Well-Being: Heritable and Changeable

Stability of Happiness: Theories and Evidence on Whether Happiness Can Change

Volumn , Issue , 2014, Pages 9-36

  Røysamb, Espen ^a   Nes, Ragnhild Bang ^b   Vittersø, Joar ^c  

^a UNIVERSITY OF OSLO   (Norway)

^b NORWEGIAN INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH   (Norway)

^c UNIVERSITY OF TROMSØ   (Norway)

Author keywords

Change; Environment; Genetic; Heritability; Twins; Well being

Indexed keywords

EID: 84942605368     PISSN: None     EISSN: None     Source Type: Book    
DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-411478-4.00002-3     Document Type: Chapter

References (112)

1. Archontaki D., Lewis G.J., Bates T.C. Genetic influences on psychological well-being: a nationally representative twin study. Journal of Personality 2013, 81(2):221-230.
2. Ask H., Idstad M., Engdahl B., Tambs K. Non-random mating and convergence over time for mental health, life satisfaction, and personality: The Nord-Trondelag health study. Behavior Genetics 2013, 43(2):108-119.
3. Ask H., Rognmo K., Torvik F.A., Røysamb E., Tambs K. Non-random mating and convergence over time for alcohol consumption, smoking, and exercise: The Nord-Trondelag Health Study. Behavior Genetics 2012, 42(3):354-365.
4. Bartels M., Boomsma D.I. Born to be happy? The etiology of subjective well-being. Behavior Genetics 2009, 39(6):605-615.
5. Bartels M., Cacioppo J.T., van Beijsterveldt T.C.E.M., Boomsma D.I. Exploring the association between well-being and psychopathology in adolescents. Behavior Genetics 2013, 43(3):177-190.
6. Bergin J.E., Neale M.C., Eaves L.J., Martin N.G., Heath A.C., Maes H.H. Genetic and environmental transmission of body mass index fluctuation. Behavior Genetics 2012, 42(6):867-874.
7. Bolier L., Haverman M., Westerhof G.J., Riper H., Smit F., Bohlmeijer E. Positive psychology interventions: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies. BMC Public Health 2013, 13:119.
8. Bouchard T.J. Genetic influence on human psychological traits-A survey. Current Directions in Psychological Science 2004, 13(4):148-151.
9. Bradburn N.M. The structure of psychological well-being 1969, Plenum, New York.
10. Canli T. Functional brain mapping of extraversion and neuroticism: Learning from individual differences in emotion processing. Journal of Personality 2004, 72(6):1105-1132.
11. Canli T., Lesch K.P. Long story short: The serotonin transporter in emotion regulation and social cognition. Nature Neuroscience 2007, 10(9):1103-1109.
12. Cantril H. The pattern of human concerns 1965, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 4th ed.
13. Caprara G.V., Fagnani C., Alessandri G., Steca P., Gigantesco A., Sforza L.L.C., et al. Human optimal functioning: The genetics of positive orientation towards self, life, and the future. Behavior Genetics 2009, 39(3):277-284.
14. Caspi A., McClay J., Moffitt T.E., Mill J., Martin J., Craig I.W., et al. Role of genotype in the cycle of violence in maltreated children. Science 2002, 297(5582):851-854.
15. Caspi A., Moffitt T.E. Gene-environment interactions in psychiatry: Joining forces with neuroscience. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 2006, 7(7):583-590.
16. Caspi A., Moffitt T.E., Cannon M., McClay J., Murray R., Harrington H., et al. Moderation of the effect of adolescent-onset cannabis use on adult psychosis by a functional polymorphism in the catechol-O-methyltransferase gene: Longitudinal evidence of a gene X environment interaction. Biological Psychiatry 2005, 57(10):1117-1127.
17. Caspi A., Sugden K., Moffitt T.E., Taylor A., Craig I.W., Harrington H., et al. Influence of life stress on depression: Moderation by a polymorphism in the 5-HTT gene. Science 2003, 301(5631):386-389.
18. Chen F.F., Jing Y., Hayes A., Lee J.M. Two concepts or two approaches? A bifactor analysis of psychological and subjective well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies 2012, 14(3):1033-1068.
19. Crisp, R. (2005). Well-being. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Available from . http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2005/entries/well-being/.
20. David S.A., Boniwell I., Conley Ayers A. The Oxford handbook of happiness 2013, Oxford University Press, New York, NY.
