The cost of happiness
Charles Shultz wrote, "Happiness is a warm puppy."
The Beatles sang, "Happiness is a warm gun."
The Declaration states that we have the unalienable right to "pursue happiness."
Can money buy happiness? And, if so, what is the price tag? Apparently, $75,000, according to a Princeton University study, reported by the Los Angeles Times:
What does it take to be happy? About $75,000.
From the LA Times
Does happiness rise with income? In one of the more scientific attempts to answer that question, researchers from Princeton have put a price on happiness. It's about $75,000 in income a year.The study found that people’s evaluations of their lives improved steadily with annual income. But the quality of their everyday experiences — their feelings — did not improve above an income of $75,000 a year. As income decreased from $75,000, people reported decreasing happiness and increasing sadness, as well as stress. The study found that being divorced, being sick and other painful experiences have worse effects on a poor person than on a wealthier one.
Read the abstract of the report at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
