Furthermore, those who say they are happy and satisfied seem happy to their close friends and family members and to a psychologist-interviewer. Their daily mood ratings reveal more positive emotions, and they smile more than those who call themselves unhappy. Compared with the depressed, happy people are less self-focused, less hostile and abusive, and less susceptible to disease. No time of life is notably happier or unhappier. Men and women are equally likely to declare themselves happy with life.
Blacks are only slightly less likely to declare themselves happy than are whites.
They have high self esteem and usually believe themselves to be more ethical, more intelligent, less prejudiced, better able to get along with others, and healthier than the average person. Second, happy people typically feel personal control. Third, happy people are usually optimistic. Fourth, most happy people are extroverted. Although one might expect that introverts would live more happily in the serenity of their less stressed, contemplative lives, extroverts are happier, whether alone or with others.