Most British People Think Money is the Number One Cause of Unhappiness

British people:  "Mmm, money money money!"
From Webshots.

A new survey by BBC Radio 3 says that 65% of Brits consider money to cause the most unhappiness. This is much larger than the 32% who responded with "family problems," the 27% for "health," and the 21% for "welfare of their children" (!!!). The survey was done to kick off Radio 3's Free Thinking Festival, which has the theme "The Pursuit of Happiness" this year.

The actual effect of money on happiness is somewhat debatable, but most researchers seem to agree that after you have enough money to live a middle-class existence, more money won't significantly affect your happiness. On the other hand, Daniel Gilbert just recently authored a study that says money DOES affect happiness past the middle class--it's just that most people don't know how to spend it effectively.

You should head over to BBC's article because it lists a whole lot of other statistics from the results. It also goes into the generational divide, with younger people putting much more stock in loneliness and anxiety as causes of unhappiness. I'm kind of shocked that "welfare of their children" ranks among the bottom, but that just shows how much I know!