Happiness, How Much Does It Cost... "Annual Salary of 120 Million Won"

Nobel Economics Laureate Daniel Kahneman's Research
"Happiness Changes According to Income"

A study claiming that "money can buy happiness" has attracted attention.

On the 8th (local time), Bloomberg reported, citing a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, that "life satisfaction steadily increases with income and maximizes when the annual salary exceeds $100,000."

The study was conducted by Daniel Kahneman, an economist and psychologist who won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2002, along with doctoral psychology students at Harvard University, surveying 33,391 adults aged 18 to 65 living in the United States.

The research team explained that their median income was $85,000 per year (approximately 112 million KRW). Kahneman had previously argued in a 2010 paper that "happiness grows with income and peaks at an annual salary of $60,000 to $90,000."

However, this new study derived different results. Kahneman's research team explained, "The happiness of Americans earning between $100,000 and less than $500,000 increased as income rose."

Investigations are ongoing to determine whether the happiness-enhancing effect also appears among those earning more than $500,000 annually. Kahneman told Bloomberg, "While it appears that happiness steadily rises in the top income group (annual salary of $500,000), research on how far this extends is not yet complete."

Nevertheless, Kahneman's research team emphasized that the impact of income on overall happiness is not as significant compared to other factors. They also explained that taking breaks helps form positive psychological states.

He added, "Money certainly helps the happiness of very poor people. But if someone has an adequate income and still feels miserable, the root of their unhappiness may not be something that money can fix."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.