Old People Are Generally Happier

Thanks largely to the post-World War II baby boom and advances in medical care (including Medicare), our nation is aging quickly. With each passing year, the median age in the United States rises. As one of those "baby boomers", I found this study very interesting.

Ours is a youth-oriented society, and many people look upon growing old as a terrible thing. They worry about growing older, and view old age as a time of ill health, less income, less social status and loss of close friends. But while that may be true, a Stanford University psychologist has discovered that older people are generally happier than young people.

Dr. Laura Carstensen "asked volunteers ranging in age from 18 to mid-90s to take part in various experiments and keep diaries of their emotional state." The results of her study are interesting. She found that older people did not experience nearly as many persistent negative moods as younger people did, and took personal criticism much better. They were also better at controlling their emotions (a skill that seems to improve with age).

Dr. Susan Charles of the University of California puts it this way, "Based on work by Carstensen and her colleagues, we know that older people are increasingly aware that the time they have left in life is growing shorter. They want to make the best of it so they avoid engaging in situations that will make them unhappy. They have also had more time to learn and understand the intentions of others which helps them to avoid these stressful situations."

I have to agree with this. I am a much happier person than I used to be when I was younger. A large part of it came when I decided a few years ago that I was too old to care what other people thought or said about me.

The years (and a partially mis-spent youth) have also given me a wealth of experience. It is easier to pick out and avoid those situations that are likely to result in a negative consequence. I guess the old wive's tale about wisdom coming with age is at least partially true.

I gues the point is to not fret about growing older. As with youth, it has its advantages and disadvantages. One of the advantages is being happier. Personally, I like being happier.