This is a photo of Joey. Joey has happy genes.

Believe what you will, but it looks like some researchers have concluded that one’s level of happiness has a large part to do with their genes.

In one study, researchers at the University of Edinburgh suggest that genes account for about 50% of the variation in people’s levels of happiness — the underlying determinant being genetically determined personality traits, like “being sociable, active, stable, hardworking and conscientious,” says co-author Timothy Bates. What’s more, says Bates, these happiness traits generally come as a package, so that if you have one you’re likely to have them all.

TIME magazine goes on to report on a different study in which researchers discovered that the level of happiness is somewhat related to the age of an individual. Younger people generally are happier than middle-aged people, with the peak age of happiness being, on average, age 44. However, as an individual gets older, their level of happiness rises once again due to their indifference to the opinions of others around them (old people just really don’t care what you think of them).

Is 44 the age when people realize that they aren’t going to achieve their life dreams? Who knows, really. But if you need some tips on staying happy, I suggest that you take the words of the author of the TIME article into consideration: “Be social, even if it’s only with a few people; set achievable goals and work toward them; and concentrate on putting setbacks and worries in perspective.”

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 25th, 2008 at 6:04 pm and is filed under Science. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.