Participants and Procedure 1,447 participants representing 64 countries (mostly India and the United States) completed a cross-sectional survey via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (mTurk). Western sample (N=645), ages ranged from 18 to 75 (M=32.64, SD=12.14) Non-Western sample (N=802) from 18 to 74 (M=29.89, SD=9.20). Previous research has found that cultural differences in emotion valuation between individualistic and collectivistic cultures are present, to a lesser extent, in individuals residing in the US who are culturally collectivistic (Tsai, Knutson, & Fung, 2006). Therefore, in order to maximize the distinctiveness of the two groups, Asian Americans were excluded from the sample. Participants were compensated in the amount of 50 cents, a rate that is consistent with other survey research using mTurk. A variety of income levels, education, and geographic location (rural/urban) was represented in the sample. Measures Attitudes Towards Happiness Scales (Mauss et al., 2011) -Scale measures for a valuation of happiness to an extreme degree Center for Epidemiologic Studies - Depression Scale (Radloff, 1977) Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985) -Subjective evaluations of one’s life (external) Subjective Happiness Scale (Lyubomirsky & Lepper, 1999) -Subjective view of one’s emotional well-being (internal) The Affect Balance Scale (Watson, Clark, & Tellegen, 1988) -Balance between negative and positive affect Significant difference was found after t-test analysis on all the measures except for affect balance (see Table 1). Correlational analysis (see Table 2) showed that paradoxical effect was partially replicated in Western Sample, but was not found in Non-Western sample. Attitudes Toward Happiness Around the World Liudmila Titova & Acacia C. Parks, PhD Hiram College, Hiram, OH Pursuit of happiness In Western cultures, achieving happiness seems to be a very popular goal. However, even within a relatively happiness centric country like the United States, people express different degrees of happiness valuation. Happiness paradox A recent study by Mauss, Tamir, Anderson, and Savino (2011) examined the relationship between attitudes towards happiness, well-being, and depression. Participants who valued happiness very highly actually showed lower well-being and more depressive symptoms (Paradoxical effect). The experimental manipulation supported this paradoxical effect, and showed that people who were manipulated to value happiness highly were less likely to be able to achieve it in an experimental mood induction task. Mauss and colleagues (2011) concluded that valuing happiness is generally problematic. Different understanding of happiness around the World It has been noted in previous research that understanding of happiness can be different across cultures. Internal vs. External process (Lu & Gilmour, 2004) High energy vs. Peaceful harmony (Lu & Gilmour, 2004) Personal Control vs. Accidental Nature (Oishi, Grahan, Kesebir, & Galinha, 2013) Importance of happiness varies across cultures (Lyubomirsly, 2000; Morris, 2012) Hypothesis The purpose of the current study is to explore whether this counterintuitive and interesting phenomenon generalizes to non-Western cultures. Moreover, we would like to examine cross- cultural differences in valuation of happiness, well-being, and depressive symptoms. Our hypothesis is that their levels will vary for different cultures, and that paradoxical effect of valuing happiness will not be present in non-Western countries. Introduction Summary: Found significantly higher levels of both depressive symptoms and happiness in non-Westerners, but the balance between negative and positive affect is the same as shown by Westerners. Partially replicated previous research – attitudes towards happiness correlated with depression, but no negative relationship was found with happiness scales for Westerners. Non-Westerners did not show paradoxical effect at all – no relationship between attitudes towards happiness and depression, and positive relationship with all the happiness scales. Strengths: Provided information on cross-cultural differences in level of happiness valuation, depressive symptoms, well-being, and affect balance Reveled important cultural differences about happiness valuation and well-being. Limitations: Only partially replicated previous findings. Future Directions: Experimental approach to studying this topic Explore why this differences exist Explore what role these findings play when activities designed to enhance happiness are used Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, Lu, L., & Gilmour, R. (2004). Culture and conceptions of happiness: individual oriented and social oriented SWB. Journal of Happiness Studies, 5(3), doi: /s Lyubomirsky, S., & Lepper, H. (1999). A measure of subjective happiness: Preliminary reliability and construct validation. Social Indicators Research, 46, Lyubomirsky, S. (2000). In the pursuit of happiness: Comparing the U.S. and Russia. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Experimental Social Psychology, Atlanta, Georgia. Mauss, I. B., Tamir, M., Anderson, C. L., & Savino, N. S. (2011). Can seeking happiness make people unhappy? Paradoxical effects of valuing happiness. Emotion, 11, Morris, S. G. (2012). The science of happiness: A cross-cultural perspective. In H. Selin, G. Davey (Eds.), Happiness across cultures: Views of happiness and quality of life in non-Western cultures (pp ). New York, NY US: Springer Science + Business Media. Oishi, S., Graham, J., Kesebir, S., & Galinha, I. (2013). Concepts of happiness across time and cultures. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 39(5), Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, Tsai, J. L., Knutson, B., & Fung, H. H. (2006). Cultural variation in affect valuation. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 90(2), doi: / Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scale. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54(6), 1063–1070. Method Results Conclusion References Table 1. Differences between Western and Non-Western Samples on Study Variables ScaleWestern Non-Western t-test MSD M Depression ** Satisfaction with Life ** Subjective Happiness ** Affect Balance Happiness Valuation ** Table 2. Pearsons’s r correlation coefficients for Valuing Happiness Scale ScaleWestern CountriesNon-Western Countries Depression.284***-.027 Satisfaction with Life *** Subjective Happiness Affect Balance ***.414***.188*** * = p<.05, ** = p<.01