Can't Buy Happiness

Using mobile technology is now a part of psychological research and you can use it to improve your happiness through improved spending choices—that is, unless you are already depressed. Read More

If you have stayed in hotels at all in the last 10, you have probably noticed the placards requesting that you re-use their towels. You many not know that, people are more likely to take a cue about how to behave from complete strangers who had happened to once stay in a hotel room than they are to take the same cue from other people of their gender or nationality. Why? Read More

On this first International Day of Happiness, let us reinforce our commitment to inclusive and sustainable human development and renew our pledge to help others. When we contribute to the common good, we ourselves are enriched. Compassion promotes happiness and will help build the future we want. Read More

Materialistic people are found to purchase life experiences for extrinsic reasons, thereby reducing the happiness they might gain from experiential purchasing. Read More

Hearing about others’ success tends to make us overconfident. It is a general human bias to attribute other people’s success to luck and our own to skill. In the case of investing, this may lead many people to think, If she can do it, I can certainly do it. And since you were probably just getting part of the story, your confidence is doubly unjustified. Read More

In a recent study we conducted in my lab, using the data we collected on BeyondThePurchase.org, we investigated the personal and societal benefits of spiritualism by examining participants' responses to over 30 surveys. Here are the top five positive characteristics of spiritual people. Read More

Let’s say for discussion’s sake that the thing you are considering is starting a business. You ask yourself… “Should I or shouldn’t I start a business?” Easy enough, right? You make a t-chart, list the pros and cons and then make a decision! Well, let’s examine how you go about dissecting this question. Read More

You’re looking for a trustworthy sitter for your young child. Your friend gives you the following descriptions. Sitter One is described as intelligent, industrious, impulsive, critical, stubborn, and envious. Sitter Two is described as envious, stubborn, critical, impulsive, industrious and intelligent. So, proud mama or papa – which do you choose? Read More

Happy people make five little decisions every day that improve their well-being. What are the five importance differences between happy and unhappy people based on our recent consumer behavior studies? Read More

What should be on your resolutions for the New Year? How about focusing on the future. A new research suggests that people’s perception of time influences their financial and emotional well-being, as well as the kinds of purchases they choose to make. Read More

If you’re struggling to think of what to gift this holiday, consider tickets to the theatre, gift certificates for the movies or a favorite restaurant, a membership at their favorite museum, or lift tickets at a ski resort. Your gift may bring you closer to the most important people you love, help them build new memories, and give them good stories to tell later. Read More

Those who feel too little pain of paying are called ‘spendthrifts’ while those who feel too much pain of paying are referred to as ‘tightwads’. However, people who feel anxious when spending money (tightwads) may actually be happier than those who do not feel negative emotions (spendthrifts) when making a purchase. Read More

If prospects for a bright financial future look utterly bleak, why bother looking in detail about how little can be done about it? This sense of monetary despair could be the turning point for the biggest mistake many people make. Read More

When women are in the most fertile phase of their menstrual cycle, they are more likely to buy appearance-enhancing items, such as clothing and jewelry, than when they are in the earlier or later phase of menstruation. Read More