Money really doesn’t buy happiness, study finds

By John M Grohol PsyD
February 17, 2006

Money doesn’t buy happiness, and now there’s a study to prove it. Australian researchers found that people in well-off Sydney are among the most miserable in the country, while those in some of the poorest areas are much more satisfied with their lives.

“Only at very, very high levels does money actually have any impact to act as a buffer,” said Deakin University researcher Liz Eckerman.

“Money doesn’t actually buy happiness and that’s what was shown very clearly for the nearly 23,000 people we’ve interviewed so far,” she told ABC radio.

The findings, collated since 2001, show that while there are no extremes of well-being in Australia, the happiest areas had a lower population, more people aged 55 or over, more women, more married people and less income inequality.

The survey assessed a person’s satisfaction with their standard of living, health, relationships, life achievement, safety, community connection and future security.

Dr. John Grohol is the CEO and founder of Psych Central. He has been writing about online behavior, mental health and psychology issues, and the intersection of technology and psychology since 1992.