21. De Neve J.E., Christakis N.A., Fowler J.H., Frey B.S. Genes, economics, and happiness. Journal of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Economics 2012, 5:4.
22. Diener E., Emmons R.A., Larsen R.J., Griffin S. The Satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment 1985, 49(1):71-75.
23. Diener E., Helliwell J.F., Kahneman D. International differences in well-being 2010, Oxford University Press, New York, NY.
24. Diener E., Inglehart R., Tay L. Theory and validity of life satisfaction scales. Social Indicators Research 2013, 112(3):497-527.
25. Diener E., Lucas R.E., Scollon C.N. Beyond the hedonic treadmill: Revising the adaptation theory of well-being. American Psychologist 2006, 61(4):305-314.
26. Diener E., Tay L., Oishi S. Rising income and the subjective well-being of nations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2013, 104(2):267-276.
27. Dubois L., Kyvik K.O., Girard M., Tatone-Tokuda F., Perusse D., Hjelmborg J., et al. Genetic and environmental contributions to weight, height, and BMI from birth to 19 years of age: An international study of over 12,000 twin pairs. Plos One 2012, 7(2):e30153.
28. Dufort G.G., Kovess V., Boivin J.F. Spouse similarity for psychological distress and well-being-a population study. Psychological Medicine 1994, 24(2):431-447.
29. Dyrdal G.M., Røysamb E., Nes R.B., Vittersø J. Can a happy relationship predict a happy life? A population-based study of maternal well-being during the life transition of pregnancy, infancy, and toddlerhood. Journal of Happiness Studies 2011, 12(6):947-962.
30. Eid M., Diener E. Global judgments of subjective well-being: Situational variability and long-term stability. Social Indicators Research 2004, 65(3):245-277.
31. Eid M., Riemann R., Angleitner A., Borkenau P. Sociability and positive emotionality: Genetic and environmental contributions to the covariation between different facets of extraversion. Journal of Personality 2003, 71(3):319-346.
32. Fowler J.H., Christakis N.A. Dynamic spread of happiness in a large social network: Longitudinal analysis over 20 years in the Framingham heart study. British Medical Journal 2008, 337:a2338.
33. Franz C.E., Panizzon M.S., Eaves L.J., Thompson W., Lyons M.J., Jacobson K.C., et al. Genetic and environmental multidimensionality of well- and ill-being in middle aged twin men. Behavior Genetics 2012, 42(4):579-591.
34. Fujita F., Diener E. Life satisfaction set point: Stability and change. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2005, 88(1):158-164.
35. Gigantesco A., Stazi M.A., Alessandri G., Medda E., Tarolla E., Fagnani C. Psychological well-being (PWB): A natural life outlook? An Italian twin study on heritability of PWB in young adults. Psychological Medicine 2011, 41(12):2637-2649.
36. Harris J.R., Magnus P., Tambs K. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health twin program of research: An update. Twin Research and Human Genetics 2006, 9(6):858-864.
37. Headey B. Set-point theory may now need replacing: Death of a paradigm?. The Oxford handbook of happiness 2013, 887-900. Oxford University Press, New York, NY. D. Boniwell, C. Ayers (Eds.).
38. Headey B., Muffels R., Wagner G.G. Long-running German panel survey shows that personal and economic choices, not just genes, matter for happiness. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2010, 107(42):17922-17926.
39. Johnson W., Krueger R.F. How money buys happiness: Genetic and environmental processes linking finances and life satisfaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2006, 90(4):680-691.
40. Johnson W., McGue M., Krueger R.F. Personality stability in late adulthood: A behavioral genetic analysis. Journal of Personality 2005, 73(2):523-552.
41. Kendler K.S., Karkowski-Shuman L. Stressful life events and genetic liability to major depression: Genetic control of exposure to the environment. Psychological Medicine 1997, 27(3):539-547.
42. Kendler K.S., Myers J.M., Keyes C.L.M. The relationship between the genetic and environmental influences on common externalizing psychopathology and mental wellbeing. Twin Research and Human Genetics 2011, 14(6):516-523.
43. Kendler K.S., Myers J.M., Maes H.H., Keyes C.L.M. The relationship between the genetic and environmental influences on common internalizing psychiatric disorders and mental well-being. Behavior Genetics 2011, 41(5):641-650.
