March 20th marks the International Day of Happiness. However, uncovering the secrets to a fulfilling life can indeed span an entire lifetime. Even after 88 years, the world’s longest-running study on happiness is still ongoing.
In 1938, Harvard University researchers launched a study to contrast the lives of two cohorts of young white men: one group comprised of privileged Harvard students (including John F. Kennedy before his presidency), and the other, a disadvantaged group of adolescents from one of Boston’s poorest neighborhoods during the Great Depression.
Over the ensuing decades, the Harvard Study of Adult Development incorporated hundreds of new participants, extending to include women and children, and the research persists to this day.
It is now arguably the most enduring longitudinal study of adult life ever conducted. It has required several generations of scientists and four directors to manage, and it boasts an exceptionally low attrition rate, almost unheard of for a study of this magnitude and duration.
Eight decades, hundreds of peer-reviewed publications, and countless questionnaires, physical examinations, and personal interviews with participants later, the team has amassed crucial insights into what best predicts health and well-being in later life.
Overall, the strongest predictors of a happy and meaningful existence turned out not to be wealth, fame, hard work, intelligence, or even possessing “good” genes.
However, approximately 30 years ago, the research team uncovered a striking correlation between close relationships and how good people perceived their lives to be.
The study cannot definitively prove that relationships cause happiness or good health, yet the patterns observed certainly lead one to draw specific conclusions.
When researchers aggregated all available data concerning participants at age 50, they discovered that physical health markers, such as cholesterol levels, were not the best predictors of longevity. Instead, it was their level of satisfaction with their relationships.
Individuals who reported the highest satisfaction with their friends and family circle in middle age were the healthiest at age 80—they experienced fewer illnesses and recovered from sicknesses more readily.
“Initially, we doubted this data,” reflects psychiatrist Robert Waldinger, the study’s current director. “How is it possible for relationships to impact our health and affect our physical bodies?”
Yet, time and again, it became evident that strong connections with family, friends, and community generally lead to longer, happier, and physically healthier lives. Data from other research has also emerged, suggesting that relationships may help maintain physical vitality and mental sharpness in older adults.
Conversely, feelings of loneliness emerged as a significant risk factor for poor well-being. Some studies indicate that isolation and loneliness can increase the risk of premature death by over 25 percent. Other findings even suggest that isolation may alter the very function and structure of our brains.
Nonetheless, surrounding oneself with a massive quantity of people simply to avoid being alone is not the solution either. As Waldinger explains, the key lies in the quality of the connections you forge.
In a peer-reviewed study from 2010, Waldinger and clinical psychologist Marc Schulz, Associate Director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, analyzed findings gathered from their team among 47 married couples in their eighties.
Those who reported greater marital satisfaction displayed a stronger ability to resist the negative effects of poor health on their happiness. Conversely, those dissatisfied with their marriages were more likely to experience unhappiness stemming from ill health.
In essence, fulfilling relationships appear to act as a protective buffer against the inherent stresses and anxieties of life.
However, critics argue that the findings from the Harvard Study of Adult Development are overly simplistic and primarily applicable to a relatively small cohort of predominantly white individuals in the United States during a very specific historical epoch.
Quantifying what makes a relationship “good” or “satisfying” is inherently challenging, and linking these feelings and emotions directly to specific health outcomes is even more complex.
It is highly probable that a singular, universal secret to health or happiness does not exist, but a decades-long study involving hundreds of people can still yield invaluable knowledge.
“The very first researchers of this study would never have imagined that today I would be sitting here discussing how our scientific work continues with these same families,” Waldinger remarked.
Now entering its ninth decade, the Harvard Study of Adult Development intends to continue its “journey of discovery,” adding to its “treasure trove” of data, thereby enabling “people to live healthier lives filled with meaning, connection, and purpose.”
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