Happiness Equality #
There is now greater equality of happiness in America than there was in the 1970s. Eduardo Porter considers why:
Still, it is not surprising that happiness among blacks rose in the years after the civil rights law outlawed segregation and discrimination on the basis of race. Mr. Wolfers speculates that the gay-straight happiness gap is also likely to have declined over the period, for similar reasons. Changes in family life might also help. Married people are happier than unmarried people, on average. Still, later marriages and more divorces might have winnowed out the unhappiest marriages. And while the shift to two-earner families brings to mind the stressful rush from work to pick the kid up at day care, it also has empowered unhappy stay-at-home moms.