44. Kessler R.C., Berglund P., Demler O., Jin R., Merikangas K.R., Walters E.E. Lifetime prevalence and age-of-onset distributions of DSM-IV disorders in the national comorbidity survey replication. Archives of General Psychiatry 2005, 62(6):593-602.
45. Kessler R.C., Petukhova M., Sampson N.A., Zaslavsky A.M., Wittchen H.-U. Twelve-month and lifetime prevalence and lifetime morbid risk of anxiety and mood disorders in the United States. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research 2012, 21(3):169-184.
46. Keyes C.L.M. Promotion and protection of positive mental health: Towards complete mental health in human development. The Oxford handbook of happiness 2013, 915-925. Oxford University Press, New York, NY. D. Boniwell, C. Ayers (Eds.).
47. Keyes C.L.M., Myers J.M., Kendler K.S. The structure of the genetic and environmental influences on mental well-being. American Journal of Public Health 2010, 100(12):2379-2384.
48. King J.E., Landau V.I. Can chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) happiness be estimated by human raters?. Journal of Research in Personality 2003, 37(1):1-15.
49. Krueger R.F., South S., Johnson W., Iacono W. The heritability of personality is not always 50%: Gene-environment interactions and correlations between personality and parenting. Journal of Personality 2008, 76(6):1485-1522.
50. Lucas R.E. Adaptation and the set-point model of subjective well-being: Does happiness change after major life events?. Current Directions in Psychological Science 2007, 16(2):75-79.
51. Lucas R.E., Clark A.E., Georgellis Y., Diener E. Unemployment alters the set point for life satisfaction. Psychological Science 2004, 15(1):8-13.
52. Lucas R.E., Diener E. Personality and subjective well-being. Handbook of personality: Theory and research 2008, 795-814. Guilford Press, New York, NY. 3rd ed. O.P. John, R.W. Robins, L.A. Pervin (Eds.).
53. Lucas R.E., Donnellan M.B. How stable is happiness? Using the STARTS model to estimate the stability of life satisfaction. Journal of Research in Personality 2007, 41(5):1091-1098.
54. Luhmann M., Hofmann W., Eid M., Lucas R.E. Subjective well-being and adaptation to life events: A meta-analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2012, 102(3):592-615.
55. Lykken D. Happiness: What studies on twins show us about nature, nurture, and the happiness set-point 1999, Golden Books, New York, NY.
56. Lykken D., Tellegen A. Happiness is a stochastic phenomenon. Psychological Science 1996, 7(3):186-189.
57. Lyubomirsky S., Layous K. How do simple positive activities increase well-being?. Current Directions in Psychological Science 2013, 22(1):57-62.
58. Lyubomirsky S., Lepper H.S. A measure of subjective happiness: Preliminary reliability and construct validation. Social Indicators Research 1999, 46(2):137-155.
59. Lyubomirsky S., Sheldon K.M., Schkade D. Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainable change. Review of General Psychology 2005, 9(2):111-131.
60. Matteson L.K., McGue M.K., Iacono W. Is dispositional happiness contagious? The impact of the well-being of family members on individual well-being. Journal of Individual Differences 2013, 34(2):90-96.
61. McGue M. From proteins to cognitions: The behavioral genetics of alcoholism. Nature, nurture & psychology 1993, 245-268. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC. R. Plomin, G.E. McClearn (Eds.).
62. McGue M. The end of behavioral genetics?. Behavior Genetics 2010, 40(3):284-296.
63. McGue M., Bacon S., Lykken D.T. Personality stability and change in early adulthood: A behavioral genetic analysis. Developmental Psychology 1993, 29(1):96-109.
64. Menne-Lothmann C., Jacobs N., Derom C., Thiery E., van Os J., Wichers M. Genetic and environmental causes of individual differences in daily life positive affect and reward experience and its overlap with stress-sensitivity. Behavior Genetics 2012, 42(5):778-786.
65. Merikangas K.R. Assortative mating for psychiatric disorders and psychological traits. Archives of General Psychiatry 1982, 39(10):1173-1180.
66. Moffitt T.E., Caspi A., Rutter M. Measured gene-environment interactions in psychopathology. Concepts, research strategies, and implications for research, intervention, and public understanding of genetics. Perspectives on Psychological Science 2006, 1(1):5-27.
