Rich, Successful — and Miserable: Research Probes Mid-Life Angst

There really is a midlife crisis.

If you’re in your 40s, you are probably pulling down a bigger paycheck than ever before, and your portfolio has never been fatter. And yet, if research by economists and psychologists is any guide, you have never been more miserable.

What’s going on here — and what can you do about it? Here are some lessons from the burgeoning field of "happiness research."

Pounding the treadmill. Numerous studies have found that our happiness level through our lives follows a U-shape, with folks becoming increasingly dissatisfied as they approach their 40s and then bouncing back from there.

"That U-shape is just so robust, across so many studies and across so many countries," says Keith Bender, an economics professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. "You can’t get away from it entirely. But you can do things to mitigate it."

By Jonathan Clements

From The Wall Street Journal Online

Full Story: http://www.careerjournal.com/myc/survive/20051006-clements.html?cjcontent=mail