Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Children’s and Adolescents’ Conceptions of Happiness

  • Research Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Happiness Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Previous research on children’s and adolescents’ happiness has mainly focused on the different variables that may contribute to it. However, very few studies have investigated the beliefs that children and adolescents hold about happiness. It is important to study developmental and gender differences in the conceptions of happiness as beliefs affect people’s emotions and behaviors, and they may help explain how children and adolescents strive for their own (and potentially others’) happiness. To that aim, we conducted two different studies. In Study 1a 20 people (lay judges) completed two categorization tasks to obtain categorization systems that may include all the relevant content categories identified in previous literature with adults, adolescents and children. In Study 1b, we asked 162 children and adolescents to define—in their own words—what happiness meant for them. Their responses were coded according to two different systems derived from previous finding with adults and children and to an alternative coding system derived from the qualitative analyses of children’s and adolescents’ responses. Overall, results showed that hedonic conceptualization of happiness were mainly present in late childhood; whereas eudaimonic conceptualizations were mainly present in adolescence. No significant gender differences were found.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. We also developed our own coding system based on previous research categories, as suggested by a reviewer, and explored the obtained pattern (i.e., coding system 3; please see Appendices 2 and 3).

  2. Inter-rater agreement was also high for coding system 3, κ = .86.

  3. Given that our research design was based on one open-ended question without a word limit, we calculated whether the length of responses (number of characters) may differ by age as suggested by a reviewer. Results showed that the number of characters did not differ by age, F(2, 159) = .95, p = .40, \( \eta_{p}^{2} = \, .01 \).

References

  • Adams, G. R., & Berzonsky, M. (2003). Blackwell handbook of adolescence. Malden: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aldenderfer, M. S., & Blashfield, R. K. (1984). Cluster analysis. Newbury Park: Sage.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Ben-Arieh, A. (2008). The child indicators movement: Past, present, and future. Child Indicators Research, 1, 3–16. doi:10.1007/s12187-007-9003-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berndt, T. (1982). The features and effects of friendship in early adolescence. Child Development, 53, 1447–1460. doi:10.2307/1130071.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berndt, T. J., & Savin-Williams, R. C. (1993). Peer relations and friendships. In P. H. Tolan & B. Cohler (Eds.), Handbook of clinical research and practice with adolescents (pp. 203–219). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caritas Europa. (2014). The European crisis and its human cost. Crisis monitoring report. Retrieved from http://www.caritas.eu/sites/default/files/caritascrisisreport_2014_en.pdf

  • Chaplin, L. (2009). Please may I have a bike? Better yet, may I have a hug? An examination of children’s and adolescents’ happiness. Journal of Happiness Studies, 10, 541–562. doi:10.1007/s10902-008-9108-3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves, C., Hervas, G., García, F., & Vazquez, C. (2015). Building life satisfaction through well-being dimensions: A longitudinal study in children with a life-threatening illness. Journal of Happiness Studies,. doi:10.1007/s10902-015-9631y.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chiasson, N., Dubé, L., & Blondin, J. (1996). Happiness: A look into the folk psychology of four cultural groups. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 27, 673–691. doi:10.1177/0022022196276002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coffey, J. K., Warren, M., & Gottfried, A. (2014a). Does infant happiness forecast adult life satisfaction? Examining subjective well-being in the first quarter century of life. Journal of Happiness Studies, 16, 1401–1421. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10902-014-9556-x

  • Coffey, J. K., Wray-Lake, L., Mashek, D., & Branand, B. (2014b). A longitudinal examination of a multidimensional well-being model in college and community samples. Journal of Happiness Studies,. doi:10.1007/s10902-014-9590-8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crivello, G., Camfield, L., & Woodhead, M. (2008). How can children tell us about their wellbeing? Exploring the potential of participatory approaches within the Young Lives Project. Social Indicators Research, 90, 51–72. doi:10.1007/s11205-008-9312-x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dambrun, M., Ricard, M., Després, G., Drelon, E., Gibelin, E., Gibelin, M. et al. (2012). Measuring happiness: From fluctuating happiness to authentic-durable happiness. Frontiers in Psychology, 3, 16. http://dx.doi.org/ 0.3389/fpsyg.2012.00016

  • Daniel, E., Schiefer, D., Möllering, A., Benish-Weisman, M., Boehnke, K., & Knafo, A. (2012). Value differentiation in adolescence: The role of age and cultural complexity. Child Development, 83, 322–336. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2011.01694.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008). Hedonia, eudaimonia, and well-being: An introduction. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9, 1–11. doi:10.1007/s10902-006-9018-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2013). The importance of autonomy for development and well-being. In B. W. Sokol, F. M. E. Grouzet & U. Muller (Eds.), Self-regulation and autonomy: Social and developmental dimensions of human conduct (pp. 19–46). New York: Cambridge University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139152198.005

  • Deci, E. L., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2004). Self-determination theory and basic need satisfaction: Understanding human development in positive psychology. Ricerche di Psichologia, 27, 17–34.