67. Mosing M.A., Pedersen N.L., Cesarini D., Johannesson M., Magnusson P.K.E., Nakamura J., et al. Genetic and environmental influences on the relationship between flow proneness, locus of control and behavioral inhibition. Plos One 2012, 7(11):e47958.
68. Mosing M.A., Zietsch B.P., Shekar S.N., Wright M.J., Martin N.G. Genetic and environmental influences on optimism and its relationship to mental and self-rated health: A study of aging twins. Behavior Genetics 2009, 39(6):597-604.
69. Moum T., Naess S., Sorensen T., Tambs K., Holmen J. Hypertension labeling, life events and psychological well-being. Psychological Medicine 1990, 20(3):635-646.
70. Mroczek D.K., Kolarz C.M. The effect of age on positive and negative affect: A developmental perspective on happiness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1998, 75(5):1333-1349.
71. Nes R., Czajkowski N., Røysamb E., Reichborn-Kjennerud T., Tambs K. Well-being and ill-being: Shared environments, shared genes?. Journal of Positive Psychology 2008, 3(4):253-265.
72. Nes R.B. Happiness in behaviour genetics: Findings and implications. Journal of Happiness Studies 2010, 11(3):369-381.
73. Nes R.B., Czajkowski N., Tambs K. Family matters: Happiness in nuclear families and twins. Behavior Genetics 2010, 40(5):577-590.
74. Nes R.B., Czajkowski N.O., Røysamb E., Orstavik R.E., Tambs K., Reichborn-Kjennerud T. Major depression and life satisfaction: A population-based twin study. Journal of Affective Disorders 2013, 144(1-2):51-58.
75. Nes R.B., Røysamb E., Harris J.R., Czajkowski N., Tambs K. Mates and marriage matter: Genetic and environmental influences on subjective well-being across marital status. Twin Research and Human Genetics 2010, 13(4):312-321.
76. Nes R.B., Røysamb E., Reichborn-Kjennerud T., Tambs K., Harris J.R. Subjective wellbeing and sleep problems: A bivariate twin study. Twin Research and Human Genetics 2005, 8(5):440-449.
77. Nes R.B., Røysamb E., Tambs K., Harris J.R., Reichborn-Kjennerud T. Subjective well-being: Genetic and environmental contributions to stability and change. Psychological Medicine 2006, 36(7):1033-1042.
78. Nieuwsma J.A., Trivedi R.B., McDuffie J., Kronish I., Benjamin D., Williams J.W. Brief psychotherapy for depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine 2012, 43(2):129-151.
79. Nilsen T.S., Knudsen G.P., Gervin K., Brandt I., Røysamb E., Tambs K., et al. The Norwegian Twin Registry from a public health perspective: A research update. Twin Research and Human Genetics 2013, 16(1):285-295.
80. Pedersen N.L., Reynolds C.A. Stability and change in adult personality: Genetic and environmental components. European Journal of Personality 1998, 12(5):365-386.
81. Peterson C., Seligman M.E.P. Character strengths before and after September 11. Psychological Science 2003, 14(4):381-384.
82. Petronis A. Epigenetics as a unifying principle in the aetiology of complex traits and diseases. Nature 2010, 465(7299):721-727.
83. Plomin R. Development, genetics, and psychology 1986, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc, Hillsdale, NJ.
84. Plomin R., DeFries J.C., Craig I.W., McGuffin P. Behavioral genetics in the postgenomic era 2003, American Psychological Association, Washington, DC.
85. Plomin R., Scheier M.F., Bergeman C., Pedersen N.L., Nesselroade J., McClearn G. Optimism, pessimism and mental health: A twin/adoption analysis. Personality and Individual Differences 1992, 13(8):921-930.
86. Pluess M., Belsky J. Vantage sensitivity: Individual differences in response to positive experiences. Psychological Bulletin 2013, 139(4):901-916.
87. Richardson K., Norgate S. The equal environments assumption of classical twin studies may not hold. British Journal of Educational Psychology 2005, 75:339-350.
88. Riemann R., Angleitner A., Borkenau P., Eid M. Genetic and environmental sources of consistency and variability in positive and negative mood. European Journal of Personality 1998, 12(5):345-364.
89. Røysamb E., Harris J.R., Magnus P., Vittersø J., Tambs K. Subjective well-being: Sex-specific effects of genetic and environmental factors. Personality and Individual Differences 2002, 32(2):211-223.
90. Røysamb E., Tambs K., Reichborn-Kjennerud T., Neale M.C., Harris J.R. Happiness and health: Environmental and genetic contributions to the relationship between subjective well-being, perceived health, and somatic illness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003, 85(6):1136-1146.
