Researchers at the University College London had constructing the formula for happiness as
The formula means happiness spikes if we win when our expectations are low but that happiness gradually fades over time. The study focus on the momentary joy that comes from winning a reward.
MRI machines were used on 26 subjects who were playing a gambling game. What they found was that it wasn’t the overall amount of money won in the game that gave the participants the greatest happiness. The formula incorporates a “forgetting factor” — which predicts that the happiness obtained from a previous win dwindles over time. Ten more trials after a win, the original win “essentially has no influence on current happiness.” These researchers were then able to use that formula to predict the general pattern of happiness in more than 18,000 people playing a similar game on a smartphone.
Extracted from Brian Resnick's article on the National Journal. The source article in pdf format can be found on Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Gambling counselors could use this formula to better understand gambling behaviour. The scary part is the gambling industry using this to rake more profits.
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