    Google Scholar 

  • Delle Fave, A., Brdar, I., Freire, T., Vella-Brodrick, D., & Wissing, M. P. (2011). The eudaimonic and hedonic components of happiness: Qualitative and quantitative findings. Social Indicators Research, 100, 158–207. doi:10.1007/s11205-010-9632-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denham, S. A. (1998). Emotional development in young children. New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 542–575. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.95.3.542.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (1994). Assessing subjective well-being: Progress and opportunities. Social Indicators Research, 31, 103–157. doi:10.1007/BF01207052.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (2000). Subjective well-being: The science of well-being and a proposal for a national index. American Psychologist, 55, 34–43. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (Ed.). (2009). The science of well-being: The collected works of Ed Diener (Vol. 1). New York: Springer Science & Business Media. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2350-6

  • Dweck, C. S. (1999). Self-theories: Their role in motivation, personality, and development. New York: Psychology Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dweck, C. S., & Master, A. (2008). Self-theories motivate self-regulated learning. In D. H. Schunk & B. J. Zimmerman (Eds.), Motivation and self-regulated learning: Theory, research, and applications (pp. 31–51). New York: Taylor & Francis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisenberg, N. (1986). Altruistic emotion, cognition and behavior. Hillsdale: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisenberg, N. (2000). Emotion, regulation, and moral development. Annual Review of Psychology, 51, 665–697. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.51.1.665

  • Eisenberg, N., Cumberland, A., & Spinrad, T. L. (1998). Parental socialization of emotion. Psychological Inquiry, 9, 241–273. doi:10.1207/s15327965pli0904_1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eisenberg, N., & Morris, A. S. (2004). Moral cognitions and prosocial responding in adolescence. In R. Lerner & L. Steinberg (Eds.) Handbook of adolescent psychology, second edition (pp. 155–188). New York: Wiley. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9780471726746.ch6

  • Fattore, T., Mason, J., & Watson, W. (2007). Children’s conceptualisation(s) of their well-being. Social Indicators Research, 80, 5–29. doi:10.1007/s11205-006-9019-9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freire, T., Zenhas, F., Tavares, D., & Iglésias, C. (2013). Felicidade hedónica e eudaimónica: um estudo com adolescents portugueses. Análise Psicológica, 4, 329–342.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fuligni, A. J., & Eccles, J. S. (1993). Perceived parent child relationships and early adolescents’ orientation toward peers. Developmental Psychology, 29, 622–632. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.29.4.622.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furnham, A., & Cheng, H. (2000). Lay theories of happiness. Journal of Happiness Studies, 1, 227–246. doi:10.1023/A:1010027611587.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gelman, R. S. (1969). Conservation acquisition: A problem of learning to attend to relevant attributes. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 7, 167–187. doi:10.1016/0022-0965(69)90041-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giacomoni, C. H., Souza, L. K., & Hutz, C. S. (2014). O conceito de felicidad en crianças (The concept of happiness in children). Psico-USF, Bragrança Paulista, 19, 143–153. doi:10.1590/S1413-82712014000100014.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gillet, N., Vallerand, R. J., & Lafrenière, M. A. K. (2012). Intrinsic and extrinsic school motivation as a function of age: The mediating role of autonomy support. Social Psychology of Education, 15, 77–95. doi:10.1007/s11218-011-9170-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gottfried, A. E., Fleming, J. S., & Gottfried, A. W. (2001). Continuity of academic intrinsic motivation from childhood through late adolescence: A longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 3–13. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.93.1.3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gouveia, V. V., Clemente, M., & Espinosa, P. (2003). The horizontal and vertical attributes of individualism and collectivism in a Spanish population. Journal of Social Psychology, 143, 43–63. doi:10.1080/00224540309598430.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greenberg, M. T., Siegel, J. M., & Leitch, C. J. (1983). The nature and importance of attachment relationships to parents and peers during adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 12, 373–386. doi:10.1007/BF02088721.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grouzet, F. M. E., Sokol, B. W., & Müller, U. (2013). Self-regulation and autonomy: An introduction. In B. W. Sokol, F. M. E. Grouzet, & U. Müller (Eds.), Self-regulation and autonomy: Social and developmental dimensions of human conduct (pp. 1–16). New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Gurland, S., & Glowacky, V. (2011). Children’s theories of motivation. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 110, 1–19. doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2011.03.013.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harter, S. (1981). A new self-report scale of intrinsic versus extrinsic orientation in the classroom: Motivational and informational components. Developmental Psychology, 17, 300–312. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.17.3.300.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, F. T., & Youniss, J. (1982). Changes in the functions of three relations during adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 18, 806–811. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.18.6.806.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huta, V., & Waterman, A. S. (2014). Eudaimonia and its distinction from hedonia: Developing a classification and terminology for understanding conceptual and operational definitions. Journal of Happiness Studies, 15, 1425–1456. doi:10.1007/s10902-013-9485-0.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kesebir, P., & Diener, E. (2008). In pursuit of happiness: Empirical answers to philosophical questions. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 3, 117–125. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6916.2008.00069.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kohlberg, L. (1984). Essays on moral development: Vol. 2. The psychology of moral development: The nature and validity of moral stages. San Francisco: Harper & Row.