91. Rutter M., Moffitt T.E., Caspi A. Gene-environment interplay and psychopathology: Multiple varieties but real effects. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 2006, 47(3-4):226-261.
92. Ryff C.D., Keyes C.L.M. The structure of psychological well-being revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1995, 69(4):719-727.
93. Sadler M., Miller C., McGue M., Christensen K. Longevity and subjective well-being: A cotwin control study. Behavior Genetics 2009, 39(6):678.
94. Scarr S., Weinberg R.A. The Minnesota adoption studies: Genetic differences and malleability. Child Development 1983, 54(2):260-267.
95. Schimmack U., Krause P., Wagner G.G., Schupp J. Stability and change of well being: An experimentally enhanced latent state-trait-error analysis. Social Indicators Research 2010, 95(1):19-31.
96. Schnittker J. Happiness and success: Genes, families, and the psychological effects of socioeconomic position and social support. American Journal of Sociology 2008, 114:S233-S259.
97. Seligman M.E.P., Steen T.A., Park N., Peterson C. Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist 2005, 60(5):410-421.
98. Sheldon K.M., Lyubomirsky S. Is it possible to become happier? (And if so, how?). Social and Personality Psychology Compass 2007, 1(1):129-145.
99. Sheldon K.M., Lyubomirsky S. The challenge of staying happier: Testing the hedonic adaptation prevention model. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 2012, 38(5):670-680.
100. Sin N.L., Lyubomirsky S. Enhancing well-being and alleviating depressive symptoms with positive psychology interventions: A practice-friendly meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology 2009, 65(5):467-487.
101. Steger M.F., Hicks B.M., Kashdan T.B., Krueger R.F., Bouchard T.J. Genetic and environmental influences on the positive traits of the values in action classification, and biometric covariance with normal personality. Journal of Research in Personality 2007, 41(3):524-539.
102. Stubbe J.H., Posthuma D., Boomsma D.I., De Geus E.J.C. Heritability of life satisfaction in adults: A twin-family study. Psychological Medicine 2005, 35(11):1581-1588.
103. Tellegen A. Brief manual for the multidimensional personality questionnaire 1982, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
104. Tellegen A., Lykken D.T., Bouchard T.J., Wilcox K.J., Rich S., Segal N.L. Personality similarity in twins reared apart and together. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1988, 54(6):1031-1039.
105. Tsankova N., Renthal W., Kumar A., Nestler E.J. Epigenetic regulation in psychiatric disorders. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 2007, 8(5):355-367.
106. Turkheimer E. Three laws of behavior genetics and what they mean. Current Directions in Psychological Science 2000, 9(5):160-164.
107. Ullen F., de Manzano O., Almeida R., Magnusson P.K.E., Pedersen N.L., Nakamura J., Madison G. Proneness for psychological flow in everyday life: Associations with personality and intelligence. Personality and Individual Differences 2012, 52(2):167-172.
108. Veenhoven R. Well-being in nations and well-being of nations: Is there a conflict between individual and society?. Social Indicators Research 2009, 91(1):5-21.
109. Vittersø J., Røysamb E., Diener E. The concept of life satisfaction across cultures: Exploring its diverse meaning and relation to economic wealth. Social indicators research book series: The universality of quality of life constructs 2002, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, pp. 81-103. E. Gullone, R. Cummins (Eds.).
110. Vittersø J., Soholt Y. Life satisfaction goes with pleasure and personal growth goes with interest: Further arguments for separating hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Journal of Positive Psychology 2011, 6(4):326-335.
111. Waaktaar T., Torgersen S. Genetic and environmental causes of variation in trait resilience in young people. Behavior Genetics 2012, 42(3):366-377.
112. Weisz J.R., Weiss B., Han S.S., Granger D.A., Morton T. Effects of psychotherapy with children and adolescents revisited: A meta-analysis of treatment outcome studies. Psychological Bulletin 1995, 117(3):450-468.