Happiness, Study | featured news

Julia Shaw hit traffic pay dirt earlier this week when she took to Slate to argue that twenty-somethings should follow her lead and get married now. Shaw got married at 23, and it seems to have worked out well for her. Amanda Marcotte responded by throwing some cold hard data on that argument, noting that women who marry later are less likely to get divorced and earn more, on average, than their earlier-marrying counterparts.

Oral sex is good for women's health and makes you feel happier, according to a study which studied the effects of semen's 'mood-altering chemicals'. The State University of New York study - which scientists carried out via survey rather than through practical experiment - compared the sex lives of 293 females to their mental health.

A study being released today shows the United States may be on top when it comes to acquiring wealth, but it doesn't measure up as well when it comes to happiness and life span, MSNBC is reporting.

The happier you are, the better, right? Not necessarily. Studies show that there is a darker side to feeling good and that the pursuit of happiness can sometimes make you . . . well, less happy.

A new survey by the jobs site CareerBliss.com finds that employees with higher salaries are happier with all aspect of their work life, not just their compensation.

As if the vast distributed intelligence of the Internet were seeking to drive home a theme of my last post, I just tripped across this Reuters article relating some findings from the first wave of the UK household longitudinal study. The ambitious government-funded study will follow 40,000 households over 20 years, allowing researchers to tease out how changes in income, health, marital status, educational attainment and so on affect individual well-being over time.  Reporteth Reuters:

Life Inc.: Scientists have finally shredded the old saw about money and happiness. Apparently, money can purchase a whole lot of happiness.

A study finds that the social aspect of religion and a shared religious connection built around identity and belonging increase one's sense of ...