Although broken marital relationships can cause much misery, a good marriage apparently is a strong source of support. The happiness gap between the married and the never married was similar for women and men. Religiously active people also report greater happiness. One Gallup survey found that highly religious people were twice as likely as those lowest in spiritual commitment to declare themselves very happy. Other surveys, including a 16-nation collaborative study of 166,000 people in 14 nations, have found that reported happiness and life satisfaction rise with strength of religious affiliation and frequency of attendance at worship services.
Some researchers believe that religious affiliation entails greater social support and hopefulness.
Students of happiness are now beginning to examine happy people's exercise patterns, worldviews and goals. It is possible that some of the patterns discovered in the research may offer clues for transforming circumstances and behaviors that work against well-being into ones that promote it. Ultimately, then, the scientific study of happiness could help us understandhow to build a world that enhances human well-being and to aid people in getting the most satisfaction from their circumstances. As you can see, the authors based their opinions upon a large statistical sample, and came to a few counter-intuitive conclusions. I find great encouragement in their findings regarding age, gender, ethnicity, or wealth .