On Santorini last summer--a purchased experience.
Say you have $30 to spare. What would you prefer to do: spend it on a new shirt or use it to take a date to a movie? Or say you have not $30 but $3,000. Would you rather put the money down on a new car or spend it vacationing at a nice resort? Whatever amount you have, would you be more inclined to purchase a material possession or an experience?
Researchers have looked at which type of choice is more likely to increase happiness. The conclusion: you get more happiness for your buck if you pick the experience over the possession.
According to a 2005 review article written by psychologist Leaf Van Boven of the University of Colorado at Boulder, there are several reasons for this. First of all, people who are highly materialistic turn out not to be very happy. The more people agree with statements such as “Some of the most important achievements in life include acquiring material possessions” and “Buying things gives me a lot of pleasure,” the less life satisfaction they report. Materialism is correlated with symptoms such as depression, narcissism, and paranoia. We already know that it is also correlated with debt!
Van Boven and colleagues also conducted a series of surveys in which they asked respondents to report on their purchases of material goods and of experiences and how happy each purchase made them. (The authors note that some purchases, e.g. a bicycle, could fit either category; they went by the person’s stated intention in those cases.) Regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, or marital status, money spent on experiences made people happier on average than money spent on material goods. The difference between happiness levels resulting from material and from experiential purchases increased as income level increased.
Van Boven suggests three reasons why experiences may make people happier than material goods. First, experiences are more likely to be reappraised favorably after the fact. Thus, the bike trip that at the time left me cold, sore, and bored will be described later as a bracing, fitness-enhancing jaunt down wooded paths. One way to think of such reappraisals may be that we commonly reevaluate experiences so as to construct a positive narrative of our lives, but don’t have a similar tendency to reconstruct the meaning of material goods. A new TV just doesn’t make as good a story as a trip to the Smithsonian.
Second, experiences don’t suffer as much from negative comparisons. My new cell phone can easily pale in comparison to your new cell phone, but it’s much harder to know whether my trip to see fall foliage was better or worse than your trip to see fall foliage.
Third, experiences are more likely to have social value. We usually take vacations, go out to eat, or go to the theater with others. In contrast, wearing new clothes or riding in our new car are more likely to be solitary activities. This last point seems to contradict the view of economist Thorstein Veblen in The Theory of the Leisure Class, published in 1899. He coined the term “conspicuous consumption” to refer to the waste of money and/or resources in order to indicate that one has a higher status than others. To the extent that our purchases are status displays of this sort, both expenditures on experiences and those for material goods are deeply social in character.
Regardless, the main point is that we will be happier purchasing experiences than things. Another benefit of experiences is that many of the best ones don’t cost anything at all. So, go for a walk, have a good conversation, or read a (library) book. Happy now?
Life Assays 
March 29, 2009 at 10:30 pm
Money cannot buy happiness, but it sure can help. While many people say that money cannot buy happiness, I believe that it can help you to be happy whether it is by material possessions or by taking vacations. This is because if you buy material possessions, they will last longer because memories fade but material possessions will always be there. I think that material possessions would make you happier if you buy something substantial that you use every day, like a house or car.
I believe that material possessions can influence your level of happiness according to how often you use it. Take for instance you bought a new Toyota Tundra because your previous truck was breaking down. When you bought the truck, you would be instantly happy because you have a truck that you know will not break down.
On the other hand, you could take several weeks’ vacation to your favorite place. While during the stay, you have no worries, you could not feel happier. But when you come back from the vacation, you would remember it vividly for some time, but eventually most of it would fade away.
The key difference between buying a truck and taking a vacation is that the vacation will not make you as happy for a longer period of time as the truck would. When you buy the new truck, every time you drive it, you would be as happy as the vacation but just for a shorter amount of time. You use the truck more often, so in my opinion, I think the truck would be a better investment if you wanted to make yourself happier.
Many times when people go on vacation, they forget about how happy it makes them and they seem to forget about the vacation in a year. But if you buy a material possession that you use every day, you would seem more likely to stay happy as long as the truck seems to be performing well.
March 29, 2009 at 11:38 pm
I agree, I think that an experience will make a person happier in the long run, over purchasing a material item. When you purchase a material item you get the instant gratification of purchasing something, which will make you happy, but this will soon fade with time. While, on the other hand, an experience like a vacation or even just going to dinner and movie with some friends will provide a much more substantial happiness. When researching this idea I found an article on CNN.com that described a study that Professor Ryan Howell of San Francisco State University did that supported my opinion. Howell conducted a survey that asks people about something they recently purchased, either material or otherwise, and how happy it made them. The article stated, “While most people were generally happy with the purchase regardless of what it was, those who wrote about experiences tended to show a higher satisfaction at the time and after the experience had passed” (Landau). Even though a material purchase, like a new phone, will make you happy for awhile, it still cannot compare to the happiness from an experience. Particularly, since you can relive an experience, like when talk about it with your friends and family. A material purchase will eventually get old and boring. However, an experience is always new, different, and exciting; even if you have done it a million times it is never exactly the same every time. An experience will also create memories that you will always have. Experiences, as mentioned in the post, are also great social activities; to go out and meet new people or even just bond better with people you already know. The value of an experience will always trump the value of a material item. Overall, I believe that an experience will make a person happier, over purchasing a material item.
