The consumer society and the advertising values that sustain it relate happiness to materialism and enjoyment based on immediacy.
This established conception of short-term happiness does not ensure lasting well-being over time, but ends up causing a certain existential emptiness and even constant unhappiness, according to a study by Harvard University psychologist Dan Gilbert.
In his conclusions he underlines how the constant need to accumulate more and better material goods only increases satisfaction levels in the short term, but creates constant unhappiness in the long run.
An argument that exemplifies with the data collected among the people won by the lottery. So what is the secret of happiness?
For Stanford University psychologist Emma Seppala, where she directs the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research, happiness does not reside so much in having or improving social and work status, but in giving. In other words, being compassionate and generous with others increases the levels of well-being in all areas of life, which in the long run, according to Seppala, has the following benefits:
Increase happiness
The parts of the brain that are activated when experiencing pleasurable sensations are the same that are activated when practicing altruism, according to this study led by National Institute of Health neuroscientist Jordan Garfman. According to these results, giving money to others makes us as happy as receiving it, an extreme that was corroborated with an experiment carried out by Professor Michael Norton of Harvard University. In this study, the participants were divided into two groups and both were given the same amount of money, some could spend it on whatever they wanted and the others had to donate it to charitable works of their choice. Subsequently, a satisfaction test was carried out and it was found that those who had been altruists had higher levels of happiness than the rest of the participants.
This relationship between generosity and well-being has been demonstrated even in the case of young children, in a similar experiment led by British Columbia University psychologist Elizabeth Dunn.
Avoid stress, anxiety and depression
Mood and mental disorders, such as depression or stress, occur in most cases, according to much of the scientific literature, due to lack of self-acceptance and excessive self-centeredness. By focusing only on yourself, Seppala explains, it will be easier to suffer stress or be sad since you will only pay attention to your own difficulties and these will end up being negatively overestimated. However, says the psychologist, “dedicating ourselves to others and helping them gives us vitality, it allows us to feel better and to relativize our own problems. It’s like when we are very worried about something and suddenly a friend or family member urgently needs our help, then our problems disappear ”, he points out.
Improve your relationships
The recognition, respect and support of those close to us is a desire common to all human beings. Usually, to try to please others and the partner, weaknesses are usually hidden or a somewhat artificial image is created. However, according to this study, traditional strategies for being liked by others tend to have the opposite effect to that intended, while the characteristics most valued in a friend or partner are kindness and solidarity.
Makes you feel richer and with more time
A study by Harvard University marketer Zoë Chance showed that helping others contributes to a longer sense of time, while giving money to people in need increases our sense of wealth.
Increase life expectancy
Maintaining a good amount of personal relationships significantly improves both mental and physical health and can even increase life expectancy, according to this study by researchers Ed Diener and Martin Seligman. Other studies reinforce this thesis by showing that unhappiness is directly related to cellular inflammation, which in turn is the origin of cancer and other diseases.
Source: elconfidencial.com
