In Nichomachean Ethics, Aristotle differentiated between hedonic (sensory-based) and eudaimonic (moral) well-being, and recognized that hedonic activities do not lead to long-term happiness the way eudaimonic pursuits do. The theory of hedonic adaptation has been kicking around in various incarnations since at least the times of Aristotle. The hedonic treadmill is a relatively new term for a very old idea. If this were a proper case study, the graph wouldn’t be nearly as neat and tidy, but the big picture would look similar. This is an overly simple example to illustrate the concept, but you get the idea. Our well-being returns to a set-point after good or bad events This conforms with the mathematical principle of regression toward the mean. With time, though, our well-being creeps back to its baseline. Over time, good and bad events cause temporary spikes or drops in our well-being. In the image below is a simplified example of the hedonic treadmill in action. That number will fluctuate with life’s ups and downs, while generally returning to this baseline in-between. The average American reports a happiness level of 6.7 out of 10.
Meanwhile, the Joneses have appeared to creep ahead again.
We buy our new marble countertops, and for a few days, we feel like the Joneses! But, alas, the hedonic treadmill keeps moving and we stay in place. They, with their new cars and curtains, always seem to be enjoying the life we can’t quite settle into, no matter how hard we try (or how much we buy). It is the reason we can’t seem to Keep Up With the Joneses. While the hedonic treadmill may not be familiar to you by name, the principle behind it has long been a part of our popular culture. Despite the changes in fortune on both sides of the spectrum, both will return to his or her happiness set points after a temporary rise or fall in well-being. In other words, every time we take a step forward, a treadmill moves right along with us, keeping us in place.Ī classic example is that of the lottery winner and a paraplegic.
The theory of hedonic adaptation suggests that short term gains or losses in our happiness or well-being do not necessarily lead to lasting gains or losses in well-being, because we adapt to our circumstances. “I think it causes us to focus on the wrong goals and miss the opportunity for a deeper sense of meaning and purpose.Buying things feels good, but the feeling doesn’t last. In the long term, this can rob us of the joy that is available to all of us in this very moment if we were just able to stop and appreciate it, Dunn says. “The reality is that we could achieve all of those things and very soon that excitement would wear off, the new circumstances would become our new ‘normal’ and we’d be back chasing the next thing,” Dunn explains. “We convince ourselves that if we got a different job, lived in a different city, lost some weight, had more money in the bank, could buy a new car, then we’re be happy,” Dunn says.Īnd yet, as most of us know from experience, this is rarely ever the case. What’s more, we tend to keep looking ahead for things that (we think) will make us happy. So we tend to look for easy and instant sources of pleasure – a glass of wine, scrolling on our phone, online shopping – to numb those feelings and stop us from feeling bad, bored or dissatisfied, Dunn says.
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