14 DAY TRIAL // []IMG=1The results of a landmark study have demonstrated that, contrary to popular belief, it's not the happiest and most cheerful people that live to be very old, but rather those that are prudent and persistent.
These findings go up against the conclusions of previous studies, which showed that people with a high level of satisfaction with their lives, and who remained optimistic despite hardships, were the most likely to outlive their peers.
What this study has that the others don't is the advantage of time. It was conducted over a span of 20 years, and it augmented the results of another research, which was started in 1921. Therefore, it provides the most comprehensive view on the influence people's habits have on their lives to date.
“It’s surprising just how often common assumptions – by both scientists and the media – are wrong,” says University of California in Riverside (UCR) distinguished professor of psychology Dr. Howard S. Friedman, the leader of the two-decade study.
Details of the work appear in a book called The Longevity Project: Surprising Discoveries for Health and Long Life from the Landmark Eight-Decade Study (Hudson Street Press, March 2011).
Stanford University psychologist Louis Terman was among the first to begin long-term studies about lifestyles, back in 1921. The 20-year research examined, refined and augmented these data, and drew conclusions based on the two joint efforts, PsychCentral reports.
“Probably our most amazing finding was that personality characteristics and social relations from childhood can predict one’s risk of dying decades later,” Friedman says. The 1921 study was conducted on 1,500 children, he adds.
Some of the data the Longevity Project collected from its participants included those related to military service, education, jobs, owning a per, personality, family history, hobbies and relationships. Scientists with the study say that numerous other factors were considered as well.
“We came to a new understanding about happiness and health,” adds UCR expert Leslie R. Martin
“One of the findings that really astounds people, including us, is that the Longevity Project participants who were the most cheerful and had the best sense of humor as kids lived shorter lives, on average, than those who were less cheerful and joking,” he says.
“It was the most prudent and persistent individuals who stayed healthiest and lived the longest,” the expert goes on to say.
“It turns out that happiness is not a root cause of good health. Instead, happiness and health go together because they have common roots,” Friedman concludes.