Cheerfulness: why are some people simply happier?

It is raining, the train is late and the meeting ran over. Your colleague laughs it off, finds something funny to say about it and is in a good mood by lunch.

You are not unhappy either. You just do not feel the same lightness, and you sometimes wonder how she does it.

Why do some people seem to carry a built-in good mood, while others experience joy more quietly or more rarely?

Part of the explanation lies in what psychologists call cheerfulness. In the Big Five model, it is one of six facets of extraversion. The facet describes how often you experience positive emotions such as joy, enthusiasm and delight, and how readily you show them.

What does cheerfulness mean?

In personality psychology, cheerfulness is about positive emotions: how often you feel them, how strongly, and how much they colour the way you meet the world. In some questionnaires the same facet is called positive emotions.

People who score high often recognise themselves in this:

• You radiate joy, and others notice it.
• You have a lot of fun, often in ordinary situations.
• You love life, even when it is not perfect.
• You tend to look at the bright side of things.
• You laugh easily and are quick to be enthusiastic.

People who score low experience positive emotions less often or less intensely. That does not mean they are unhappy or depressed. Many are content and satisfied, just in a calmer and more low-key way.

The key is not whether your life is good, but how often joy and enthusiasm come to the surface.

How much of happiness is personality?

Researchers have long asked how much of our well-being can be explained by personality.

A major review from 2008 found that earlier studies had underestimated the link, partly because they lumped together very different measures. When the researchers matched personality and well-being measures more carefully, personality could account for up to 39% of the differences in well-being between people, and as much as 63% when corrected for measurement error.

A larger meta-analysis from 2020, with over 330,000 participants, confirmed that neuroticism, extraversion and conscientiousness were the most important traits for well-being. It also found that individual facets predicted well-being around 20% better than the broad traits did. That is one reason it makes sense to look at cheerfulness on its own.

There is a nuance, though. A study from 2000 found that the link between extraversion and pleasant feelings was moderate to strong when people described their mood in general, but weaker when mood was measured moment by moment in daily life. How happy we say we usually are and how we feel in each moment are not quite the same.

Is happiness in your genes?

If personality matters so much, is happiness inherited?

A meta-analysis from 2015 reviewed 30 twin and family studies. The estimates varied widely, from 0 to 64%. When the studies were combined, about 36% of the differences in well-being between people could be attributed to genes. For life satisfaction, the figure was 32%.

That means genes play a real role, but most of the variation is due to other things: life circumstances, relationships, health and the choices we make. Cheerfulness may be partly a gift of temperament, but it is not a fixed fate.

Happy people often succeed, and not only the other way round

We often assume that success makes people happy. Research suggests the arrow also points the other way.

A large review from 2005 combined cross-sectional, longitudinal and experimental studies. Happy people were more successful in many areas, including marriage, friendship, income, work performance and health. Importantly, happiness often came before the successes, and the authors argued that positive emotions may help cause them.

The study was about happiness and positive emotions in general, not about the cheerfulness facet specifically. But it suggests that people who often feel joy may have an advantage that goes beyond the good mood itself.

Cheerfulness is not the same as the absence of depression

This is an important distinction.

In the Big Five, positive emotions belong under extraversion, while negative emotions such as anxiety, sadness and anger belong under neuroticism. This means a low score on cheerfulness is not the same as a high score on depression.

You can rarely feel down and still not feel especially enthusiastic. And you can be prone to low mood while still being able to laugh and feel deep joy in good moments.

Cheerfulness is also not the same as optimism in the narrow sense of expecting things to go well. Optimism is about expectations for the future, while cheerfulness is mainly about the emotions you feel now.

A Big Five score is not a diagnosis. If you have felt low or empty for a long time, have lost interest in things you used to enjoy, or the low mood limits your daily life, talk to your doctor or a psychologist. If you have thoughts of suicide, seek help immediately.

What does a high or low score mean?

High cheerfulness

You often feel joy and enthusiasm, and you show it. Others often find your good mood contagious, and you may lift the atmosphere in a group.

The flip side can be that you play down problems that should be taken seriously, or that others feel you do not understand when they are struggling.

Low cheerfulness

You experience positive emotions more quietly or more rarely. You are less likely to burst out in enthusiasm, and you may come across as serious or calm.

That does not mean you are unhappy. Many low scorers are content and thoughtful, and they are often valued for being realistic and steady.

Both descriptions are about typical tendencies, not rules that hold in every situation.

In everyday life

• At work: High scorers often bring energy to a team and can be good at motivating others. Low scorers often contribute a sober and realistic view, which is valuable when decisions need to be made.
• In relationships: A partner high in cheerfulness may want to cheer the other up when they are sad. Sometimes it helps more to listen than to look on the bright side.
• In social life: High scorers are often seen as good company. Low scorers may find that others mistake calmness for boredom or unhappiness.
• In hard times: Positive emotions can be a buffer, but no one is cheerful all the time. Allowing yourself to feel sad is also healthy.

Can cheerfulness change?

Personality is fairly stable, but positive emotions can be influenced.

A meta-analysis from 2009 looked at 51 positive psychology interventions with 4,266 participants. These were activities aimed at cultivating positive feelings, behaviours or thoughts. On average, they increased well-being and reduced depressive symptoms.

A large review from 2017 pooled 207 studies on personality change through therapy and other interventions. Emotional stability changed the most, followed by extraversion.

In a large long-term study of adults, measured with the questionnaire our test's facets are modelled on, positive emotions followed a curved pattern, peaking around age 60.

If you want more joy in your everyday life, things you can try include:

• Spend time with people you like. Studies of everyday life suggest that acting sociable lifts the mood of most people, as described in our article on gregariousness.
• Notice and savour good moments, even small ones.
• Do things you used to enjoy, even when you do not feel like it beforehand.
• Remember that a calm mood is not a problem that needs fixing.

Frequently asked questions

Are cheerful people always happy?

No. Cheerfulness is about how often you experience positive emotions, not whether you avoid negative ones. Cheerful people also feel sadness, worry and anger.

Is low cheerfulness a sign of depression?

Not in itself. Many people with a low score are content and well. But if a lack of joy comes with lasting low mood, emptiness or loss of interest, it can be worth talking to a doctor or psychologist.

Can I be introverted and cheerful?

Yes. You can prefer quiet evenings and small groups and still feel a lot of joy. The six facets of extraversion do not always go together.

How is cheerfulness measured in the Big Five test?

Our test is based on the IPIP-NEO-120, where each facet is measured with four statements. For cheerfulness, they are about radiating joy, having a lot of fun, loving life and looking at the bright side of life. Read the score as a sign of a pattern, not as a complete description of you.

Find out where you score

Cheerfulness is only one of the six facets of extraversion. You can feel a lot of joy and still prefer quiet evenings, or be low-key emotionally and still love parties.

Take the Big Five test and see your whole profile, with all 30 facets.

Sources

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