Three Assignments

Happiness

Many researchers from time immemorial have tried to understand the term ‘happiness’ in terms of factors that cause it and its implications on human lives. Garaigordobil defined happiness as, “the affective and cognitive appraisal of one's own life which entails a high level of satisfaction of one's life just the way it is with the presence of positivity and absence of negativity. In other words, happiness is a feeling of contentment and joy which leads to a healthy mental state which ensures that one leads the best life possible.

Happiness can be categorized into four characteristics which include; resources where one feels in control of their life or a feeling of contentment, intimacy which entails friendships, relationships, and the ability to enjoy the presence of other people, competence which means the ability to do something successfully, and health which involves the awareness of the best practices for healthy living (Garaigordobil 2). Some researchers have tried to relate happiness with age and the results showed that a high level of happiness is experienced between 20-29 years and after 50 years although these findings are not entirely applicable to every society (Garaigordobil 2). Although the changes of happiness affect people of all ages, an emphasis should be put on college students who are in a very complex stage between teenage and adulthood.

Researches have shown that happiness in adolescents and college students is determined by friendships, altruism, social skills, academic excellence, cooperation, and possession of personal attributes like self-esteem and self-confidence (Garaigordobil 2). Happiness is also determined by other factors like levels of income, health, marital status, gender, race, education, age, and life cycle effects to mention but a few (Graham et al. 922). Happiness is considered as a psychological state which is deeper than just a good temporary mood and contributes to the general wellbeing of people (Mehrdadi et al. 1). Some of the general effects of happiness include; positive towards living life, increased sense of self-concept, boosted mental health, and increased performance in physical and social settings to mention but a few (Mehrdadi et al. 2). The college students are mostly people who have undergone adolescence but have not yet become full adults and it's a very difficult stage which is accompanied by mixed feelings. Students try to balance studies with other life activities like relationships, part-time jobs, and drug and substance abuse to mention but a few.

Happiness is influenced by almost all aspects that either of life surrounding a person or a group of people. Positivity encourages happiness while negativity reduces the level of happiness which can have serious undesirable implications on the person. College students like any other age group have different experiences that either contribute to the development of their happiness or deprivation of the same.

One of the keys is discovered by researchers is that students who have money tend to be happier as compared to those who come from poor backgrounds (Lesani et al. p. 3). Financial constraints mean that it is quite a challenge for some students to afford even the basic needs and this feeling can lead to depression. A student may initially have come from a well-to-do family, but in the process of learning, their parents lose their jobs or even die leaving the young adult helpless. The student has to either drop out of college or find some part-time job so as to pay for their school fees and also to cater for their other daily needs. This can really affect the happiness level of the student and if not checked upon, it can lead to depression. Adjusting life practices is not always easy for many people. The issue of money can cause some stigma whereby the less fortunate students don’t hang out with the students from rich families because they feel that they don't fit in or their interests are very different.

Researchers found out that students who participated in physical activity were in better moods and happier than those that didn't (Lesani et al. 3). In a different study, research has been done to make a connection between physical activity and exercise and mental health and the results have shown that the level of reduction of stress and depression is the same as spending time in psychotherapy sessions. However, great care should be taken when participating in exercises to avoid overstraining which could cause physical harm (Raglin 325). Generally, failure to embrace exercise and physical activities which range from walking, running, swimming, and participating in exercises can cause obesity which can lead to stress and depression and eventually change happiness in college students.

Another factor that may interfere with happiness in college students is the need for social approval where studies found that people who have a higher yearning for social approval have cases of social anxiety and this affects their happiness level negatively (Karasar and Baytemir 924). A student may have been happier when they started college, but after meeting people from different backgrounds, they feel that they do not match with the students they perceive to be better than them and this can affect their level of happiness significantly. Trying to fit in and feel accepted is really a problem many young people face on an almost daily basis in school and as a result, as Knapp et al. stated, “… first year students often drop out and that an unfinished degree can be harmful to both universities and students, it is important to develop a better understanding of the social-psychological dynamics related to university students’ first year experiences, and we do so using a person-environment fit.” (3). This clearly shows that the issue of fitting in has been a bone of contention but clearly it is a defining factor of happiness in college students.

The aforementioned factors that determine the level of happiness can affect anyone. However, those are not the only factors that contribute to change in happiness. Generally, if an action or a situation brings negative implications on an individual, then they are likely to be less happy. Some of the causes of unhappiness are manageable and thus, sometimes a person might have to seek some help from other people who can help them become happy once more. The negative implications of unhappiness in college students might lead to poor performance in class work, depression, drug and substance abuse, and even quitting school. It is for these reasons that colleges have platforms that aim at helping students undergoing phases of unhappiness. These include guidance and counseling programs, therapy sessions, and psychiatric evaluations to mention but a few (Stevens para. 5). Happiness should start as a personal initiative where a person focuses on themselves and tries to change what they can and accept what they cannot in order to stay happy.

Happiness is of great importance to college students because it really affects their personal and social life. A student is always unhappy is likely to have low productivity in their school work and might not be able to participate in any other designated school projects. Change of happiness as earlier stated is undesirable, and more research should be done in this area so as to devise new ways to help the college students overcome the obstacles. It is hard to always be happy, that would be an ideal situation, but that does not mean that people should not strive to be happy. The importance of the argument, in this case, is to create awareness to the college students who have never thought deeply about their state of happiness, and also show them that there is still hope for them to become happy once more by seeking help from the relevant sources.

Works Cited

Garaigordobil, Maite. "Predictor Variables of Happiness and its Connection with Risk and Protective Factors for Health." Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 6, no. 1176, 2015, pp. 1-10. Educational Psychology, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01176

Graham, Carol et al. "Does Happiness Pay? An Exploration Based on Panel Data from Russia." Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, vol. 55, no. 3, 2004, pp. 319–342, APA PsychNET, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2003.09.002

Karaşar, Burcu, and Baytemir, Kemal. "Need for Social Approval and Happiness in College Students: The Mediation Role of Social Anxiety." Universal Journal of Educational Research, vol. 6, no. 5, 2018, pp. 919-927. ERIC, DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2018.060513

Knapp, Joshua R., et al. “Where and How Does Fitting in Matter? Examining New Students’ Perceived Fit with their University, Instructors, and Classmates.” Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory, & Practice, vol. 2017, August 2017, pp. 1-33. JOUR, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318826995

Lesani, Azadesh et al. "Happiness Among College Students: A Cross-Sectional Web-Based Study Among Iranian Medical Students." Biotech Health Science, vol. 3, no. 2, 2016, pp. 1-6. ResearchGate, doi: 10.17795/bhs-36029

Mehrdadi, Amir et al. "Factors Affecting Happiness: A Cross-Sectional Study in the Iranian Youth. “Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research, vol. 10, no. 5, 2016, pp. 1-3. PMC, https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2016/17970.7729

Raglin, John S. “Exercise and Mental Health: Beneficial and Detrimental Effects.” Sports Medicine, vol.9, no. 6,1990, pp. 323-329. https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-199009060-0001

Stevens, Tom G. “Coping with Unhappiness, Depression, and Low Motivation.” Accessed March 19, 2020, http://web.csulb.edu/~tstevens/depression.htm