Can Money Buy Happiness?

Ampersand

You can use money to buy things that make you happy.

Money = Things = Happiness
 
Therefore Money = Happiness

Doesn't apply to everyone, people can be non materialistic, but it definitely applies to plenty of people.

ndokman20

No money can't buy happiness because with money you can only buy items, not friendships and love which is what truly makes a person happy.

JohnBrask

What up Dokman

cuphus

 BOSK @ndokman20

cuphus

No money can't buy happiness.  In the end money can not buy love and friendships.  It has been seen over the years that celebrities have been on record to say they are no where near happiness. 

BaconToes

ndokman20 said:

No money can't buy happiness because with money you can only buy items, not friendships and love which is what truly makes a person happy.

Money cannot buy true love and friendship. There is something called G-O-L-D-D-I-G-G-E-R-S. But there is nothing called "true love" sadly. Most things are affected by wealth, again sadly.

Ampersand

Money can however buy food, water, shelter and other essential human needs without which almost anyone would be unhappy. It can also aid in self-actualisation, e.g. someone who has the money to pursue their dreams will likely be happier than someone working a 9-5 job who'll never become a professional actor or whatever.

MajoMILSdlGMGV

It is actually one of the most studied relationships in this past century, wether there is a correlation between money and happiness. The result is that money in fact can buy happiness. The problem is that people expect the wrong thing or expect too much from money. Another issue is that people don't know what makes them happy so they don't know how to use their money to invest in their happiness. Here are some studies and research on how money influences happiness. 

Some research shows that going from making less than $20,000 a year to making more than $50,000 a year makes you twice as likely to be happy, but if you surpass $90,000 a year they payoff isn't that much more. 

Another way that money buys happiness is because it buys experiences. Those who buy material things will probably not feel that much happier but if they buy experiences that they can share with those they love, then they do experience a lot more happiness, especially because personal relationships bring us a lot of joy. So instead of buying a ferrari you spend your money on a vacation with your family or your wife or partner, in which you can spend time creating new memories. The key here is spending money on things that may not last physically but will remain in your memory for the rest of your life. 

According to a research led by the University of British Columbia and Harvard Business School suggests that using your money to buy free time is linked to greater satisfactions. When they say "buy free time" they are referring to things such as paying people to clean your home, to do the laundry, to mow the lawn, etc. UBC psychology professor and the study's senior author Elizabeth Dunn said "The benefits of buying time aren't just for wealthy people. We thought the effects might only hold up for people with quite a bit of disposable income, but to our surprise, we found the same effects across the income spectrum." She also said "Although buying time can serve as a buffer against the time pressures of daily life, few people are doing it even when they can afford it. Lots of research has shown that people benefit from buying their way into pleasant experiences, but our research suggests people should also consider buying their way out of unpleasant experiences."

Sources: http://time.com/4856954/can-money-buy-you-happiness/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170724161258.htm

someone234

I posted this before on this site almost word-for-word but I'll say it again:

Happy people make themselves happier, the richer that they get.

Unhappy people don't.

Happiness is down to how one uses what they have.

The answer is yes happiness increases with income for the happy and no it doesn't for the unhappy.

Mike

In a large part, freedom is a function of money according to Nobel laureate Friedrich Hayek where he stated, “Money is one of the greatest instruments of freedom ever invented by man.” That is, the more money one has, the more freedom there is to do and buy things, etc., because nearly most of our actions come at a cost. Throughout life, freedom helps in the pursuit of happiness; hence, our “unalienable Rights.”

someone234

@Mike For once you actually state something true.

MayCaesar

I think whether it does depends on your personal system of values. Let me suggest two examples illustrating this point of view.

1. What if your dream is to sail your own private yacht in the Pacific ocean all year around, fishing and relaxing? In this case, you can almost literally buy happiness, and you won't be as happy as you can be unless you are very wealthy.
2. On the other hand, if your idea of a perfect life is living in a small apartment with your loved ones, having a peaceful and quiet life  - then money cannot provide what you seek, and you have to obtain it by other means.

Something that I think holds true for everyone, however, is that having money opens up a lot of opportunities for realization of your dreams. All other factors equal, having more money means you have more options to choose from when building up your life to match your idyllic vision of perfect outcome. While it is definitely possible to achieve happiness while being poor, being rich makes achieving it easier and gives you more viable routes towards happiness.

I will conclude this argument with the popular joke: "It is better to be rich and healthy than poor and sick".