Does Happiness Lead to Success? Part 6

Does Happiness and Positive Affect Precede Behaviours Paralleling Success?

Positive Self Perceptions

Feeling above average precedes life satisfaction, and high life satisfaction is followed by greater feelings of superiority and feelings of self confidence.

Having positive affect at age 21 is associated with rating yourself  high in competence when you are 41 – 51 years old especially if you are female.

Sociability and activity

Sociability and extraversion

Longitudinal studies show that positive affect is associated with extraversion and sociability and higher ratings of affiliation in the middle years.

Social Interaction and Activity

There is a significant association between global happiness and participation in a number of activities both in the shorter and long term studies.

Prosocial Behaviour

Altruism may follow from happiness as well as the reverse. Those with high happiness and life satisfaction increased the hours they spent in volunteer activities.

Physical Wellbeing and Coping

Health perceptions and Healthy behaviour

Happy people were less likely to drink and smoke and to describe themselves as happy.

Immunity

Healthy volunteers with a positive emotional style were less likely to develop a cold on exposure to the rhinovirus.

Cancer survivors who were happier had enhanced Killer cell activity 18 months later.

Coping

Optimism is associated with psychological adjustment after diagnosis of breast cancer. Those with the optimistic style had a tendency to cope by active engagement, problem focussed coping, and had less denial.

Happiness, pleasant moods and related constructs such as optimism precede physical well being and adaptive coping.