“A new study of 7,443 people from 40 countries were questioned on their emotional wellbeing, satisfaction with life and mood complaints”
This article by Joe Pinkstone – concerning a study by researchers from Tilburg University (Netherlands) – appears in The Telegraph. It begins:
“Whether it be social media, glossy magazines or glamorous television shows, we are surrounded by an idealised world stressing how important it is to be happy in life.
However, a new study has found that the constant pressure to be happy actually creates an impossible, unattainable goal and thus leads to a sense of gloom and misery.
The effect is amplified in countries with a higher bar for happiness; the societal pressure in the happiest nations has the most detrimental impact on wellbeing.
‘Happiness is a valuable experience, and societies want their citizens to be happy,’ the researchers from Tilburg University in the Netherlands wrote in their study.
‘Although this societal commitment seems laudable, overly emphasising positivity (versus negativity) may create an unattainable emotion norm that ironically compromises individual wellbeing’ …”
You can read more from here.
