3 ms·

how does it follow from this then, that men are happier?

by utx00 17y ago

ilitirit 17y ago
Here's one possible explanation: Apparently, women are happy with their lot earlier in their lives, whereas men have bigger financial goals and tend to be unfulfilled during their 20s, both financially and in their family lives, which makes them miserable. But by middle age, men have fulfilled their financial and family life goals and have cheered up, whereas women are more likely to be unfulfilled and unhappy. The authors think a major factor underlying this is the shift in the proportion of men and women in relationships: men are more likely to be single in their 20s, and women are more likely to be alone in middle age. They admit that this rests on the assumption that being married actually makes people happy, but they point out that if marriage is something you really want (and they found that 90% of both genders did), then being single might get you down. http://www.newscientist.com/blog/shortsharpscience/2008/07/are-men-happier-than-women.html http://www.newscientist.com/blog/shortsharpscience/2008/07/a...
- loch_ness_350 17y ago
  No surprise there. Being 19 and male is miserable, except for the few who are lucky enough to find a soulmate that early, and the low-quality sort of man who tends to be more generally successful at that age, but I'd much rather be a single 40-year-old man than a single woman at that age. I wonder how these findings play out for people who are in long-term stable relationships. I'd bet that there isn't a huge gender disparity or "cross-over" for them, since their happiness depends largely on the health of the relationship, and the number of alternatives isn't really relevant.
  - TriinT 17y ago
    "Being 19 and male is miserable, except for the few who are lucky enough to find a soulmate that early" I get the impression that you didn't enjoy college. Who wants a soulmate so early? Seriously. Only weak and / or disabled people need someone else to look after them at the age of 19.
    - loch_ness_350 17y ago
      Finding a soulmate at 19 is not necessary for happiness, but the dating position of a 19-year-old male sucks, and that's one way of getting out of having to go through that. Most women his age either want older men, or frat-boy douchebags whose IQs are the square root of mine or yours.

how does it follow from this then, that men are happier?

by utx00 17y ago

how does it follow from this then, that men are happier?

Here's one possible explanation: Apparently, women are happy with their lot earlier in their lives, whereas men have bigger financial goals and tend to be unfulfilled during their 20s, both financially and in their family lives, which makes them miserable. But by middle age, men have fulfilled their financial and family life goals and have cheered up, whereas women are more likely to be unfulfilled and unhappy. The authors think a major factor underlying this is the shift in the proportion of men and women in relationships: men are more likely to be single in their 20s, and women are more likely to be alone in middle age. They admit that this rests on the assumption that being married actually makes people happy, but they point out that if marriage is something you really want (and they found that 90% of both genders did), then being single might get you down. http://www.newscientist.com/blog/shortsharpscience/2008/07/are-men-happier-than-women.html http://www.newscientist.com/blog/shortsharpscience/2008/07/a...

loch_ness_350 17y ago
No surprise there. Being 19 and male is miserable, except for the few who are lucky enough to find a soulmate that early, and the low-quality sort of man who tends to be more generally successful at that age, but I'd much rather be a single 40-year-old man than a single woman at that age. I wonder how these findings play out for people who are in long-term stable relationships. I'd bet that there isn't a huge gender disparity or "cross-over" for them, since their happiness depends largely on the health of the relationship, and the number of alternatives isn't really relevant.
- TriinT 17y ago
  "Being 19 and male is miserable, except for the few who are lucky enough to find a soulmate that early" I get the impression that you didn't enjoy college. Who wants a soulmate so early? Seriously. Only weak and / or disabled people need someone else to look after them at the age of 19.
  - loch_ness_350 17y ago
    Finding a soulmate at 19 is not necessary for happiness, but the dating position of a 19-year-old male sucks, and that's one way of getting out of having to go through that. Most women his age either want older men, or frat-boy douchebags whose IQs are the square root of mine or yours.