The "two-minded view" of money and happiness refers to surveys showing that most people seem to believe that
Answer
a) money is not a basis for happiness, but think that more money will make them happier.
b) money is important for happiness, but most people won't do the things that would allow them to accumulate and earn more money.
c) money can make you happy and it can make you miserable.
d) money is essential for the happiness of your family, but people with a lot of money think they are better than everyone else.
2 points
Question 2
Up until the recent economic downturn, individual income and consumer purchases have risen dramatically over the last 40 years. During this same period, Americans' level of life satisfaction and happiness has 1.___________
and rates of depression have 2._____________.
Answer
a) 1. increased 2. increased
b) 1. not changed 2. increased dramatically
c) 1. decreased 2. decreased
d) 1. increased 2. decreased dramatically
2 points
Question 3
Between-country comparisons of life satisfaction/happiness and average per capita income show
Answer
a) almost no correlations.
b) weak correlations.
c) substantial correlations.
d) positive correlations only among Western cultures.
2 points
Question 4
Within-country comparisons of life satisfaction/happiness and per capita income show
Answer
a) moderate positive correlations among poor, but very small correlations among more affluent countries, consistent with the idea of basic need fulfillment.
b) stronger correlations than for between country comparisons consistent with the idea that culture determines the income-happiness relationship
c) little or no correlations consistent with the idea that money is unrelated to happiness.
d) income is most strongly related to happiness when the overall level of income is rising within a culture.
2 points
Question 5
Studies of the wealthiest Americans and longitudinal studies examining the effects of increased and decreased income on happiness show that overall,
Answer
a) wealth and income are consistently and substantially related to individual happiness.
b) what matters most is how much money you make relative to others in your social network.
c) only the very rich enjoy significant gains in happiness.
d) the amount of money people make is only weakly related to happiness.
2 points
Question 6
In a longitudinal study, Diener and his colleagues examined the relationship between the positive emotions (cheerfulness) of entering college freshmen and their incomes after graduation. The results of their study showed
Answer
a) cheerfulness was unrelated to later income; college grades were much more important.
b) cheerful students tended to socialize and party too much and earned lower incomes than more serious students.
c) parents' income was the most significant predictor of students' post- graduate income; cheerfulness made no difference.
parents' income was the most significant predictor of students' post- graduate income; cheerfulness made no difference.
d) the more cheerful students were as freshmen, the more they earned after graduation, but this effect was mediated by their parents' income.
2 points
Question 7
The idea of a hedonic treadmill
Answer
a) predicts that emotional events (new car, house, marriage, etc.)
have only short-term effects.
b) is drawn by analogy from sensory adaptation.
c) says we are stuck on a treadmill where we walk and walk, but never get anywhere in terms of increases in long-term happiness.
d) all of the above
2 points
Question 8
The concept of relative deprivation as an explanation for why more money doesn't necessarily bring more happiness suggests that people's satisfaction with their income and material possessions is
Answer
a) relative to how deprived they were in the past, particularly as children.
b) dependent on how a "good" life is defined.
c) relative to the degree of exposure to product advertising.
d) based on social comparisons rather than objective life circumstances.
2 points
Question 9
Which of the following best describes the American style of happiness in terms of the "cultural lessons" that children are taught?
Answer
a) happiness depends on others, be true to those you love.
b) happiness depends on hard work and personal sacrifice.
c) happiness depends on what you have, get as much as you can.
d) happiness is an important life goal, be true to yourself.
2 points
Question 10
In Asian cultures the statement, "unhappiness is believed to arrive on the heels of happiness and vice versa" means that
Answer
a) Asians don't enjoy happy events as much as Westerners because they believe unhappiness will soon follow.
b) unlike Americans, Asians believe that it is better to prepare for disappointment than to enjoy temporary happiness.
c) excessive attachment to happiness or despair is unwarranted because emotions are fleeting - keeping your composure is most important.
d) positive and negative emotions are to be avoided - maintaining a neutral emotional life is most important.