Rumour: Marriage or cohabiting leads to a higher level of life satisfaction.
Truth: This is true.
Our feelings and behaviour can shape the structure of our brains. Happiness can be measured by many factors including education level, household income, employment, and relationship status. Researchers in China conducted a study to determine what factors influence happiness. The Chinese researchers measured the happiness of 1000 young adults by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a life-satisfaction scale. The results of this study are published in the journal Neuroscience.
Researchers found that 45.3% of participants who were married or cohabiting exhibited higher levels of life satisfaction in comparison to individuals who were single, divorced or dating. Reasons for a higher level of happiness may be due to the higher levels of emotional support by having a partner. To read more about this study, click here.