Deck 17: Psychology in Action: Well-Being and Happiness

Question 1

According to Sarah,she finds her life close to ideal,and,so far,has gotten most of what she has wanted in life.In fact,if she had the opportunity to live her life over,she says that she would change almost nothing.Sarah is high in

A)life satisfaction.
B)self-efficacy.
C)actualized living.
D)resiliency.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Mary is very satisfied with her life.She describes her life as "a sunny day with only an occasional dark cloud." Mary is exhibiting

A)self-efficacy.
B)hypomania.
C)subjective well-being.
D)emotional intelligence.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Regarding the relationship of personal factors to happiness,which of the following statements is TRUE?

A)Life satisfaction and happiness decline with age.
B)Single people are happier than married people.
C)There is a strong positive association between wealth and happiness.
D)There is a small positive association between happiness and holding spiritual beliefs.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Regarding the research on happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)In determining one's happiness,the nature of an event is more important than the way you perceive or interpret this event.
B)Subjective well­being is affected by one's goals,choices,emotions,values,and personality.
C)People who are good at dodging life's hard knocks tend to create their own "luck" and tend to be happier.
D)Happiness is related to good and bad life events,but the impact is smaller than expected.

Question 5

Which of the following psychologists studied happiness and developed the "Satisfaction with Life Scale"?

A)Carol Gilligan
B)Lawrence Kohlberg
C)Erik Erikson
D)Ed Diener

Question 6

According to psychologist Diener and his associates,subjective well-being occurs when people are generally satisfied with their lives and

A)have a great deal of financial wealth.
B)are relatively famous or recognized for their accomplishments.
C)have had few health issues throughout their lives.
D)have frequent positive emotions and few negative emotions.

Question 7

Although Jack's childhood was impoverished and difficult,Jack is presently working his way through college.His friends say that Jack is "good at dodging life's hard knocks" and has made his own "luck." According to the research on subjective well-being,Jack

A)would be considered low in subjective well-being.
B)is using denial to get through life and probably suffers from depression.
C)is most likely happier than most people and will be good at negotiating life's demands.
D)has developed a sociopathic personality and is most likely a con artist.

Question 8

Matt has had a wonderful semester at college.He has made A's or B's on most of his tests and assignments.He enjoys his part-time job and recently got a raise,and he has a steady girlfriend,whom he enjoys spending time with and who is also very supportive.However,Matt's mother called this morning to tell him that his grandfather,to whom he is very close,is very ill.According to the research,Matt's happiness or subjective well­being would be

A)low due to the overwhelmingly negative emotion Matt is feeling regarding his grandfather's illness.
B)neutral,since the intense negative emotion generated by his grandfather's illness cancels out the positive emotions generated by Matt's everyday college experiences.
C)high because Matt is experiencing frequent positive emotions and relatively few negative emotions.
D)unpredictable,since Matt is young,and his emotions tend to fluctuate daily.

Question 9

Regarding the research on happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)Happiness tends to come from within a person and is affected by one's goals,choices,emotions,values,and personality.
B)One's happiness is directly determined by the good and bad life events that happen to a person.
C)Regarding happiness,the way situations are perceived,interpreted,and managed is as important as the nature of the situations themselves.
D)People who are good at dodging life's hard knocks tend to create their own "luck" and tend to be happier.

Question 10

Both happiness and living a "good life" depend greatly on individual needs and

A)longevity.
B)financial wealth.
C)cultural values.
D)the number of friends one has.

Question 11

If you agree with the statements that "the conditions of your life are excellent" and that "so far you have gotten the important things you want in life," you

A)are high in life satisfaction.
B)have achieved self-actualization.
C)tend to be overly optimistic and somewhat naive.
D)have a Type C personality.

Question 12

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a person who is high in life satisfaction?

A)finding life to be in most ways ideal
B)so far has gotten the important things one wants in life
C)would change almost nothing if given the chance to live life over
D)leads a planned,careful,and controlled existence

Question 13

Sandra has experienced a great deal of misfortune during the last ten years,while Teresa has experienced an abundance of wonderful life events during the same ten years.However,Sandra appears to be a much happier person than Teresa.Which of the following is the best explanation for these two women's emotional states?

A)Although Teresa does not appear to be extremely happy on the outside,she must really be very happy since it is one's life events that determine subjective well­being.
B)Sandra is in denial regarding her "sad" situation and will suffer depression and poor health in the future.
C)Sandra must be good at negotiating and managing these unhappy events in her life.
D)Teresa most likely has a mental illness that is preventing her from experiencing happiness.

