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Why aren't smart people happier?

theseedsofscience.pub

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Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#31

Post by conception »

Slow_Hand wrote: post #11
mfer wrote: post #7

Two thoughts.... First, being intelligent (as defined in the article) doesn't relate to being happy. There is nothing inherent about being intelligent that means happy. Second, our society spends a lot of time shaping culture and people to extract value from them. For example, the focus on "more" rather than "enough". We are shaped to always desire more and never be content with what we have. Even intelligent people…

Everyone wants to be happy, but nobody wants to be happy with what they have.

I think this is a very American ideal (that has been exported with much success).

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#33

Post by fellowniusmonk »

There is so little difference overall it seems.

1.

I really wish there was more research done on mental efficacy or torque.

Processing vs prioritization.

Some of the highest IQ people that have ever lived have gotten nerd sniped by ruminating on esoterica like "how many angels fit on the head of a pin".

Humans really are a multi factorial random walk.

Hey, you're really smart and also you're going to spend your entire life solely cataloging every cultural reference and trope from Adam West's batman.

2.

In the above scenario some smart people would feel very fulfilled by their categorizing efforts and some despair.

3.

Self reported happiness? I've known smart people who are as eore as idiots I've known. The smart people were equally happy/unhappy but expierenced measurably less physical suffering and had, by all observable measures, better lives. They wouldn't trade their life for the idiots life at all.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#35

Post by dfxm12 »

mfer wrote: post #7

Two thoughts.... First, being intelligent (as defined in the article) doesn't relate to being happy. There is nothing inherent about being intelligent that means happy. Second, our society spends a lot of time shaping culture and people to extract value from them. For example, the focus on "more" rather than "enough". We are shaped to always desire more and never be content with what we have. Even intelligent people…

Second, our society spends a lot of time shaping culture and people to extract value from them.

More than that, society spends an increasing amount of time and money trying to convince people that they should be mad at each other for arbitrary reasons. I don't think this has much to do with intelligence, though.

See recently: Andrew Cuomo's racist AI-generated mayoral ad & Trump's AI generated truth post where he shits on Americans. It's hard to have a general feeling of happiness when the people with money & power in this world feel the need to go out of their way to spread their disdain for me because of how I look, what I do for a living, or the fact that I wasn't born into wealth.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#37

Post by cosmic_cheese »

codyklimdev wrote: post #15

I think beyond a certain level surplus IQ begins to cause problems. While still useful, the amount of self-sabotage and thought spirals the brain can generate with the extra power can cause neuroses and unhappiness on a larger scale than those less intelligent are capable of. Combine it with higher societal expectations and it's no great mystery to me why smarter people seem unhappier. Just my thoughts anyways. I'm a…

This has been a somewhat popular line of thought in internet circles for a while and I'm inclined to agree. I also believe the threshold past which these problems begin to crop up may be considerably lower than commonly thought… One doesn't need to be a chart topper to fall into these cognitive patterns.

That said, it probably doesn't need to be this way and I would suggest that the root issue lies with the way that modern society is structured. It's not really optimizing for happiness on any level, which is greatly exacerbated when one has the mental acuity to zoom out and see the bigger picture.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#38

Post by analog8374 »

Being smart is like having the power to do brain surgery on yourself.

The normal standard issue brain works all right. It won't get you truth and beauty but it'll keep the bills paid.

All the deviations from that standard issue brain are bad news. Pretty much. You might get truth and beauty but the bills will not get paid and everyone will hate you for being an abrasive weirdo.

Re: Why aren't smart people happier?

#40

Post by Yossarrian22 »

That chart showing happiness being flat over 70 years is astounding. I’m certainly happier not having to hand wash dishes or clothes; no king who ever lived before then had access to magic lights that made his bad eyesight perfect, yet for all that the average person is just as happy as they were in the late 40s
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