1.

Read paragraphs A, B and C and try to fill in the gaps in the headings

The Pursuit of Happiness

A The ……………………………………………………………… of happiness studies

Over the past decade, the study of happiness has become an accepted academic discipline. You can find ‘professors of
happiness’ at leading universities and thousands of research papers. The subject even has its own journal, the Journal of
Happiness Studies.

B Research methods and …………………………………………………………

What has made the systematic study of happiness possible is data gathered from hundreds of surveys of happiness
across different cultures, professions, religions, social and economic groups. These surveys use different methods, such
as asking people how happy they feel at a particular moment, or at random times over a few weeks, or even asking their
family and friends. In this way researchers can investigate, for example, how much difference money makes to a
person’s happiness; whether happy people are more likely to be leaders or to live longer; and whether inequality in
wealth and status is an important source of dissatisfaction or not.

C The benefits of research ………………………………………………………

‘It is an exciting area’, says Ruut Veenhoven, Professor of Social Conditions for Human Happiness at Erasmus University,
Rotterdam. ‘We can now show which behaviours are risky as far as happiness goes, in the same way medical research
has shown us what is bad for our health. We should eventually be able to show what kind of lifestyle suits what kind of
person.’

D However, Veenhoven admits that interpreting the data can be a problem because the word ‘happiness’ has no precise
equivalent in some languages. Even in English it means different things to different people, and he has recorded 15
different academic definitions.

E One interesting result from the surveys is that Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea tend to report lower
levels of happiness than many western countries. So are westerners happier than Asian people? Not necessarily.
Different cultures value happiness in very different ways. In individualistic western countries, it is often a reflection of
personal achievement. Being unhappy suggests that you have not made the most of your life. Meanwhile in nations such
as Japan, China and South Korea, people have a more fatalistic attitude towards happiness. According to Eunkook Mark
Suh at Yonsei University in Seoul, ‘They believe it is very much a blessing from heaven’. One result of this attitude is that
you don’t have to feel inferior or guilty about not being happy, since happiness does not reflect your ability.

F Furthermore, the things that give people happiness, satisfaction and meaning in their lives vary considerably between
cultures. In the US, satisfaction comes from personal success, self-expression, pride, a high sense of self-esteem and a
distinct sense of self. In Japan, on the other hand, it comes from fulfilling the expectations of your family, meeting your
social responsibilities, self-discipline, co-operation and friendliness. So, while in the US it is perfectly appropriate to
pursue your own happiness, in Japan you are more likely to find happiness by not directly pursuing it.
G One of the most significant observations is that in most nations, average happiness has remained almost the same in
the last three decades, despite a considerable rise in average income. A growing number of researchers are blaming
consumerism for this trend. Study after study has shown that the desire for material goods increases hand in hand with
average income.

H Research by Tim Kasser at Know College, Illinois, also found that young adults who focus on money, image and fame
tend to be more depressed, have less enthusiasm for life and suffer more physical symptoms such as headaches and
sore throats than others.

I These days most economists tend to agree that the key to making people happier is to move from pure economic
growth – which encourages a consumerist culture – to personal growth. According to this view, a government’s priorities
should be to reduce unemployment and job insecurity, improve mental healthcare and discourage the pursuit of status.

Questions 1-5

The second part of the text has six sections, D-I.

Choose the correct heading for paragraphs D and F-I from the list below.

1 Section D ............ i Happiness and health

2 Section E …………..
ii A difficulty for researchers
3 Section F …………..
iii Sources of happiness in the US and Japan
4 Section G …………..
iv South Koreans are more fatalistic
5 Section H …………..
v Advice to governments
6 Section I …………..
vi Attitudes to happiness in different countries

vii Happiness and money

vii Happiness during the Second World War

Questions 6-11
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 3?
Write TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

7 Not all researchers agree about how to interpret the word ‘happiness’. ………
8 For Asian people, feeling unhappy is something to be ashamed of. ………
9 For Americans, satisfaction comes from self-discipline and co-operation. ………
10 Japan is the only country where people have become happier in the last 30 years. ………
11 As people get richer they become less interested in buying things. ………
12 Wanting to become rich and famous can make you unwell. ………

Questions 13 - 14
Choose TWO answers from A-E. Which TWO policies do economists think would help make people happier?
A increasing job security
B working towards pure economic growth
C increasing payments to the unemployed
D encouraging a consumerist culture
E encouraging personal growth

Questions 15 - 22
15) In recent years it has been possible to study how to become ………………………….. (happiness) at many top universities.

16) Some of the surveys used have included finding out whether differences in wealth and status can lead to people being more
…………………………………….. (dissatisfaction) with their lives.

17) Rutt Veenhoven feels …………………………. (exciting) about his work.

18) Veenhoven acknowledges that the …………………………………………… (interpreting) of data can be an issue because of
……………………………. (different) in the meaning of the word ‘happiness’.

19) One result of the research suggests that people in some Asian countries are less ……………………………. (happiness) than those in
many Western countries.

20) In some western nations happiness is measured by what you have …………………………. (achievements)

yourself.

21) In Japan, China and South Korea, people tend to believe that if you are happy it is because you have been …………………………………..
(blessing) by heaven.

22) In the USA, being ……………………………………… (satisfaction) comes from a few different things including pride and high self-esteem.