Choosing Others, Or Not

Uziel and Tomer Schmidt-Barad probed how having control and choosing to be alone or with others influence wellbeing.  They share that “Stable social relationships are conducive to well-being. . . . The present investigation suggests that . . . social interactions increase ESWB [experiential subjective well-being] only if taken place by one’s choice. Moreover, it is argued that choice matters more in a social context than in an alone context because experiences with others are amplified. These ideas were tested and supported in two studies: An experiment that manipulated social context and choice status, and a 10-day experience-sampling study, which explored these variables in real-life settings. Results showed that being with others by one’s choice had the strongest positive association with ESWB, sense of meaning, and control, whereas being with others not by one’s choice—the strongest negative association with ESWB.”

Liad Uziel and Tomer Schmidt-Barad.  2022.  “Choice Matters More with Others:  Choosing to Be With Other People is More Consequential to Well-Being Than Choosing to Be Alone.”  Journal of Happiness Studies, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10902-022-00506-5