Question 14

Regarding the relationship of personal factors to happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)Life satisfaction and happiness decline with age.
B)Married people report greater happiness than people who are divorced,separated,or single.
C)People who win lotteries are often less happy than they were before winning the lottery.
D)More educated people tend to be a little happier than the less educated.

Question 15

Regarding the relationship of personal factors to happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)Less educated people tend to be a little happier than the more educated.
B)Overall,men and women do not differ in happiness,although women do have a tendency to experience higher emotional highs and lower lows than men do.
C)People who are satisfied with their jobs tend to be happier,but the association between happiness and job satisfaction is weak.
D)Married people report greater happiness than people who are divorced,separated,or single.

Question 16

Although being happy depends a great deal on one's overall life satisfaction,Diener and associates also believe that which of the following is very important?

A)one's age and health status
B)status and overall accomplishments as judged by one's peers
C)one's day­to­day emotional experiences
D)one's overall relationship with family and friends

Question 17

Kanzi would be described as being generally satisfied with her life and reports having frequent positive emotions and relatively few negative emotions.Kanzi is exhibiting

A)self-efficacy.
B)subjective well-being.
C)life actualization.
D)emotional intelligence.

Question 18

The relationship of happiness to good and bad life events would best be described as

A)almost a perfect positive correlation.
B)significant for the vast majority of people.
C)a relatively small relationship.
D)unpredictable.

Question 19

The happiest people are those who have

A)had some positive emotional experiences but have overcome many negative experiences.
B)lots of positive emotional experiences and lots of negative experiences.
C)equal numbers of positive and negative emotional experiences.
D)many positive emotional experiences and relatively few negative experiences.

Question 20

Regarding the relationship of wealth to happiness,which of the following statements is/are TRUE?

A)More resources can bring happiness to people living in poverty.
B)The overall association between money and happiness is quite strong.
C)The positive effects of wealth tend to cancel out the new life stresses that instant riches usually bring into a person's life.
D)All of these statements are true.

Question 21

Regarding one's personal goals and happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)The importance of personal goals helps explain why specific circumstances tell us so little about happiness.
B)It is often difficult to know if an event is good or bad without knowing what a person is trying to achieve in life.
C)People tend to be happy if they are making progress,on a day-to-day basis,on smaller goals that relate to long-term,life goals.
D)Attaining goals even if these goals do not express our deeper interests and values will still add considerably to our overall happiness.

Question 22

Regarding the relationship of age and gender to happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)People are living longer and staying healthier,which has greatly delayed age-related declines.
B)When declines in happiness do occur,older people today seem significantly less able to cope with them.
C)Overall,men and women do not differ in happiness.
D)More women are found among those rare individuals who are extremely happy or extremely unhappy.

Question 23

Regarding happiness and marital status,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)Married people report greater happiness than separated or divorced people.
B)Single people report greater happiness than married people.
C)Happy people are more likely to get married and stay married.
D)Most people get a small boost in happiness immediately after getting married,but eventually return to about the same level of happiness they had before they were married.

Question 24

Which of the following was NOT found to be a personality trait of the happiest people?

A)outgoing
B)worry-free
C)optimistic
D)compassionate

Question 25

The association between job satisfaction and happiness is

A)considered very significant.
B)considered weak.
C)a zero correlation.
D)dependent on the age of the employee.

Question 26

Compared to less educated persons,those persons with more education tend to be

A)significantly less happy than the less educated.
B)a little happier because they have higher incomes and more social status.
C)neither more nor less happy than the less educated.
D)significantly happier because they are more intelligent and feel more empowered.

Question 27

Regarding the relationship of personality and happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)To a degree,some people are more temperamentally disposed to be happy,regardless of life events.
B)In general,happier people tend to be optimistic and worry-free.
C)In general,happier people tend to be introverts.
D)The personality of happy people probably influences the balance of positive and negative emotions they feel.

Question 28

Regarding the relationship of wealth to happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)More resources can bring happiness to people living in poverty.
B)The overall association between money and happiness is weak.
C)People who win lotteries are usually happier than they were before winning the lottery.
D)New life stresses that instant riches usually bring into a person's life tend to cancel out any positive effects of wealth.

