John North Editor & Publisher

Nowadays polls show that Americans are unhappier than at any time since polling was begun, largely thanks to their perception of the country’s apparent slide into what may become a full-blown recession — if not depression.

It might, or might not, brighten one’s day to take a look at what researchers are saying about the correlation between happiness and money.

A study just released shows that in countries where income has continued to rise since the 1970s, happiness measures have increased, too. (The study was conducted by two young economists at the University of Pennsylvania — Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers.)

The new findings appear to contradict a famous socio-economic theory dating from 1974 called the Easterlin Paradox, which states that more income does not necessarily lead to more happiness, but simply raises the threshhold. In other words, once you have the Cadillac, you want the Lexus, too.

Other data show, however, that happiness has not risen in the U.S. as it has grown richer overall during the same period. Researchers suggest the reason is that the income of most American workers has stagnated since the ‘70s — while a small elite took most of the joy to the bank.

According to yet another study, life satisfaction in China actually declined between 1994 and 2007, a period in which average real income grew by 250 percent. No wonder, considering how pollution, social upheaval and government corruption have spiraled in China in that period along with China’s wealth.

 It’s hard to find a consensus among happiness researchers, but they seem to agree that while being richer can make you feel like you are walking on sunshine, it’s not just a function of having a bigger pile than your neighbors and being superficially more materialistic.

Economic growth, they say, is associated with better health, more travel to see relatives and new places and the option of working less and spending more time with friends and family — all of which are widely linked to happiness.

Yet another study shows that with age comes happiness — that’s certainly a relief for those of us who are beginning to get those nagging notices from the AARP. The reason? With age, people say they are happier because they have lowered their expections. Hmm, that puts a cloud on my sun-shiny horizon.

Other studies show that men are unhappiest at around age 50 and women just after age 45 — seemingly around the time of the famous mid-life crisis.

But who do the studies show are unhappiest people of all? This should come as no surprise — people who live with teenagers complain the most about their tragic plight.

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John North, publisher and editor of the Daily Planet, may be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .