Would winning the lottery make you happier? - Raj Raghunathan

Bi bili zaradi dobitka na loteriji srečnejši? - Raj Raghunathan

Translator: Klavdija Cernilogar Reviewer: Matej Divjak

Will winning the lottery make you happier?

[Bi bili bolj srečni, če bi zadeli na loteriji?]

Imagine winning a multi-million dollar lottery tomorrow.

Predstavljajte si, da jutri na loteriji zadenete več milijonov dolarjev.

If you're like many of us, you'd be ecstatic,

Če ste kot večina, bi bili navdušeni,

unable to believe your good luck.

ne bi mogli verjeti, da imate tako srečo.

But would that joy still be there a few years later?

Toda ali bi bilo veselje po nekaj letih še tu?

Morda ne.

Maybe not.

A famous study of 22 lottery winners showed that months after winning,

Znana študija 22 loterijskih srečnežev kaže, da nekaj mesecev po dobitku

their average reported levels of happiness had increased no more

niso zaznali večje sreče

than that of a control group who hadn't won the lottery.

kot ljudje v kontrolni skupini, ki niso zadeli na loteriji.

Some were actually unhappier than they had been before winning.

Nekateri so bili celo bolj nesrečni kot pred zadetkom.

And later studies have confirmed that our emotional well-being,

Kasnejše študije so potrdile, da se naša čustvena blaginja,

how often and how intensely we feel things like joy,

pogostost in intenzivnost občutja veselja,

sorrow,

žalosti,

anxiety,

tesnobe

or anger,

ali jeze

od neke točke naprej ne izboljšajo, tudi če obogatimo ali imamo boljši status.

don't seem to improve with wealth or status beyond a certain point.

This has to do with a phenomenon known as hedonic adaptation,

To je povezano s t. i. hedonistično adaptacijo

or the hedonic treadmill.

ali hedonistično "tekaško stezo".

It describes our tendency to adapt to new situations

Opisuje naše nagnjenje k prilagajanju na nove okoliščine,

to maintain a stable emotional equilibrium.

s čimer ohranjamo stabilno čustveno ravnotežje.

When it comes to feeling happy,

Ko gre za občutje sreče,

most of us seem to have a base level that stays more or less constant

nas ima večina osnovno raven, ki je bolj ali manj stalna

throughout our existence.

skozi vse življenje.

Of course, the novelty of better food,

Seveda nam lahko boljša hrana,

superior vacations,

odlične počitnice

and more beautiful homes

in lepši dom

can at first make you feel like you're walking on air,

na začetku dajo občutek, da letimo,

but as you get used to those things,

a ko se na novosti navadimo,

you revert to your default emotional state.

se vrnemo na osnovno čustveno raven.

That might sound pretty gloomy,

To morda zveni žalostno,

but hedonic adaptation makes us less emotionally sensitive

a zaradi hedonistične adaptacije smo manj občutljivi

to any kind of change,

na vsakršne spremembe,

including negative ones.

tudi na negativne.

The study with the lottery winners

Študija dobitnikov na loteriji

also looked at people who had suffered an accident that left them paralyzed.

je analizirala tudi ljudi, ki so zaradi nesreče postali paralizirani.

Ko so jih več mesecev po nesreči vprašali, kako srečni so,

When asked several months after their accidents how happy they were,

they reported levels of happiness approaching their original baseline.

so bila njihova poročila blizu osnovne ravni sreče.

So while the hedonic treadmill may inhibit our enjoyment of positive changes,

Hedonistična adaptacija torej omeji uživanje v pozitivnih spremembah,

it seems to also enable our resilience in recovering from adversity.

vendar tudi okrepi sposobnost, da si opomoremo po tegobah.

There are other reasons that winning the lottery

So pa še drugi razlogi, zakaj dobitek na loteriji

may not make us happier in the long run.

na dolgi rok ne prinese sreče.

Ni enostavno upravljati z velikimi vsotami denarja,

It can be difficult to manage large sums of money,

and some lottery winners wind up spending or losing it all quickly.

nekateri dobitniki ga hitro zapravijo ali izgubijo.

It can also be socially isolating.

Lahko prinese tudi družbeno osamitev.

Some winners experience a deluge of unwelcome requests for money,

Nekateri dobijo poplavo zahtev po denarju,

so they wind up cutting themselves off from others.

zato se nehajo družiti z ljudmi.

And wealth may actually make us meaner.

Zaradi bogastva lahko postanemo bolj skopušni.

In one study, participants played a rigged game of monopoly

Neka študija je manipulirala igro monopoli

where the experimenters made some players rich quickly.

in nekaterim igralcem omogočila hitro obogatitev.

The wealthy players started patronizing the poorer players

Bogati igralci so postali pokroviteljski do revnejših

and hogging the snacks they were meant to share.

in so zase zadržali prigrizke, ki naj bi jih delili z drugimi.

But just because a huge influx of cash

A tako kot velik priliv denarja

isn't guaranteed to bring joy into your life

ne zagotovi večjega zadovoljstva,

to tudi ne pomeni, da nas denar ne more nikoli osrečiti.

doesn't mean that money can never make us happier.

Findings show that we adapt to extrinsic and material things,

Raziskave kažejo, da se prilagodimo na zunanje in materialne dobrine,

like a new car or a bigger house,

denimo nov avto ali večjo hišo,

much faster than we do to novel experiences,

hitreje, kot na nova izkustva,

like visiting a new place or learning a new skill.

denimo obisk novega kraja ali osvojitev nove veščine.

So by that reasoning,

Po tej logiki velja,

the more you spend money on experiences rather than things,

da bolj ko trošite za izkustva namesto za stvari,

the happier you'd be.

srečnejši boste.

And there's another way to turn your money into happiness:

Denar lahko še na en način spremenite v srečo:

spend it on other people.

potrošite ga za druge.

In one study, participants were given some money

V neki študiji so udeležencem dali nekaj denarja

and were either asked to spend it on themselves or on someone else.

in jih prosili, naj ga porabijo zase ali za druge.

Later that evening, researchers called up these participants

Tisti večer so raziskovalci potem poklicali udeležence

and asked them how happy they were.

in jih povprašali o njihovi sreči.

The happiness levels of those who had spent the money on others

Raven sreče je bila pri tistih, ki so denar potrošili za druge,

were significantly greater than that of those who had spent it on themselves.

veliko večja kot pri tistih, ki so ga porabili zase.

And that seems to be true around the world.

In kaže, da to velja po vsem svetu.

Another study examined the generosity of over 200,000 people from 136 countries.

Neka druga študija je raziskovala velikodušnost 200.000 ljudi iz 136 držav.

V preko 90 odstotkih teh držav

In over 90% of these countries,

people who donated tended to be happier than those who didn't.

so bili tisti, ki so denar podarili, srečnejši od tistih, ki ga niso.

A to je lažje reči kot storiti.

But this may all be easier said than done.

Let's say a million dollars falls into your lap tomorrow.

Recimo, da jutri dobite milijon dolarjev.

Kaj boste z njim?

What do you do with it?