Assignment: Happiness Across the Life Span

Purpose: Personalizing the shifting basis of happiness acrossthe life span by connecting research/theory to experience.

Research concludes that no age or stage of life is happier thanany other. The only thing that changes is the basis of happiness.For example what makes teens and the elderly happy are verydifferent.  

1. If you compare yourself to your grandparents (or parents)would you agree with this general rule? Compare and contrast thebasis of your own happiness with that of your grandparents orparents. What is similar? What is different?

2. Write a brief summary of

a) the difference between a pleasant affect-hedoniclifestyle of the young and a positiveinvolvement-growth-related lifestyle of older adults, asdescribed in the study by Kunzman and colleagues,

b) the major assumptions of socioemotional selectivitytheory.  

3. To what extent do the two lifestyles described by Kunzmanstudy “fit” and help explain the differences between you and yourgrandparents? Do you fit a hedonic and do your grandparents fit agrowth-related lifestyle? Discuss and offer explanations andexamples concerning of what fits and what does not.

4. To what extent does socioemotional selectivity theory “fit”and help explain the differences between you and your grandparents?Discuss and offer explanations and examples concerning what fitsand what does not.