Question 29

Regarding happiness and subjective well-being,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)People tend to be happy if they are making progress,on a day-to-day basis,on smaller goals that relate to long-term,life goals.
B)Attaining goals that do not express our deeper interests and values may add little to happiness.
C)Knowing the specific circumstances that have occurred or are occurring in a person's life are good predictors of a person's overall happiness.
D)Purpose and meaning are important sources of well-being especially at midlife,but appear to be important at any point in one's life.

Question 30

Regarding the relationship of age and gender to happiness,which of the following statements is TRUE?

A)The stereotype of the crotchety old person who is dissatisfied with everything is quite accurate.
B)People are living longer and staying healthier,which has greatly delayed age-related declines.
C)Overall,men tend to be happier than women.
D)Men do have a tendency to experience higher emotional highs and lower lows than women do.

Question 31

To know if someone is happy,it is helpful to ask which of the following questions?

A)"How old is the person and how is this person's health?"
B)"What are the significant positive and negative events that have occurred in this person's life in the last five years?"
C)"Does the person have a close relationship with their parents and how many friends does he or she have?"
D)"What is this person trying to do in life and how well is she or he succeeding at it?"

Question 32

Regarding happiness and holding religious beliefs,there is relationship.

A)no
B)a negative
C)a small positive
D)a high positive

Question 33

People tend to be happy when they

A)have a close relationship with their parents and children.
B)have a large circle of diverse friendships.
C)are meeting their personal goals.
D)are recognized for their accomplishments by their peers.

Question 34

Jeffery just won a large lottery.If he is like most lottery winners,

A)he will be significantly happier than he was before winning the lottery.
B)he will be less happy than he was before winning the lottery.
C)his level of happiness will not change since instant riches have not been shown to affect happiness.
D)his level of happiness is not predictable.

Question 35

Happier people tend to be all of the following EXCEPT

A)introverted and careful.
B)married and religious.
C)comfortable with their work.
D)making progress toward their goals.

Question 36

Regarding the relationship of age and gender to happiness,which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)Life satisfaction and happiness generally do not decline with age.
B)When declines in happiness do occur,older people today seem better able to cope with them.
C)Overall,women tend to be happier than men do.
D)Women have a tendency to experience higher emotional highs and lower lows than men do.

Question 37

According to your textbook,the finding that more educated people tend to be a little happier than the less educated appears to occur because higher education generally results in

A)better health and a longer life.
B)more hobbies and leisure time.
C)higher income and more social status.
D)more personal accomplishments and a diversity of interests.

Question 38

Church membership and holding religious beliefs have been shown to do all of the following EXCEPT

A)increase one's social status.
B)add feelings of purpose and meaning in life.
C)provide social support that softens the impact of life's negative events.
D)have a small positive association with happiness.

Question 39

You describe your best friend Jordan by saying that he is an extreme extrovert,worry-free a majority of the time,an incurable optimist,shows an insatiable curiosity about the world,and continues to be a happy person no matter what "life throws at him." According to the research on happiness,which characteristic of Jordan's does NOT appear to contribute to his happiness?

A)being an extrovert
B)being an optimist
C)being worry-free
D)being curious about the world

Question 40

Regarding their personality,happier people tend to be

A)extroverted,optimistic,and worry-free.
B)introverted,careful,and responsible.
C)spontaneous,impulsive,and carefree.
D)independent,aggressive,and charming.

Question 41

Define subjective well-being;describe a person who is high in life satisfaction,according to the "Satisfaction with Life Scale";and explain the relationship of subjective well-being to one's emotions,personality,and the pursuit of one's goals.

Question 42

Regarding whether one is married,separated,divorced,or single,the people who report the greatest happiness are the people who are __________.

Question 43

There is a small but positive association between happiness and holding spiritual beliefs.

Question 44

General life satisfaction combined with frequent positive emotions and relatively few negative emotions is called
__________.

Question 45

Explain how and why each of the following factors influences one's happiness: (a)life events; (b)income,including the effects of "instant riches"; (c)education; (d)marital status; (e)religion; (f)age; (g)gender;and (h)work.

Question 46

Regarding their personality,happier people tend to be optimistic,worry-free,and .

Question 47

Research shows that people tend to be happy if they are making progress toward their personal .

Question 48

Less educated people tend to be a little happier than the people who are more educated.

Question 49

People who win lotteries are often less happy than they were before winning.

Question 50

Some people are more temperamentally disposed to be happy,regardless of life events.

Question 51

The happiest people are those who have lots of positive and lots of negative emotional experiences.

Question 52

The psychologist who developed the "Satisfaction with Life Scale" to study happiness and feelings of well-being was
__________.