  • Krettenauer, T. (2013). Revisiting the moral self-construct: Developmental perspectives on moral selfhood. In B. Sokol, U., F. Grouzet, & U. Müller (Eds.). Self-regulation and autonomy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

  • Kroger, J. (2005). Identity development during adolescence. In G. Adams & M. Berzonsky (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of adolescence (pp. 227–246). Malden: Blackwell. http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s1532706xid0501_6

  • Lepper, M. R., Corpus, J. H., & Iyengar, S. S. (2005). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivational orientations in the classroom: Age differences and academic correlates. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97, 184–196. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.97.2.184.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levy, S. R., Karafantis, D. M., & Ramirez, L. (2009). A social–developmental perspective on lay theories and intergroup relations. In S. R. Levy & M. Killen (Eds.), Intergroup attitudes and relations in childhood through adulthood (pp. 146–156). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, C. C. (1981). How adolescents approach decisions: Changes over grades seven to twelve and policy implications. Child Development, 52, 538–544. doi:10.2307/1129172.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • López-Pérez, B., Gummerum, M., Keller, M., Filippova, E., & Gordillo, M. V. (2015). Sociomoral reasoning in children and adolescents from two collectivistic cultures. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 12, 204–219. doi:10.1080/17405629.2014.989985.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lu, L. (2001). Understanding happiness: A look into the Chinese folk psychology. Journal of Happiness Studies, 2, 407–432. http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1023/A:1013944228205

  • Lu, L., & Gilmour, R. (2004). Culture and conceptions of happiness: Individual oriented and social oriented SWB. Journal of Happiness Studies, 5, 269–291. doi:10.1007/s10902-004-8789-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lu, L., & Shih, J. B. (1997). Sources of happiness: A qualitative approach. Journal of Social Psychology, 137, 181–187. doi:10.1080/00224549709595429.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McMahon, D. M. (2006). Happiness: A history. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oishi, S., Graham, J., Kesebir, S., & Galinha, I. (2013). Concepts of happiness across time and cultures. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 39, 559–577. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0146167213480042

  • Pflug, J. (2009). Folk theories of happiness: A cross-cultural comparison of conceptions of happiness in Germany and South Africa. Social Indicators Research, 92, 551–563. doi:10.1007/s11205-008-9306-8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Piaget, J. P. (1952). The origins of intelligence in children. New York: International Universities Press. doi:10.1037/11494-000.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Rudolph, K. (2010). Implicit theories of peer relationships. Social Development, 19, 113–129. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2008.00534.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, R. M. (1995). Psychological needs and the facilitation of integrative processes. Journal of Personality, 63, 397–427. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1995.tb00501.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141–166. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.141.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2013). Toward a social psychology of assimilation: Self-determination theory in cognitive development and education. In B. W. Sokol, F. M. E. Grouzet, U. Muller (Eds.), Self-regulation and autonomy: Social and developmental dimensions of human conduct (pp. 191–207). http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139152198.014

  • Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological wellbeing. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 1069–1081. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.57.6.1069.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, S. J., Donnellan, M. B., Ravert. R. D., Luyckx, K., & Zamboanga, B. L. (2013). Identity development, personality, and well-being in adolescence and emerging adulthood: Theory, research, and recent advances. In I. B. Weiner (Series Ed.), and R. M. Lerner, A. Easterbrooks, & J. Mistry (Vol. Eds.), Handbook of psychology, vol. 6: Developmental psychology (pp. 339–364). New York: Wiley.

  • Seligman, M. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sokal, R. R., & Michener, C. D. (1958). A statistical method for evaluating systematic relationships. University of Kansas Scientific Bulletin, 38, 1409–1438.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, L., & Silverberg, S. B. (1986). The vicissitudes of autonomy in early adolescence. Child Development, 57, 841–851. doi:10.2307/1130361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sternberg, R. J., & Nigro, G. (1980). Developmental patterns in the solution of verbal analogies. Child Development, 51, 27–38. doi:10.2307/1129586.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sullivan, H. S. (1953). The interpersonal theory of psychiatry. New York: W. W. Norton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thoilliez, B. (2011). How to grow up happy: An exploratory study on the meaning of happiness from children’s voices. Child Indicators Research, 4, 323–351. doi:10.1007/s12187-011-9107-5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, R. A. (1994). Emotion regulation: A theme in search of definition. In N. A. Fox (Ed.), The development of emotion regulation: Biological and behavioural considerations (Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development) (Vol. 59, pp. 25–52). http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1166137

  • Tullis, T., & Wood, L. (2004). How many users are enough for a card sorting study? In Proceedings University Press of America 2004, Minneapolis, June 7–11, 2004.

