Life’s little pleasures, from having a good conversation to sitting under a tree, may seem simple, but could add importantly to psychological well-being and satisfaction with life. Some individuals may, however, have less access to these positive experiences. This MIDUS study examined differences in the frequency and enjoyment of positive life experiences and how they differ by level of poverty, race, or sexual orientation, as well as how they matter for psychological well-being.
The study measured:
- Frequency of positive events: Participants were asked how often in the last month they participated in 49 experiences such as relaxation, recreation, entertainment, appreciating nature, social engagement, intimacy, and achievement.
- Enjoyment of positive events: Participants rated how pleasant, enjoyable, or rewarding each positive event was.
- Cumulative socioeconomic status (SES): Levels of poverty and wealth over the life course were assessed from:
- childhood- parent’s education, whether the family was on welfare, and whether they were worse off financially than others
- adulthood- participant’s education, whether they had enough money to meet their needs or had difficulty paying bills, how their household income compared to federal poverty levels.
Psychological well-being was measured with:
- Life Satisfaction: reported levels of satisfaction with their health, work, marriage/relationship, relationship with children, and life overall
- Positive Emotions: how often participants felt cheerful, had a lot of energy
- Negative Emotions: how often they felt worthless or so sad nothing could cheer them up
- Depression: how often they felt sad or discouraged
- Anxiety: how often they startled easily, had shaky hands
Results for positive experiences:
- People with lower cumulative socioeconomic status (SES), Black people, other people of color, and gay or bisexual people reported lower frequency of positive life experiences.
- These groups also rated their enjoyment of positive life experiences less favorably.
- When SES was adjusted for, Black participants no longer showed lower average levels of positive experiences compared to Whites, suggesting that racial differences in positive experiences may be tied to the strong association between race and SES in the U.S.
Results for psychological well-being showed:
- Having greater wealth/higher SES was associated with more life satisfaction and positive emotions, and less depression and anxiety.
- Black participants had lower levels of life satisfaction and marginally higher levels of positive emotions than White participants.
- Gay or bisexual participants had marginally lower life satisfaction and fewer positive emotions than straight participants.
Positive experiences mediated the relationship between SES & better psychological well-being:
- Those of higher cumulative SES had more positive experiences and these experiences were associated with greater life satisfaction and more positive emotions, as well as less depression, anxiety, and negative affect.
Notably, disparities were evident between frequency of positive experiences rather than the enjoyment of them, suggesting that lack of access to positive experiences may be the problem. People of lower SES, who are poorer, may have less access to positive experiences because:
- They have less money to spend on leisure activities.
- Low income workers have limited or no paid vacation time.
- Neighborhoods with higher poverty rates have less green space to enjoy.
For sexual minority individuals, the greatest disparities in frequency of positive experiences pertained to being with family and being told one is loved, possibly reflecting strained family relationships.
Leisure activities may foster joy or provide stress relief, which may contribute to better psychological well-being. However, not everyone has equal access to these positive experiences. Social change is needed to reduce these disparities, in the form of paid time off, access to expendable income, equitable neighborhood resources, and a society that celebrates diverse identities.
Source: Podber, N., & Gruenewald, T. L. (2025). Sociodemographic disparities in positive life experiences. Journal of Happiness Studies, 26(5), Article 69. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-025-00870-y
Read the full article at: https://midus.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/3026.pdf