Laura Rowley Money & Happiness

Happiness is a choice. And it's hard work.

That's the conclusion of "The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want," a new book by Sonja Lyubomirsky. Lyubomirsky, a psychology professor at the University of California, Riverside, spent two decades studying what makes happy people tick, and running controlled experiments in which participants practice a specific strategy to boost well-being.

It's in the Genes

Happiness turns out to be a worthwhile pursuit. In a review of more than 200 studies, Lyubomirsky and her colleagues found that happier people make more money, are physically healthier, have stronger immune systems, are more creative and productive at work, have more friends, and are more likely to get married. They even live longer than their gloomy peers.

Lyubomirsky suggests that 50 percent of our happiness "set point" is genetic. We inherit the propensity to be as cheerful as Mary Poppins or as morose as Woody Allen (who, in the movie "Annie Hall," compares life to a Catskills resort with bad food and small portions -- "full of loneliness and misery and suffering and unhappiness, and it's all over much too quickly.") Studies of identical twins raised apart, for example, show that they're closer in happiness levels than fraternal twins (who share only half their genes) raised together.

Circumstantial Happiness

Surprisingly, a miniscule 10 percent of happiness, she argues, depends on life circumstances such as income, education, health, marital status, or, say, being a New York Giants fan this season.

"There is a definite myth that happiness is something we have to search for and find through our circumstances, and we either find it or we don't," Lyubomirsky says. "People say, 'I'll be happy when I move to that city, when we have more money, when I get that job, when I lose weight.' But the correlation between life circumstances and happiness is smaller than you'd expect, because people adapt, and return to their baseline happiness."

This is a little hard to swallow, especially as I listen to my eight-year-old wail inconsolably about her failure to defeat her sister on a Nintendo Wii. Her happiness -- at least short-term -- appears wholly dependent on the ability to vanquish her sibling in virtual bowling.

Fleeting Contentment

On the other hand, when it comes to long-term, big picture, flourishing-type happiness, most of us know people who remain happy despite poverty, poor health, or tragedy -- and people who are miserable despite good health, wealth, and misfortune of the painful hangnail variety.

A host of studies has found that people are experts at adjusting to their situations -- whether it's winning the lottery or suffering a paralyzing injury. In both extremes, people tend to return to a happiness set point. And although 80 percent of U.S. adults say they need more money to be happy, according to a 2007 Yahoo! Finance survey, it's not likely to bring long-lasting contentment, Lyubomirsky says.

"It's not that money doesn't make us happy -- it doesn't make us as happy as we expect, or for as long as we think," she says. "Many studies have found people do get happier following a salary raise, but then get used to that income, change their goals and aspirations accordingly, and feel they need more to be happy."

The Consumption Compulsion

That's the so-called "hedonic treadmill," in which we adapt to what we have and perpetually seek more. Lyubomirsky recalls the serial home-renovators she met in a book group several years ago. "People would buy these beautiful homes and then adapt, and want the new bath or the pool," she says. "Then they would adapt to that and renovate again. You have to keep consuming to get that high."

(Lyubomirsky admits, however, that money spent on experiences, rather than possessions, makes people happier for a longer period of time. "Europeans get this -- they live in little apartments and might not have cars but they spend money on food, wine, and travel -- as opposed to having a bigger TV set," she says.)

Meanwhile, earning more money (whether to upgrade one's abode or to travel) typically requires more time on the job -- time that might otherwise be spent on happiness-inducing activities like socializing with family and friends, exercising, or volunteering.

Unfair Comparisons

Another culprit behind the hedonic treadmill is the shift in reference groups that occurs as we move up the economic ladder. I was perpetually broke during college, always working a couple of jobs to make ends meet. Now, instead of comparing myself to the penniless student I once was and being happy with my progress, I usually compare myself to the neighbors -- mostly the ones who enjoy newly renovated homes and European travel.

Social comparison and lofty expectations are two reasons for skyrocketing rates of clinical depression over the last century, Lyubomirsky says. "We have very high expectations, and part of that comes from our individualistic ethic in the U.S.," she explains.

"We believe we can be successful if we try hard enough, and have the American dream. But if we believe that our lives are under our control, when things go wrong we only have ourselves to blame. In more collectivist cultures, people don't blame themselves as much. If things aren't working out, it's not just about you."

Happiness as a Habit

The good news, Lyubomirsky says, is that we can manipulate 40 percent of our happiness level by consciously adopting the behaviors of happy people. She's the first to admit that some of these strategies -- such as "act like a happy person" -- sound a little corny. "I'm the most reluctant user of self-help literature," she says. "That's why there's an emphasis on science -- to look at what is effective, what works, how it works, and why it works."

Lyubomirsky outlines specific techniques that have been found to boost happiness, and different ways to employ them. They include practicing gratitude and optimistic thinking, nurturing relationships, committing to goals, developing coping strategies, learning to forgive, increasing flow experiences, practicing spirituality and meditation, and being physically active.

She emphasizes that creating happiness requires sustained effort, commitment, discipline, and self-control -- similar to staying in physical shape. "I think it is work, but it's very fulfilling, enjoyable work," she says. "You have to be motivated. The good news is that some of the practices become habitual with time, and, like exercise, do get easier."