strengthening social bonds, or removing inequalities,” compared to believing that “having lots of money is the clearest route to happiness” (Suttie). Because the communities, since smaller, are more tightly connected, they seek happiness in more natural ways and spend little money to get the same feeling.
To add to the lack of correlation between happiness and wealth, the world’s longest happiness study emphasizes the point that money is important for only certain satisfactions including stability and security, but it cannot buy happiness (Taylor). Similar to the views of Galbraith, psychology professor Marc Schultz believes that “At the end of the day, life is really about our connections with others. It’s our relationships that keep us happy” (Taylor). He also believes that when money is spent, it should go towards seeking new experiences and spending time with other people–in other words, “[valuing] experiences over things” (Taylor). According to Reuters, the Harvard Study of Adult Development, a study that has tracked happiness in people for over three generations, found that people who were more wealthy and spent their money on materialistic things were no happier than those who didn’t. Humans, whether we realize it or not, have the biggest sense of happiness when we are spending money to seek connections with close friends, family, and other loved ones opposed to feeding on consumerism.
Overall, happiness is a feeling that doesn’t have to be sought through mindlessly spending money. In a world where the majority of people spend their lives chasing wealth and money, it is easy to be caught up in the wrong attitudes to how happiness should be measured. Instead, it is essential to seek happiness through natural ways and experiences which can be worth more than money could ever buy.
Works Cited
Suttie, Jill. “A New Way to View Money and Happiness.” Greater Good, 16 Sept. 2024, greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/a_new_way_to_view_money_and_happiness#:~:text=While%20some%20studies%20have%20found,being%20as%20their%20income%20climbs.
Taylor, Chris. What the World’s Longest Happiness Study Says about Money | Reuters, 6 Feb. 2023, www.reuters.com/markets/wealth/what-worlds-longest-happiness-study-says-about-money-2023-02-06/.