Is wealth tied to happiness?

Why I am passionate about this topic:

Happiness is something everyone strives for in their lives, including me. I want to learn more about the factors that decide what makes someone truly content with their lives. For example, is it money, career position, family, or something entirely else that determines this? Are the wealthiest people the happiest with their lives? And how can you 'measure' how happy someone is? Is there any accurate, unbiased way to do so? I want to find the answers to all these questions and more in my project.

What I already know:

Most people would automatically believe that having more money makes someone successful and automatically happier. After finding a few articles, I was able to find some interesting and controversial articles that may prove the contrary or may open up new ideas for research. Happiness is a versatile goal for our society, so I am really interested in learning more about it and its relationship to wealth and happiness.

How is success measured?

I am passionate about this topic because I have always been curious about how someone becomes successful and why they are considered successful. The main reason i want to research this topic is because the word successful can be used to define so many things and situations that one can be successful in. 

Success is a very subjective term. It can either mean the same thing for two people, or it can mean something totally different to another person. Success can be defined by ones weath, or the obtacles one has overcome to get where there are today. I want to learn more about how one may become successful, and also more about the ways that Americans understand success. Whether someone thinks money means they are successful or the fact that one person has grown up in a neighborhood filled with gang violence and made it out alive, I want to learn what means more to people, and how someone can really measure a persons success.

What makes successful people successful

My goal in life is to be able to look back and say that I was “successful”. A successful person is who everyone looks up to. There are many ways to be successful. I want to learn how I can become successful. In my eyes success can be measured in money, happiness, and what your impact has been. I want to learn how success is measured and how many become successful. I want to better my chances of being successful.

Why do diamonds cost more than water?

What I am passionate about studying this topic:

We need water more than we need diamonds. So why do diamonds cost more than something that we want? It’s because there is a scarcity of diamonds. If water didn't make up 70% of the earth then i’m sure that it would be more expensive. I know that water is a need and diamonds are wants. I am passionate about this topic because i want to know why something that everyone needs costs less than something we want.

What I already know about this topic:

I know that Diamonds are very pretty and they are very valuable but why isn't water thought of the same way? A lot of people take advantage of water and someday we won’t have enough for everyone at every moment. Diamonds are very hard to find and water isn't. I want to know why diamonds are so valuable and why water is not as special or rare. I know that diamonds are rare and there is a scarcity of them, but  Water is everywhere and sooner or later it will be scarce.

What it means to be healthy and how to become healthy

The obesity rates in the United States are overwhelming large. Obesity has become a health epidemic in our country, and it is affecting many people. However, I also feel that there is such a large health craze going on right now that I don’t understand how this is happening. For example, menus at restaurants are becoming healthier, many people are converting to becoming vegetarian, new gym memberships are becoming a social norm, calorie counts are being added to restaurant menus, etc. I also know that the government is starting to play a role in bettering the well being of people especially since Michelle Obama has become the first lady and President Obama passed his new health care plan. I want to research this topic because I am very interested in health and nutrition. I am a vegetarian, I try to be as healthy as I can, and I also exercise a lot. Later in life, I hope to be a personal nutritionist and/or personal trainer and help people to increase their well-being and health.

What makes people happy?

I chose this topic because we have touched upon it in AP Psychology.  We didn’t spend much time on it but I was very interested when we did.  I think this is a topic you could do a lot of research on because there are so many possibilities as to what makes people truly happy. Everyone knows the saying, ‘money can’t buy you happiness,’ but I want to know what a person can do to achieve happiness.  After I order a new jacket in the mail and it comes in the mail, I am happy yet my dad always questions if material things actually made me happy. I want to know if material things actually make people happy or if they are just abstract concepts that do. People become happy for different reasons and I want to find out if biology or genetics have anything to do with it, or it’s just simple what happens in day to day life that make one truly happy.

Why do people live?

I'd like to know more about this topic because I want to know why some people continue to live through everything. I already know that some people live for others, while others live for what could happen in the future. Others just live to live and have no real reason yet as far as they know. And yet others find no purpose or have to much struggle and choose to not live anymore.

how does economic growth effect behavior?

People is modern day culture are always trying to better themselves economically. We try to get the next best thing, and try and make ourselves better off. This drive to be better can significantly have an effect on a persons natural behavior. The question that I am asking is what major roles does psychology play on the economic market? What influences buyers? What do marketers do to sell their product? And Why to people buy the things they do?

Why/how do some people get utility from hate?

1. Why I am passionate about this topic:
I don’t know much about why people choose to gear their lives around hating (nor do I understand it), but I am aware that hate is prevalent not only in America, but in the entire world. There are so many people who waste so much time and effort and energy on hate that it’s astounding. For example, the members of the Westboro Baptist Church have made it their mission in life to convince the world that God doesn’t love them and that the entire world (save the Westboro Baptist Church, of course) is going to hell. But even on the less extreme side, people waste effort trying to keep gay people from being able to get married and adopt kids and have all the rights US citizens are guaranteed (Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan and much of the Republican party). Even though, as a white straight natural-born United States citizen, I am not the target of any hate groups or any hate in general, it bothers me that other people aren’t afforded the same rights as I am. As a person who does her best to be open minded to differences and accepting of those who aren’t like me, I don’t understand why people waste so much effort hating.

2. What I know about this topic:

• Hate has always been prevalent in the world.
• There are many groups focused specifically on hating other groups of people.
• Differences between people often end in hatred.
• People try to justify their hatred.

Does Money Make People Happy?

I believe that money can buy happiness to a certain extent.  Most people dream to have money.  The line “if I won the lottery...” is used all too much nowadays, but little does one know about winning the lottery.  There is a television show on TLC which shows the struggles of people who have won the lottery previous years.  So in that case, along with many others, money does not buy happiness.  Furthermore, I want to research this debatable topic because it interests me! I want to find out if money truly does buy happiness.