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Beyond the Hedonic Treadmill
Revising the Adaptation Theory of Well-Being
Diener, E., Lucas, R.E., & Scollon
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Abstract.
Recent evidence suggests that 5 important
revisions are needed in the hedonic
treadmill theory of subjective well-being.
The article aims is to put forward these
important revisions and the evidence for
them.
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Introduction.
Brickman and Campbells (1971) hedonic
treadmill theory.
Widely accepted model of subjective well-
being.
..No matter how much effort and care
someone puts into being happy, the long
term effects are no different than if she or
he lived a profligate and dissolute life..
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In 1978 Brickman, Coates and Janoff-
Bulman offered empirical support for the
treadmill model.
1)Found lottery winners were no happier
than nonwinners
2)Found people with paraplegia were not
substantially less happy than those who
could walk.
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The authors themselves also readily accepted the theory,and some of Dieners own work could be explained by it.
1)Diener et al. (1993) found income and happinesscorrelated only .13 in the US.
2)Diener et al. (1995) found objective physical attractivenesscorrelated at very low levels with well-being.
3)Okun and George (1984) found that objective health onaverage only correlated .08 with happiness.
4)Suh et all (1996)-bad life events affected happiness only if
occurred in past 2 months.
So parts of model have received robust empirical support.
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Revision 1: Nonneutral Set Points
The original model suggests that followingmajor life events people soon return to aneutralset point. But
1)A review by Diener and Diener (1996)found three quarters of the samplereported affect balance scores aboveneutral.
2)World Values Survey-80% very or quitehappy.
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Revision 2:Individual Set Points
They vary.
Due to inborn personality-based influences
1)Level of well-being reasonably stable.
2)Well-being moderately heritable.
3)Personality factors strong correlates ofwell-being variable. Eg any single
demographic factor typically correlatesless than 0.2 with well-being.personalitymuch more.
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Revision 3: Multiple Set Points
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To further test the separability 0f well beingcomponents Diener and colleagues looked
at stability of positive ad negative affectover time.
1)Various components exhibited differential
stability 2) Stability of positive affect declined withlonger time periods, whereas the stability ofnegative affect did not.
These findings suggest stable individualbaselines might be more characteristic ofpositive than negative affect.
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Revision 4: Happiness can change
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Further support well-being can
change. Longitudinal individual data.
Lucas et al (2003)
They found, in accordance with adaptation
theories, that Germans did not get lasting
boosts in happiness after marriage.
However Widows and Widowers, people
laid off from work, and individuals who
divorced all reported lasting changes in life
satisfaction.
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Revision 5: Individual Differences
in Adaptation Evidence that size and direction of change in life
satisfaction differed considerably across individuals.
Two important research traditions which focus onwhen people do or do not adapt:
1)Utility of specific coping strategies eg.Reappraisal=more positive emotions, older
individuals=humour.
2)Personality characteristics influence coping eg.
Neuroticism=ineffective coping strategiesOptimism=active coping/ strategies that can change the
situation.
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Implications.. Adaptation should not be refuted completely.
Instead the psychological processes which underlieadaptation must be reconsidered.
Interventions can be successful.
Eg. Sheldon and Lyubomirsky-random acts of kindness
Eg. Seligman et al (2005)-interventions via the internet Lasting changes among individuals-worth organisational
changes?
Diener and Seligman-system of national accounts of well-
being (2004) Evidence here suggests such a system to improve
happiness would not be doomed by the hedonic treadmill.
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Future research
A number of issues remain unresolved
1)Why do adaptation affects appear to
vary across different events?
2) Can people slow adaptation to good
events and speed recovery from bad
events?
3)Do some components of well-being
adapt more readily than others?
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Finally.
The authors conclude by stressing theimportance of large, representativesamples, and longitudinal methodologies.
Furthermore they point to the importanceof further research of factors suggestingadaptation is NOT inevitable, likeindividual differences, to find effectiveinterventions aimed at improvingsubjective well-being.
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