General

Comparing salaries leads to unhappiness

Those who compare to friends and family most affected: study

Comparing one’s income to what friends and family make can lead to unhappiness, according to a new study analyzing data from a European survey of 19,000 people in 24 countries. Three-quarters of respondents thought it was important to compare their incomes with others, but those who did seemed less content, especially if they looked at friends and family instead of work colleagues. The poor were most affected, according to the researchers from the Paris School of Economics. The greater the importance people attached to such comparisons, the lower they ranked themselves in terms of life satisfaction, standard of living, and feeling depressed.

BBC News

Looking for more?

Get the Best of Maclean's sent straight to your inbox. Sign up for news, commentary and analysis.
  • By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.