Practicing Gratitude Can Increase Happiness by 25% Psychological research finds that people’s happiness levels are remarkably stable over the long-term. Whether you win the lottery or are paralysed from the neck down, after about three to six months you’ll have returned to your usual level of happiness. While these findings are deeply counter-intuitive, they also raise a serious problem for those wanting to increase levels of happiness permanently.
A possible answer comes from recent research in the psychology of gratitude. Yes, you read that correctly – being thankful might be the key to raising your happiness ‘set-point’. The Insidious Evils of 'Like' Culture. Can Smiling Make You Happy? Can Smiling Make You Happy?
Overview | Article Summary | For Instructors | For Students Kleinke, C.L., Peterson, T.R., & Rutledge, T.R. (1998). Happiness 101.