Does money buy happiness Not! Ah, but would a little more money make us a little happier Many of us smirk (傻笑，假笑) and nod. There is, we believe, some connection between fiscal fitness and emotional fulfillment. Three in four American collegians (大学生) now consider it "very important" or "essential" that they become "very well off financially." Money matters.
But a surprising fact of life is that in countries where nearly everyone can accord life’s necessities, increasing affluence matters surprisingly little. The correlation between income and happiness is "surprisingly weak," observed University of Michigan researcher Ronald Inglehart in one 1B-nation study of 170,000 people. Once comfortable, more money provides diminishing returns. The second piece of pie, or the second
100,000, never tastes as good as the first. Even lottery winners and the Forbes’ 100 wealthiest Americans have expressed only slightly greater happiness than the average American. it big brings temporary joy. But in the long run wealth is like health: its utter absence can breed misery, but having it doesn’t guarantee happiness. Happiness seems less a matter of getting what we want than of wanting what we have.
Has our happiness floated upward with the rising economic tide Are we happier today than in 1940s, when two out of five homes lacked a shower or tub Actually, we are not. Since 1957, the number of Americans who say they are "very happy" has declined from 35 to 32 percent. Meanwhile, the divorce rate has doubled, the suicide rate has nearly tripled (使成三倍), the violent crime rate has nearly quadrupled (使成四倍)(even after the recent decline), and more people than ever (especially s and young s) are depressed.
This soaring wealth and shrinking spirit is called" the American paradox". More than ever, we have big houses and broken homes, high incomes and low morale, secured rights and diminished civility. We excel at a living but often fail at a life. We celebrate our prosperity but yearn for a purpose. We cherish our s but long for connection. In an age of plenty, we feel spiritual hunger.
In this passage, "the American paradox" probably means ______ (Line 1, Para. 4).