Individuals often reflect on their happiness and well-being in response to life events, such as job worries or promotions. Despite external circumstances fluctuating, subjective well-being tends to remain relatively stable over time. People have a psychological immune system that helps them cope with bad experiences by reframing them in a positive light. This ability to self-regulate emotions contributes to maintaining a consistent level of well-being even amidst challenges.
Can you be too happy? Psychologist Adam Mastroianni talks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about our emotional control systems, which seem to work at bringing both sadness and happiness back to a steady baseline. Too much happiness is--perhaps surprisingly--not necessarily a good thing. They also explore whether our general level of happiness is really related to events in our lives or connected to something much larger than ourselves.