LIFESCI 15 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Revealed Preference, Master Sergeant, Colonoscopy
Document Summary
But rich people are not happier than poor people. They alter our behavior in ways beneficial to our genes. In japan, 300% increase in income but no increase in happiness rating. The alleles that win are those that do better than the alternative alleles. In order to make you do better than the alternatives, genes make you feel emotions. Happiness is a tool our genes use to induce us toward behaviors benefitting them. We imagine that achieving our goals will make us happy. In actuality, it is making progress towards them that makes us happy. Consequences: we adjust quickly to good fortune. Everyone who gets a salary increase each year: we recover rapidly from catastrophes. Your genes make you think that achieving your goal makes you happy, but once you"re there, they"re not just going to stop. Implications for our lives: progress is everything. We are designed to feel happy when we achieve progress.
