The question "what is happiness?" was asked of people living in Bolton, England... in 1938. These were days of the Great Depression.
The exercise was repeated again last year. A copy of the survey questions is online. Too late to submit your views - even if you live in Bolton - but the exercise itself is a thought-provoking activity.
Both similarities and differences between the two are enlightening.
More information on the outcome is available on PsyBlog.
Entertainment! Entertainment makes us happy! It's the only thing that has any real meaning or worth in life.
ReplyDeleteOf course, entertainment comes in many, many forms. One form is debunking religions. It can be a great joy and happiness to prove British Israelism wrong. It is entertaining to make cults suffer.
Also, cats are very entertaining. Who can resist those cute kitten videos on Youtube?
And a Summer trip to "exciting" Blackpool on the coast near Bolton in the 1930s (not a priority today).
ReplyDeleteInteresting that religion dropped to 10th. It certainly is 10th on MY list, but it's nice to see so many people agreed with me.
ReplyDeleteAlso interesting that, while economic security remains a high priority, many people realize that money can't buy happiness. The best things in life are free (or cheap).