Five cultural tendencies might explain the “East Asian happiness puzzle”

A new study published in Social and Personality Psychology Compass has revealed that East Asian countries report lower average happiness than Western nations, not because they are poorer, but due to five cultural tendencies that dampen everyday joy.

Economists and policymakers have long held beliefs that national prosperity drives happiness. Indeed, richer countries tend to have higher happiness scores. However, wealthy East Asian democracies such as Japan and South Korea often report lower happiness than similarly affluent Western nations. In previous research, this “East Asian happiness puzzle” still persisted even after accounting for income, social equality, and rights.

Researchers Hyewon Choi (Kyung Hee University) and Eunsoo Choi (Korea University) set out to investigate this paradox. Rather than focusing on economics or politics, they examined cultural differences in psychology – how individuals think about themselves, their emotions, and their social worlds.

They scoured global surveys of up to 147 countries, lab experiments comparing hundreds of East Asians and European Americans, brain-wave studies on self-focus, and community analyses from rice- versus wheat-farming areas. By weaving together this diverse evidence, they identified five key cultural mechanisms.

First, East Asians practice self-effacing interdependence where humility, modesty and criticism of the self keep individual pride in check. In contrast, Westerners embrace self-enhancement, which boosts positive self-views and lifts happiness. Experiments find European Americans focus more on good traits, while East Asians give equal weight to flaws.

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Second, East Asians lean on external standards – social approval and norms – to judge success, including happiness. Westerners rely mostly on internal feelings. Studies show Koreans lower their happiness ratings if someone criticizes their joyful memories, whereas Americans stick to their own sense of well-being.

Third, strong and tight social norms in East Asia encourage constant social comparison. Comparing upward – such as “my neighbor earns more” or “my friends seem happier” – often backfires, leaving people less satisfied with their own lives.

Fourth, dialectical thinking common in East Asia accepts that too much happiness can spark envy and disrupt harmony, viewing happiness as fleeting or even dangerous if overindulged. Hence, individuals savor positive moments less. Western analytic thinking on the other hand simply chases joy directly.

Finally, low relational mobility – i.e. fewer chances to make new friends – means East Asians share good news less often and seek support less as they often remain in fixed social networks. Westerners, in more fluid social worlds where people can freely form and leave friendships, readily celebrate together and lift each other up.

Taken together, these cultural patterns may explain why wealth and democracy do not automatically lead to happiness in East Asia. Happiness is not just about material comfort or social freedoms – it is also deeply shaped by cultural habits of thought and social life.

Despite its breadth, the review has gaps. It focuses mainly on East Asia versus North America, relies heavily on cross-sectional data, and cannot isolate which single mechanism matters most. Future studies will need unified experiments and a broader range of cultures.

The study, “Unraveling Why Happiness Levels Vary Across Cultures: Mechanisms Underlying East-West Differences”, was authored by Hyewon Choi and Eunsoo Choi.