Short of money? Survey shows sex as substitute - Ranching After 50

In spite of the old adage that “money can’t bring you happiness,” everybody I know is pretty sure having more money would make them happier.

So what do you do when you don’t have more money and don’t see your ship coming in any time soon? Well, a couple of economists in the United States have determined that in the happiness department, sex can be just as good as money. In fact, they have been able to make some direct comparisons, which I will tell you about in an minute.

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David G. Blanchflower and Andrew J. Oswald surveyed a random sample of 16,000 adult Americans to study the links between income, sexual behaviour and reported happiness.

They reported their findings last May in a paper called Money, Sex and Happiness: an empirical study, which was published by the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, Maryland.

Here are some of their findings:

Frequency of sexual activity is shown to be positively associated with happiness. This is true for males and females, and for those older and younger than 40.

The median American has sexual intercourse two to three times a month. Among people younger than 40, the median amount of sex is once a week. Approximately six percent of the population reportÊ having sex more than three times a week.
Close to half of American women older than 40 report they did not have sexual intercourse in the previous year. It’s 20 percent for men.
Homosexuals and bisexuals make up about 2.5 percent of the U.S. population, and homosexuality has no statistically significant effects on happiness.
Sex seems to have disproportionately strong effects on the happiness of highly educated people.
The happiest people were those that had only one regular sexual partner the previous year.
Married people have more sex than those who are single, divorced, widowed or separated.
Highly educated females tend to have fewer sexual partners.
Income has no effect. Money buys neither more sexual partners nor more sex.

Now here’s the interesting part.

Using a combination of formulae only economists could come up with, they found that sex “enters so strongly (and) positively in happiness equations” that they estimate increasing intercourse from once a month to once a week is equivalent to the amount of happiness generated by making an extra $50,000 a year for the average American.

They also determined that a good, stable marriage brings as much happiness as making an extra $100,000 per year.

Divorce, on the other hand, reduced happiness by the equivalent of losing $66,000 a year.

Now, does sex lead to happiness or are happy people just more likely to lead each other to the bedroom? That’s still under investigation, say the economists, but there is evidence that psyche and sex feed off each other.

So, are you having trouble making extra money in the current economy but still want to be happy? You know what to do.

Edmonton-based Noel McNaughton is a professional speaker, coach and writer who specializes in guiding men and women through the uncertainty of life transitions. He can be reached toll-free at 877-736-1552. Website: www.midlife-men.com.