Greater Happiness May Result From Buying
Experiences, Not Possessions
February 10, 2009
Can money make us happy if we spend it on the right purchases? A new psychology
study suggests that buying life experiences rather than material possessions
leads to greater happiness for both the consumer and those around them. The
findings were presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology
annual meeting on Feb. 7.
The study demonstrates that experiential purchases, such as a meal out or
theater tickets, result in increased well-being because they satisfy higher
order needs, specifically the need for social connectedness and vitality -- a
feeling of being alive.
"These findings support an extension of basic need theory, where purchases
that increase psychological need satisfaction will produce the greatest
well-being," said Ryan Howell, assistant professor of psychology at San
Francisco State University.
Participants in the study were asked to write reflections and answer questions
about their recent purchases. Participants indicated that experiential purchases
represented money better spent and greater happiness for both themselves and
others. The results also indicate that experiences produce more happiness
regardless of the amount spent or the income of the consumer.
Experiences also lead to longer-term satisfaction. "Purchased experiences
provide memory capital," Howell said. "We don't tend to get bored of
happy memories like we do with a material object.
"People still believe that more money will make them happy, even though 35
years of research has suggested the opposite," Howell said. "Maybe
this belief has held because money is making some people happy some of the time,
at least when they spend it on life experiences."
"The mediators of experiential purchases: Determining the impact of
psychological need satisfaction" was conducted by Ryan Howell, assistant
professor of psychology at San Francisco State University and SF State graduate
Graham Hill.
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Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release.
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Source: Elaine Bible
San Francisco
State University
Medical News Today: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com
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