Does living in California make people happy? A focusing illusion in judgments of life satisfaction
Schkade and Kahneman gave large samples of students in the Midwest and in Southern California questions about their own life satisfaction or that of a similar person. Reported satisfaction was about the same in both regions, yet participants rating a similar other expected Californians to be more satisfied, and climate was seen as more important to someone in another region than to oneself. Mediation analyses found that climate and cultural opportunities accounted for the higher predicted satisfaction of Californians. The authors conclude that judgements of life satisfaction across places are subject to a focusing illusion.
Schkade and Kahneman gave large samples of students in the Midwest and in Southern California questions about their own life satisfaction or that of a similar person. Reported satisfaction was about the same in both regions, yet participants rating a similar other expected Californians to be more satisfied, and climate was seen as more important to someone in another region than to oneself. Mediation analyses found that climate and cultural opportunities accounted for the higher predicted satisfaction of Californians. The authors conclude that judgements of life satisfaction across places are subject to a focusing illusion.
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Schkade, D. A., & Kahneman, D. (1998). Does living in California make people happy? A focusing illusion in judgments of life satisfaction. Psychological Science, 9(5), 340-346. doi:10.1111/1467-9280.00066