Money Can Buy Happiness

How often do you wake up worrying about money? How often do your loved ones worry about money? How often have you heard, “if only I had the money?” How often do you feel that more money would solve all your problems and would make you happy? What if I told you that you were right, to an extent. Author’s across the discussion of happiness have tried to answer the simply stated, yet complicatedly answered question, “Can Money Buy Happiness?” Authors Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diner attempt to answer the question in their piece of the same name, by explaining that “Yes, money buys happiness…but it must be considered in the bigger picture of what makes people genuinely rich” (Biswas-Diener 160-161). This idea that fiscal wealth is a path to happiness

Growing up in a family where both my parents came from poor immigrant backgrounds always made financial success a priority and when there was no need to be frugal, my parents did seem happier. But did money buy my parents’ happiness or did money lead to their happiness? Ed Diener and Robert Biswas-Diener attempt to answer that question in their excerpt “Can Money Buy Happiness,” where they claim that “[m]oney can be a help in attaining psychological wealth, but it should be considered in the bigger picture of what makes people general genuinely rich (Biswas-Diener 161). Although not explicitly defined by Diener and Biswas-Diener, “psychological wealth” is the overall measure of happiness, beyond just fiscal affluence, including positive ties with other individuals and joyful temperaments (Biswas-Diener 168). By extending Biswas-Diener and Diener’s idea of “psychological wealth” to include the perception of what wealth is and what wealth consists of beyond monetary success, such as achievements or fulfillment, there exist a copious number of ways to view wealth. One can be rich in more than finances and happiness is dependent upon the perception of wealth due to money being one of several paths, including deliberate effort and being positive, to “psychological wealth” which leads to happiness.

Even though money can buy some people happiness, happiness should not be chased and it should come to a person's life because chasing happiness can lead to failure, pain and lost of valuable time. One might think the key to a successful life is finding the maximum amount of happiness, but a big roadblock stands in the way and that is if the pursuit of happiness really worth getting to with all the trouble and nonsense. Happiness is a key to a healthy life, but everyone happiness can be different. For example, a lot of people think having a lot of money is key to happiness, but the question surrounding this is doing all that tedious hard work and if it is worth doing still remains. There is so many ways to describe happiness, yet no one can actually answer the basic question “What

Undoubtedly, money is and has been arguably the most important aspect of any society in the world. Money is an essential piece of every day life because of the fact that nearly everything comes with a price tag. With how important the aspect of money has become, there have been arguments about whether money can truly make an individual happy. This particular topic has been highly controversial with multiple different stands on the effect of money on happiness. With that being said, money does influence people and makes them happier because they can live comfortably without worry, it allows for many dreams to become realities, and it provides the opportunity to give back and help others.

We all have heard the phrase “money can’t buy you happiness.” That phrase is a lie because mostly everything in today’s society revolves around money. The things people like revolve around money too. What a coincidence? Let’s say a person is upset so they go buy their favorite ice cream because they know it will make them happy. That person had the money to invest in something that made them happy. Or on an even bigger let’s say someone has been fantasizing about a car and they finally get enough money to purchase their dream car. This person is likely to be very happy. If it was not for the money, they would not have gotten that dream car, so basically the money made them happy. The truth is money makes people happy.

Although Americans do look better and feel better with the extravagant items they purchase, money doesn’t buy happiness for long term goals. Like many will argue, like Atlantic senior editor Derek Thompson did in his 2013 article, “Yes, Money Does Buy Happiness: 6 Lessons on the Newest Research on Income and Well-Being,” money can only buy happiness for short term goals; it won’t last very long for everyone and it could lead to worse scenarios when the money is gone. Thompson (2013) included statistics on richer countries that are proven to be happier, explaining, “First, the lines go up. More money, more happiness. Second, the lines go up in parallel, more or less. Across language, culture, religion, ethnic background, the same amount of extra money seems to buy the similar amount of extra happiness.” Thompson (2013) found the same similar pattern in many other countries and concluded that they are more happy than poorer countries. Although poorer countries don’t have as many resources or many things like richer countries do, Seth Borenstein, in his 2017 article for The Independent, “Norway Beats Denmark to be Named the Happiest Country in the World by the UN,” can beg to differ. Borenstein (2017) says, “While most countries were either getting happier or at least treading water, America's happiness score dropped 5 per cent over the past decade” (Borenstein, 2017). That shows that America, one of the richest

Happiness is an emotion that can be very easily obtained however it can be very hard to get that intense of joy sometimes. The emotional state of being content is one of the most amazing feelings in the world. Although there is always that clique question, “Does money create happiness?” To answer that no it does not and there is various ways to prove it. Money is just a piece of paper that controls most of your life ,but happiness is not one of them.

