'Hedonic Treadmill'

Investopedia explains 'Hedonic Treadmill'

The hedonic treadmill theory explains the oft-held observation that rich people are no happier than poor people, and that those with severe money problems are sometimes quite happy. The theory supports the argument that money does not buy happiness and that the pursuit of money as a way to reach this goal is futile. Good and bad fortunes may temporarily affect how happy a person is, but most people will end up back at their normal level of happiness.

The tendency of a person to remain at a relatively stable level of happiness despite a change in fortune or the achievement of major goals. According to the hedonic treadmill, as a person makes more money, expectations and desires rise in tandem, which results in no permanent gain in happiness.

The hedonic treadmill is a characteristic associated with happiness where the source of happiness ultimately wanes in its ability to actually make the individual happy. This trait of happiness is most often associated with hedonistic sources of happiness, such as new purchases that first bring an increased sense of well being but eventually lose their luster.

As such, the hedonic treadmill is often used as an argument against the hedonic view of happiness. However, this happiness treadmill can also apply to eudaimonia, which suggests that encountering and overcoming challenging situations is one source of happiness. Under this definition, a eudaimonist who receives fulfillment by mastering a new hobby may find less happiness as he or she masters that hobby and the challenge wanes.

Other subtler points: Although many economists agree that money doesn’t make people happy, disparities in income make people miserable, according to most happiness literature.

Happy
Happy combines cutting-edge science from the new field of "positive psychology" with real-life stories of people from around the world whose lives illustrate these findings.