6 of the biggest misconceptions about happiness, according to science

Some people see happiness asthe feeling in asmall momenta chat between old friends, a warm meal. Some see it as deeply profound, a kind of enlightenment.Scientists tend to view it another way, namely, as an ongoing state of being that ebbs and flows but can be controlled based on how peoplelive their lives.Some of the biggest findings about the science of happinesscontradict many people'sunderstandings of how tofind joy.Here are just a handful of those misconceptions.SEE ALSO:Psychologists studied 5,000 genius kids for 45 years ' here are their 6 key takeawaysMore money does increase happiness 'but only to a point.A higher salary is always nice, but it won't necessarily increase your happiness, a wide body of research suggests.Some early behavioral economics studies found that a salary of roughly $75,000 a year was the point at which happiness began to plateau.Follow-up research has found similar plateaus based on the cost-of-living in your particular area. Someone in Atlanta, for example, will hit peak happiness by making roughly $42,000 a year, while a New Yorker will need to pull in $105,000.Happiness comes from giving gifts, not receiving them.Unwrapping presents on a holiday or birthday is undeniably fun, but science suggests the person who bought and wrapped those gifts is gaining more happiness than you are.A 2008 study found that people's reported levels of happiness jumped when they spent money on others instead of on themselves. A follow-up study in 2013 showed that the finding applied to people in 136 countries, not just those in North America.And earlier this year, a study showed a neural link between generosity and happiness, further cementing humans as fundamentally social animals.Having too much freedom of choice can reduce happiness.It's better to have some choice instead of no choice, psychologist Barry Schwartz has said. But it doesn't hold that more choice is always better.If humans are presented with too many options, their decision-making abilities kind of shut down, Schwartz's research has found. Someneuroscience research has also shown that making choices is exhausting and can hurt cognitive abilities in other areas.These findings have led Northwestern University neuroscientist Moran Cerf to adopt a surprising habit: Healways picks the second menu item on a list of specials to free up his brain for more important choices in the day.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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