Survey research from over 149 countries indicates that older people are happier people.

"Happiness" can be viewed in two ways—as momentary pleasure or life satisfaction.

Data shows that in general older people take the long view and experience happiness as life satisfaction.

Older people can experience happiness even when they are having health problems or other setbacks.

“Older people are happier people.”

This statement, which summarizes the results of numerous surveys and polls of people from 149 countries, was astonishing to me when I first read it. Possibly because of my own internalized stereotypes about aging, I found it hard to believe that older people were happier than younger or middle-aged people. But, according to multiple studies, it was true. In fact, it was true of me. I was so fascinated by this counter-intuitive finding that I wrote an entire book, Silver Sparks, about happiness and aging.

I based my book, in part, on the research reported in the 2018 book The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50, by Jonathan Rauch. The data cited by Rauch strongly confirms that happiness is high among 20-34-year-olds, plummets in midlife, and begins to rise steadily again at about the age of 51, continuing to ascend through the mid-80s, and rising above the level of the 20-34 year-old cohort. Appropriately enough, the graph of happiness forms a U-curve, rather like a lop-sided grin.

Recent research shows that happiness graphs can vary widely between countries and don't necessarily take the shape of a U-curve. But, on the whole, the results seem to have held up.

Still, questions remain. A major one is: Is happiness among older people the same as........

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