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If you are happy, you owe it primarily to their genes
Surely you also know people who are in a good mood and happy all day long. If so, you may have wondered why these people seem so satisfied. Happiness is a matter of attitude or are the causes quite elsewhere?
Some people are just happier and happier. But what causes this inner satisfaction and the associated feelings of happiness? Gurus claim that happiness is a state of mind. Now, however, the result of an international study shows that happiness could be a function of our genes. The study was published in the journal "Journal of Happiness Studies".
According to a recent study, our sense of happiness is significantly influenced by the genes. (Bilddrubig-photo / fotolia.com) Security and prosperity are not the most important factors for happiness
Everybody desires to lead a happy and contented life. In most countries happiness is equated above all with health, financial well-being and personal security. But such factors could be completely unimportant for our inner sense of happiness. Feeling happy, relaxed and contented does not depend on the prosperity or overall security of the country, said co-author Professor Michael Minkov. The connection between luck and security seems to be unimportant. The highest murder and robbery rates in the world exist in Africa and northern Latin America, and that's where the happiest people live, said the doctor from the Varna University of Management in Bulgaria.
World's most comprehensive survey evaluated so far
The new study found that there seems to be a link between genetics and happiness at the national level. Professor Minkov and his colleague Professor Michael Harris Bond of Hong Kong Polytechnic University evaluated the data from the World Values Survey for their study. This is the largest and most extensive survey of human values ever conducted. Through international research, the status of socio-cultural, moral, religious and political values in different cultures around the world is to be determined.
Gene variant "A-alleles" massively influences our sense of happiness
The scientists compared the data collected with the ethnic prevalence of "A alleles", a gene variant involved in the regulation of anandamide. This substance, increases the sensual pleasure and reduces our pain, explained the doctors. The country with the highest happiness rating is Mexico. The population there also had the highest frequency of "A alleles". Ghana and Nigeria also had high scores for both scores, as did Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador, the researchers say in their study. Countries such as Iraq, Jordan, Hong Kong, China, Thailand and Taiwan all had a low prevalence of "A alleles". In these countries, very few people rated themselves as "very happy". Northern Europeans have a much higher prevalence of "A alleles" and are happier than Central and Southern Europeans, the researchers report.
High A-allele concentration in equatorial and tropical regions
Evolution is a possible explanation for the higher A-allele prevalence in the equatorial and tropical environment, said Professor Minkov. Maybe people in stressful societies would need those genes to cope with the stress and to survive. The same could apply to the cold and rough Northern Europe, added the physician. But of course it's not just genes, the team emphasized. Because there are also exceptions: Russians and Estonians, although high A-allele levels, but were on the luck scale very far down. The reason for this could be a lasting effect of economic and political difficulties, write the authors.