A recent study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology reveals that getting married may not bring lasting happiness. In fact, most people experience no greater satisfaction with life after marriage than they did before.
The study, led by Ed Diener, a psychology professor at the University of Illinois, examined the life satisfaction of over 24,000 individuals in Germany. It aimed to understand how people adjust to significant life events, both positive and negative.
The results showed that while events like marriage do cause strong emotional reactions, individuals typically return to their baseline level of happiness over time. This “set point” of happiness remains consistent, despite external events like marriage.
Diener explains, “Some people are naturally happier than others, and there are actions you can take to increase your happiness. However, external factors, like marriage, are not a guaranteed way to change your happiness set point.”
The study introduces the concept of “hedonic leveling,” which describes the tendency for people’s happiness to normalize after a significant event. Even if someone experiences a momentary happiness spike, such as after getting married, they eventually return to their usual level of contentment.
For instance, happiness levels in the study showed a small increase around the time of marriage, but the boost was minimal—just one-tenth of a point on an 11-point scale—and quickly faded back to previous levels.
On a more positive note, the study also found that people tend to recover from negative events over time. For example, widows and widowers often return to their pre-loss levels of happiness within about five years, showing that humans can bounce back from even the most challenging life events.
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