The U-Curve of Happiness Revisited: Correlations and Differences in Life Satisfaction Over the Span of Life-An Empirical Evaluation Based on Data From 1,597 Individuals Aged 12-94 in Germany.

Background: Subjective wellbeing (SWB) is a research topic of growing interest for different disciplines. Based on a cross-sectional survey with 1,597 participants aged 12-94, this study investigated life satisfaction and momentary happiness, two important dimensions of SWB. We examined their relationship, shape, and correlates across individuals of different ages and interpreted the results in the light of a neurobiological model of motivation systems.

What Matters Most in Life? A German Cohort Study on the Sources of Meaning and Their Neurobiological Foundations in Four Age Groups.

Existing work in the field of positive psychology suggests that people can draw meaning from a variety of sources. The present study aimed to identify the most important sources of meaning and to explore the role of age and neural adaptation processes in this context. As part of a large German cohort study, 1,587 individuals between 12 and 94 years were asked to provide a maximum of five responses to the question "What matters most to you in life?" We divided the study population into four age groups and analyzed the obtained answers qualitatively and quantitatively using (1) word clouds and (2) frequency comparisons based on a summarizing content analysis.