Don Peck and Ross Douthat convey through their editorial, “Does Money Buy Happiness?,” that one’s level of content to a degree is contingent upon their ability to act as a consumer in society. Peck and Douthat base their assumption on research which shows, “For individual countries, with few exceptions, self-reported happiness has increased as incomes have risen” (332, par.4) Based on this statistic, it is being assumed that one’s ability to support their lifestyle and perhaps better it creates a sense of security that leads to happiness.

Studies have shown, only 1-in-3 Americans are very happy with their life. The two-thirds that are not happy tend to believe one of two things: that they are not happy because they do not own or have as many things compared to another person, and because they fill their inner void of happiness with money. The truth is money can buy many, many things, except happiness.

As we all enjoy our delicious Dinner, the topic of Happiness is brought up to our dining table. His Holiness the Dalai Lama, author of “The Sources of Happiness” starts to converse about happiness. He mentions how people should be grateful and happy with what they have and not with what they wish or desire, since that’s not what makes a person’s happiness. As the conversation continues, he claims that happiness is within one’s mind and not with natural phenomena. In addition, he discusses how money doesn’t build a person’s happiness. On the other hand, Gretchen Rubin, author of “July: Buy Some Happiness” claims how “money can’t buy happiness, but it helps contribute to your happiness.” (Rubin 293). Gretchen Rubin

Money can't buy happiness, so the cliche goes. Ross Gittins’ 2014 article “Money can buy happiness, but not as much as we think,” asserts that most people haven’t found happiness through money because they didn’t know “how to get more satisfaction from spending” (Gittins). I disagree, to a point. In the beginning, money can provide a short term cushion of happiness, but overtime, staying comfortable isn’t the same as being truly happy. I believe that long term happiness is not a matter of how you use your money, but rather a matter of why. Money is rather a means to an end, and it is this end that determines one’s happiness. Finding what will truly make you happy determines whether or not money plays a role in your happiness.

Money and happiness are linked positivity in the psychology of many cultures and in the economy as well, yet money can be observed playing a sociological role in the ebb and flow of happiness in society. When contrasting the benefits of a dream career against a path to a more attainable means to financial safety, often individuals cognitively associate happiness with money. Does money create happiness or does it at least create a path to happiness? In the book, “Happiness around the World: The Paradox of Happy Peasants and Miserable Millionaires,” Carol Graham confronts this issue. She admits:

In today’s materialistic world, the phrase that ‘money can’t buy happiness’ is tending to be proved hence otherwise. Social research and surveys have shown results based on an individuals income, health and the political scenario which is dominant in his or her region. It is quite obvious that the gap between the privileged and the not so is growing into a great divide giving rise to different class and status, thus defining ones social circle. It should therefore be understood how an individuals economic status affects their personal happiness throughout all aspects of life. Many tend to refer to this age-old quote especially when they tend to belong to sector of people who can’t afford the modern day luxuries of life. What they do not

In his article The Funds, Friends, and Faith of Happy People David G. Myers analyzes results of different surveys and researches in attempt to answer the question: “does money make people happier?” The conclusion suggests they do not. While many people have an opposite opinion, facts show the correlation between money and happiness weakens with the increase of income.

There are many people claim that there is not any relationship between money and happiness. However, I believe that there is a direct relationship between money and happiness. Research shows that being able to provide our basic needs and higher-level wants leads us to a happy life. The relationship between money and happiness is like the relationship between food and body. “The importance of money in human life is similar to the importance of food for the body. Just like you can’t live even for a few days without food, you can’t survive for long without money.”(Singh, 2015).Having access to our necessities, being able to participate in leisure activities, and being able to help our friends, are things which make us happy; and we need money for having them.So, for being happy in our life,