Publication Type
Book Chapter
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
3-2018
Abstract
This chapter describes the savanna theory of happiness, which posits that it may not be only the consequences of a given situation in the current environment that affect individuals’ happiness but also what its consequences would have been in the ancestral environment. The theory further suggests that the effect of such ancestral consequences on happiness is stronger among less intelligent individuals than among more intelligent individuals. Consistent with the theory, being an ethnic minority, living in urban areas, and socializing with friends less frequently all reduce happiness, but the effects of these conditions are significantly stronger among less intelligent individuals than among more intelligent individuals. The theory can further explain why some individuals suffer from seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and why women’s level of happiness has steadily declined in the United States in the past half-century.
Keywords
Evolutionary psychology, Positive psychology, Add Health
Discipline
Multicultural Psychology | Psychology | Social Psychology
Research Areas
Psychology
Publication
Oxford Handbook of Evolution, Biology, and Society
Editor
Rosemary L. Hopcroft
First Page
171
Last Page
194
ISBN
9780190299323
Identifier
10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190299323.013.48
Publisher
Oxford University Press
City or Country
Oxford
Citation
KANAZAWA, Satoshi, & LI, Norman P.. (2018). The savanna theory of happiness. In Oxford Handbook of Evolution, Biology, and Society (pp. 171-194). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2672
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190299323.013.48