March 30, 2009 at 2:48 am
Experiences are better remembered in the sense that it is a rare thing. Sure money will buy you something that you have always wanted, but in the long run it just gets old. When someone spends money on an experience, it just makes it all the better. I remember my senior year of high school when I had to save up money in order to go to “Senior Week.” It was a beach experience that I will never forget. I had the opportunity to create my last memories with friends and just be able to relax and prepare for the future. I would take the experience over a material purchase any time. Sure I may buy a new TV, Xbox, Car, etc. These are just everyday things. You could say that they are needed, but they won’t bring you the joy and satisfaction that an experience will. I believe that an experience just does something to your mind and body that eases your nerves and calms every part of your body. I think that it’s the point of knowing that your “free” and you have no worries for however long your vacationing. I have to agree with Jake Patton that money helps creating happiness. Material possessions do last longer than experiences, but I just do not think they are as satisfying. I agree with Leanne in the sense that materials make you happy at first, but they do not compare to the happiness an experience gives you. Happiness from an experience is greater because it is something you can’t relive. You may be able to vacate at the same spot, but the experience will be different. In conclusion, I agree with the fact that buying an experience will make you happier than buying a material. As the blog states, you do not necessarily have to buy an experience. Take a walk, read a book, conversation, or just sit in the room with loved ones. Experiences are the key to happiness.
March 30, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Jake, you’re right in saying that there is a strong, immediate sense of enjoyment that comes with making a major purchase. You suggest that such a purchase would have a long-term effect on happiness. Researchers haven’t found such a long-term effect, though. The effects of such a purchase could be compared to the effects of a powerful but short-lasting drug; you feel great, but need another hit to keep up the feeling. That’s a general finding, though, and may not pertain to you. Is there something you bought more than 6 months ago that still contributes to your happiness? If so, I’m curious as to why that is–do you have any ideas about that?
Leanne, I notice that you found one of the studies comparing the effect of purchasing a material object to the effect of spending money on an experience. It’s good that you did research on the question. You do a good job describing why experiences contribute to happiness. As you say, the same sort of event can provide a different experience from one time to another. It’s helpful to be attentive to these differences; that fits with being aware of what is happening around us and living in the present, something that some psychologists say we often fail to do.
Jason, the event you describe–of your Senior Week trip–is an excellent example of the value of experiences. It sounds like just thinking about that trip makes you happy. You do well at integrating the two previous comments. Yes, there is some association between money and happiness, but using that money to create a unique or memorable experience does seem more associated with long-term enjoyment that does using the money to buy a material object.
March 30, 2009 at 9:31 pm
I agree, I think that money cannot buy happiness but it can really help out. For example, a vacation I went on to Puerto Rico to visit some family brought me much more happiness than the last pair of sneakers I bought. The sneakers at the time I bought them brought me happiness but soon faded away unlike my experience that I had in Puerto Rico which I can still look back upon and still brings me a sense of happiness. The article stated earlier by Leanne described a study that Professor Ryan Howell of San Francisco State University did that supports my opinion. “Participants in the study were asked to write reflections and answer questions about their recent purchases. Participants indicated that experiential purchases represented money better spent and greater happiness for both themselves and others. The results also indicate that experiences produce more happiness regardless of the amount spent or the income of the consumer. Experiences also lead to longer-term satisfaction. “Purchased experiences provide memory capital,” Howell said. “We don’t tend to get bored of happy memories like we do with a material object. “People still believe that more money will make them happy, even though 35 years of research has suggested the opposite,” Howell said. “Maybe this belief has held because money is making some people happy some of the time, at least when they spend it on life experiences” (Grinnell). So I agree that money for its own, or used for purchasing goods, does bring short term happiness like a drug but overall little for one’s happiness. As for Money used for experiences or just experiences such as going for a walk, having a good conversation, or reading a book as mentioned earlier greatly contribute to happiness.
February 16, 2010 at 1:53 am
[…] way of trying to bolster his happiness. Rather than using money to buy things, using it to purchase experiences such as a night at the theatre or a week at a resort would contribute more to self-reported […]