If you had to find out what happiness means for you and how happy you are, then what do you do? You learn how to measure happiness. Do you want to find out how happy you are?
Measuring our happiness on an equal scale may seem challenging because happiness is a feeling that we all experience differently. However, psychologists have worked it out and even developed a “happiness formula.”
Are You Happy: Test
Read each statement below and answer each as one of these: Never, A Few Times, Sometimes, Often, or Always.
- I have a lot of laughs.
- I’m thankful for what I have.
- I am usually enthusiastic and active.
- I’m not very hopeful about the future.
- Life, in my opinion, is extremely fulfilling.
- I’m not really thrilled with how I’m doing.
- I experience delight from moment to moment.
- I actively maintain contact with friends and family.
- I aim to assist others and make a difference in their life.
- I can see the good in even the most unpleasant individuals.
- I’m adept at letting go of wounds and disappointments from the past.
- When life becomes tough, I believe it is important to keep a sense of humor.
- It’s best for me not to get my expectations up, so I don’t end up disappointed.
- When I’m feeling low, I tell myself to focus on the positives of my life rather than the negatives.
- I am aware of my abilities and virtues, and I employ them creatively to improve the quality of my life.
Check your scores here at Happiness Test.
Measuring The 14 Components of Your Happiness
‘Your Happiness Assessment’ is a personality test that assesses 14 different factors that influence your happiness. By evaluating yourself, you can find out improving which specific areas can help you create more happiness in your life.
Before taking the test (link at the bottom), please read through these components of happiness so that you understand not only how happy you actually are, but also how you can improve your happiness scores.
Since this happiness questionnaire relies on self-report, it can only be as accurate as your responses.
Moreover, the test is meant for personal information only and is not equal to a professional evaluation. The report provides information to help you to learn more about your happy personality.
This test was developed by the International Personality Item Pool, a collaborative effort by personality researchers to develop advanced measures of individual differences. A clinical psychologist writes the descriptions of the results. It contains a total of 119 items.
Let us clarify that we are not related to or affiliated with the test-takers in any way.
Let us go over each of the 14 components of the happiness assessment:
1. Compassion
Compassion is feeling concerned for other people when they experience misfortune. People who focus less on themselves and more on compassion towards others are usually happier people.
A high score in compassion indicates you have a great deal of concern for people who are suffering and feel deeply about their problems.
• If you are interested in finding out how could you grow your compassion for yourself, you must read this nifty guide on how to practice self-compassion.
2. Gratefulness
Gratefulness is the tendency to appreciate and be thankful for your life circumstances. A high score here indicates that you are optimistic and have a great deal of satisfaction with life.
3. Optimism
Optimism is the tendency to believe in positive outcomes. A high score here indicates that you generally tend to be optimistic and to see the positive side of a situation.
This positive expectation increases the likelihood of being aware of positive outcomes which impact your overall level of happiness. That is, being an optimistic person increases your likelihood of being happy.
• Did you know there’s a difference between Hope And Optimism?
4. Self-Confidence
Self-Confidence is having trust or faith in yourself and your abilities. If you are to score low in this segment, then you could probably achieve more and increase your overall level of happiness by not listening to self-doubt and experimenting with more new things.
5. Trusting Others
Trusting of Others is the belief in others’ good intentions. Mainly, happier people tend to be more trusting of others and positive in their assessment of others’ motives.
This positive approach to others is likely to improve relationships and lead to more pleasant outcomes. An attitude that most people are trustworthy and helpful, would help you to create more positive conditions in your life.
6. Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness is the tendency to be meticulous and careful when completing tasks.
So often, people believe happiness is about feeling good in the present, and so they pursue artificial means that feel good such as over-eating, using alcohol or drugs, gambling, acquiring more things, and pursuing excitement.
However, true contentment and happiness in life are based more on the long-term, not the immediate. This is an important aspect of attaining true happiness.
7. Assertiveness
Assertiveness is the ability to actively problem-solve and handle situations directly, calmly, and with confidence.
By developing more direct communication, setting limits, and voicing your needs, you might find you can be more successful and achieve what you want, whether at work or in relationships.
8. Illness Susceptibility
Illness Susceptibility refers to a likelihood of engaging in behaviors critical to physical and mental health.
You may be like many people who have not developed frustration tolerance (the ability to wait for desires or work towards outcomes) and you want gratification immediately.
By developing greater frustration tolerance, you may experience more positive health outcomes and greater satisfaction and happiness in the long term.
Recognizing that you can cope with short-term discomfort for the long-term rewards will lead to greater life satisfaction and happiness.
9. Approval-Seeking
Approval-Seeking is the tendency to need others’ approval and to conform to expectations. You may be able to improve your overall degree of happiness by challenging your need for approval from others, which can reduce approval-seeking behaviors.
10. Playfulness
Playfulness is focusing on the exciting aspects of life and encouraging others to laugh and have fun. A high score here indicates that you tend to find joy and excitement in many experiences in life.
11. Emotional Stability
Emotional Stability is the tendency to not be swayed by emotions and for emotions to be manageable and controlled. An average score in this indicates that:
- your emotions may impact the decisions you make,
- how you handle a problem,
- the things you decide to do,
- things your emotions do not allow you to do.
So, emotional stability is a measure of how well you can pursue important desires or handle difficult life situations.
12. Locus of Control
Locus of Control is the degree to which you believe in either Effort or Luck as the key to success. One must work hard to achieve success, but it doesn’t hurt to be lucky as well.
However, this “luck” may be due to the “effort” of being in the right place at the right time with the right people!
13. Affiliation
Affiliation is the desire to be around others and to enjoy social events. Generally, happier people tend to affiliate more with others. Pleasurable social interaction tends to create a more positive atmosphere and satisfaction in life.
Therefore, it may be worthwhile to assess whether your degree of affiliation is substantial enough to positively impact your degree of happiness.
14. Pleasantness
Pleasantness is the tendency to be easy-going, agreeable, and respectful of others. People who are more pleasant towards others are largely happier.
Most likely, this is due to creating a positive self-fulfilling prophecy. In other words, by treating people pleasantly, others are more likely to be attracted to you and treat you positively as well.
You can do this by simply smiling and taking a genuine interest in others!
A Sample Happiness Score
I took this test sometime back. The picture below are my scores (without the boring descriptions):
Every year, the scientists at Gallup World Poll measure happiness around the globe, and they’ve had some surprising results. Watch this bright, cheery video by National Geographic to find out how they do it:
Further Reading:
The International Personality Item Pool and the future of public-domain personality measures, Goldberg & Johnson, 2006. Journal of Research in Personality.
Measure Your Happiness
Measure your happiness by visiting the link below:
Ψ Click To Check Your Happiness Assessment Here Ψ
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Author Bio: Written and reviewed by Sandip Roy — medical doctor, psychology writer, and happiness researcher. Founder and Chief Editor of The Happiness Blog. Writes on mental well-being, happiness, positive psychology, and philosophy (especially Stoicism).
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