Ask anyone what they want from life, and I'm sure the vast majority of people would say that they want to be happy. But happiness is a feeling that can be difficult to put into words. We know we want to feel it, but we don't always find it easy to be specific about what that means. And yet, even though happiness probably looks different for every single one of us, it does have several common themes.
It may seem obvious that smiling, the outward expression of happiness, makes us feel happy, but what does the science say? The definitive answer came in 2019 when researchers from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville decided to look back at 138 studies carried out around the world, involving more than 11,000 volunteers and covering a period of 50 years.
They concluded that our facial expressions do indeed impact our mood and emotions: frowning makes us feel sadder, scowling makes us feel angrier and smiling makes us happier. As the researchers pointed out, this doesn't mean we can literally smile our way to happiness, but it is evidence that our minds and bodies are intimately linked when we experience emotions.
What about money? Everyone is familiar with the phrase 'money can't buy you happiness', but the research says it depends what you spend your money on.
This story is from the March 2023 edition of BBC Science Focus.
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This story is from the March 2023 edition of BBC Science Focus.
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