Negative Emotions Welcome
Since the dawn of time, researchers have tried to identify what happiness truly is, where it comes from, and how to replicate it. Psychiatrists have recently started focusing on a new study field, positive psychology, the study of happiness. However, these researchers have come to the conclusion that society should be happy, all of the time. Researchers often forget, that humans need all of the basic emotions: happiness, sadness, fear, and anger. Experiencing negative emotions are just as crucial as happiness because, these emotions allow people to cherish happiness, they push people to do better, they keep people alert in dangerous situations, and they allow people to become closer and interact with the people around
Negative emotions are used to make decisions, and being sad drives a person to do better. A sad person will push themselves to do better, and to overcome obstacles in life. Negative emotions encourage humans to do better, in fact, humans who are less happy often lead better, more fulfilling lives. In the article, “Happiness: Enough Already,” the author refers to a study by Diener in the journal, “Perspectives on Psychological Science,” and concludes that, “on a scale from 1 to 10, where 10 is extremely happy, 8s were more successful than 9s and 10s, getting more education and earning more” (Begley 455). Those who are less happy are motivated to achieve a better life for themselves. Therefore, living a moderately happy life, one with sadness, is more fulfilling than a life with no sadness. Negative emotions build character and stamina for the challenges in life, without these emotion, humans would never excel in
Being too happy can put people into euphoric state, and make them feel invincible. During these times of extreme happiness, people will make unhealthy decisions, without regarding their future consequences. The article, “Don’t Worry, Be Gloomy,” explains that humans who are too happy, “might engage in riskier behaviors like drinking too much, binge eating, skipping birth control, and using drugs” (David 124). Negative emotions cause a person to take a step back and analyze the situation, then plan a course of action. When one is too happy, consequences are forgotten and people will choose to, “live in the moment.” Negative emotions keep a person attentive and aware of the truth in a