  • UNICEF. (2007). An overview of child well-being in rich countries. Report Card 7. Retrieved from http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/rc7_eng.pdf

  • UNICEF. (2009). Calidad de vida y bienestar subjetivo en España (Quality of life and subjective well-being in Spain). Universitat de Girona. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.es/sites/www.unicef.es/files/Bienestar_infantil_subjetivo_en_Espakua.pdf

  • UNICEF. (2011). Children’s well-being in UK, Sweden and Spain: The role of inequality and materialism. Ipsos Institute. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org.uk/Documents/Publications/IPSOS_UNICEF_ChildWellBeingreport.pdf

  • van de Wetering, E. J., van Exel, N. J. A., & Brouwer, W. B. (2010). Piecing the jigsaw puzzle of adolescents’ happiness. Journal of Economic Psychology, 31, 923–935. doi:10.1016/j.joep.2010.08.004.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wickens, T. D. (1989). Multiway contingency tables analysis for the social sciences. Hillsdale: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wierzbicka, A. (2004). ‘Happiness’ in cross-linguistic and cross-cultural perspective. Daedalus, 133, 34–43. doi:10.1162/001152604323049370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Youniss, J. (1980). Parents and peers in social development: A Sullivan–Piaget perspective. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Youniss, J., & Smollar, J. (1985). Adolescent relations with mothers, fathers, and friends. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., & Collins, W. A. (2003). Autonomy development during adolescence. In G. R. Adams & M. Berzonsky (Eds.), Blackwell handbook of adolescence (pp. 175–204). Oxford: Blackwell Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, Plymouth University, B-214 Drake Circus, Plymouth, PL4 8AA, UK

    Belén López-Pérez & Michaela Gummerum

  2. University College of London, London, UK

    Janice Sánchez

Authors
  1. Belén López-Pérez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Janice Sánchez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Michaela Gummerum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Belén López-Pérez.

Appendices

Appendix 1

See Table 6.

Appendix 2

See Table 7.

Appendix 3: Results of Coding System 3 (Own Coding System Based on Participants’ Responses) and Discussion

Apart from the analyses conducted with coding systems 1 and 2, participants’ responses were categorized according to the subcategories and macrocategories of content previously identified in research (Delle Fave et al. 2011; Freire et al. 2013): life domain (45.70 % of responses) and psychological domain (54.3 % of responses). The following content categories emerged for life domain: ‘friends’, ‘family’, ‘standard of life’, ‘school’ and ‘leisure’ (see Table 5). Given that ‘friends’, ‘family’, ‘school’ and ‘leisure’ were identified in coding systems 1 and 2, we did not run further analyses on these. The hi-log-linear analyses for happiness as ‘standard of life’ did not produce a significant model for any interaction, only the main effect of the category was significant, χ2 = 4.98, df = 6, p = .55. The log-linear analysis showed that none of the age and gender groups differed significantly from each other (see Table 5). There was no interaction of gender with content category (χ2 = 1.30, df = 1, p = .26) or age (χ2 = 1.85, df = 1, p = .17).

Table 5 Frequencies of the content categories identified based on content analysis
Full size table

For the psychological domain, the following categories were identified: ‘positive feelings’, ‘harmony’, ‘lack of negative feelings’ and ‘purpose’ (see Table 5). Given that ‘positive feelings’, ‘harmony’, and ‘purpose’ were identified in coding systems 1 and 2, we did not run further analyses on these. For ‘lack of negative feelings’, the cell frequencies were below five so we could not analyze this category. This category was mentioned by relatively few participants (6.2 %).

Overall, using the macrocategories we obtained similar categories to those identified in coding systems 1 and 2. Only two additional analyzable categories emerged from this alternate coding system: ‘standard of life’, and ‘lack of negative feelings’. However, no age or gender differences were found. ‘Lack of negative feelings’ was hardly mentioned by participants in our study. Finally, ‘standard of life’ was mentioned frequently by the two eldest age groups unlike Freire et al.’s (2013) (Table 6, 7).

Table 6 Coding systems
Full size table
Table 7 Examples coded within each category and coding system
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

López-Pérez, B., Sánchez, J. & Gummerum, M. Children’s and Adolescents’ Conceptions of Happiness. J Happiness Stud 17, 2431–2455 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-015-9701-1

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-015-9701-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation