University of Stirling
Changes in income do not affect most people's happiness, most of the time, according to a new study led by the University of Stirling.
The research, which examined levels of life satisfaction
and income changes in more than 18,000 adults over a nine year period, revealed
that income change is only important when individuals with specific personality
characteristics experience an income loss.
Researchers at the universities of Stirling and
Nottingham found that for most people happiness is likely to rest on avoiding
loss, rather than aiming for continual financial gain.
The study, involving two separate samples from Germany
and the UK, asked participants annually about their income level and how
satisfied they were with life. Participants also answered questions on their
personality at the start of the study.
Results revealed that regardless of personality, income increases did not affect life satisfaction. When people lost income, however, there was a reduction in their life satisfaction. This was far greater for those who reported themselves as being conscientious, namely they were thorough in their attitudes to life and work, energetic, and effective and efficient in how they did things.
Leading the research, Dr Christopher Boyce of the Behavioural
Science Centre at the University of Stirling, said: "It is often assumed
that as our income rises so does our life satisfaction, however, we have
discovered this is not the case. What really matters is when income is lost and
this is only important for people who are highly conscientious."
The study, which accounted for shifting circumstances
such as entering or leaving work, and changes to health and household make up,
found that for people that were only even moderately conscientious, a loss of income
had a negative impact at least two and a half times greater than less
conscientious individuals.
Dr Boyce said: "Continually increasing our income is
not an important factor for achieving greater happiness and well-being for most
people living in economically developed countries. Instead, we should aim for
financial stability to achieve greater happiness, while protecting those
individuals who experience negative income shocks."
The study was funded by funded by The Economic and Social
Research Council.