Feeling down? Get happy, dammit!

By Jenny Bailly

updated 8:47 a.m. ET Feb. 15, 2008

The weather, your workload, the size of your feet — there are plenty of things that are beyond your control. Much of the research coming out of the mushrooming  "science of happiness” has found, however, that your mood is not necessarily one of them.

"We have a lot of control over our moods," says William Fleeson, associate professor of psychology at Wake Forest University, who has shown in studies that subjects can actually change the expression of basic personality traits on demand and lift their spirits in a matter of minutes. "We're not slaves to our genes, and we don't have to wait for someone else to do something good to make us feel better."

Sonja Lyubomirsky, psychology professor at the University of California, Riverside, theorizes that 50 percent of our happiness is determined by genetics and only 10 percent by major life circumstances. That means an impressive 40 percent is generated by our daily thoughts and actions. With numbers like that, it's certainly worth considering the specific behaviors that could lead you down the path to bliss.

Put your mind to it
The idea that we can affect our moods by changing the way we think isn't a new one (2,000 years ago, the Greek philosopher Epictetus said, "We are disturbed not by events, but by the views that we take of them"). But today, many psychologists are focusing their work on just how to bring about that shift in perspective — cognitive therapy. "It's the most researched psychotherapy intervention today, and in many studies it's been found to be as effective as antidepressants," says Alice Domar, a psychologist and director of the Domar Center for Mind/Body Research in Waltham, Massachusetts.

A few techniques to try on your own couch:

Be curious. Inquisitive people are more likely to derive meaning and pleasure from any given day, according to a study published in Motivation and Emotion. But trawling YouTube won’t quite cut it. The key is to engage in activities outside your comfort zone, says Todd Kashdan, professor of psychology at George Mason University — especially those that require skill. "That's when you get so absorbed that you're completely engaged in the moment, which creates very positive energy," Kashdan says.

Looking good You probably wanted to smack the last person who told you to "turn that frown upside down." But it's actually a decent suggestion. Many psychologists believe that facial expressions aren't just a sign of an emotion but can actually instigate it. In one study, participants who pronounced a long E, creating a smile, improved their mood. Another group of researchers was able to induce happy feelings by making people hold a pen in their teeth, again forcing a smile. Conversely, when those people had to hold the pen in their lips — making them pout — they felt unhappy. This might explain what many doctors have noticed after injecting Botox: Patients who are less able to frown or scowl often report an improvement in their mood. A study of ten patients, published in The Journal of Dermatologic Surgery in 2006, provided some support for this theory. Data is still being analyzed from a larger study at Columbia University, in which 30 patients were treated with Botox and 30 with Restylane. "We're trying to determine if any aesthetic improvement will make people feel better, or if only the Botox improves moods," says Fredric Brandt, clinical associate professor of dermatology at the University of Miami.

Think fast. Since depression is characterized by slow thinking, it only stands to reason that making your brain race could give you a mood boost. In a study published in Psychological Science, when subjects read statements quickly, they felt happier, more energetic, and more creative afterward — even when the content of the statements was depressing, says lead researcher Emily Pronin, assistant professor of psychology at Princeton University.

Give thanks. Expressing gratitude has been shown in numerous studies to improve mood — as long as you don't overdo it. When Lyubomirsky asked two groups to jot down things they were grateful for, either three times a week or once a week, only the latter group felt significantly happier. "When something you're doing to improve yourself starts to feel like a chore, it's not as effective," Lyubomirsky says.

Change your tape. "Our brains are like tape recorders, and they often replay the same negative thoughts," Domar says. Needless to say, the refrain doesn't do much for your mood. Write down a negative thought you often have — for example, "I'm a slob." Ask yourself: Does this thought contribute to my stress? Where did I learn this thought? Is this a logical thought? Is this thought true? "These questions will help you get at an accurate restructuring of your original thought," Domar says. In this case, you might end up with: "My house is cluttered, but pretty clean." By repeating that thought, you'll stop generating anxiety with unreasonable negativity.

Don’t dwell. With all due respect to Socrates, many psychologists find that the unexamined life can in fact be well worth living. "Rumination — whether rehashing things from the past or worrying about the future — worsens and lengthens periods of depression and can make everyday bad moods more intense," says Susan Nolen-Hoeksema, professor of psychology at Yale. Break the contemplative cycle by doing something constructive to distract yourself: Go for a run, get a manicure, play with your dog — just avoid television. ("It's pretty mindless, so it's easy to ruminate while you're watching," Nolen-Hoeksema says.) Even looking at pretty pictures can be enough to improve your mood. For a study, Nolen-Hoeksema left one group alone with their thoughts and showed another group pleasant images. "After only ten minutes, the people who'd been looking at pictures were happier and more motivated; the ruminators were in a bad mood," she says.

Act the part
When you're feeling down, meeting up with friends (let alone mingling at a cocktail party) sounds less than appealing — but making the effort can really pay off. "Anything we do to promote our social relationships is a great way to achieve happiness," says Elizabeth Dunn, assistant professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia.

Speak up. Even if you're naturally shy, acting extroverted will have a positive impact on your mood, according to a study in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Before interacting with others, subjects were instructed to act either extroverted or introverted, or were not told anything at all. "We interviewed them afterward, and the people told to be extroverted had a lot more fun. There was a whopping difference," Fleeson says.

Talk to strangers. It runs counter to your mother’s counsel, but interacting with a stranger is a safe way to improve your mood. "It's a strong social norm to be cheerful around someone we don't know, to make a good first impression. And when we act cheerful, we begin to feel that way," says Dunn, who conducted a study with couples in which she found that people rated their moods much higher than they'd expected after interacting with a stranger, as compared to with their partner. In another study, Dunn simply told participants that in three minutes they would be talking with a stranger — and that anticipation alone boosted people's moods.”

Do a good thing. "If you want to be happy, practice compassion," preaches the Dalai Lama — sure, that's easy to say when you're a bodhisattva. But a UC Riverside study actually found that gestures as small as doing your roommate's dishes or buying a friend dinner can enhance your mood. Participants were asked to carry out five “acts of kindness” every week for six weeks. At the end, the ones who performed all five acts in one day showed significant increases in happiness, Lyubomirsky says.

Shift your social network. Watch out for Debbie Downer, because her negativity can be infectious (seriously — it's called “emotional contagion”). "You're unfortunately stuck with some people — an annoying boss, for example — but you can adjust the mix in other areas of your life so you're around those who boost your mood more," says Christine Padesky, clinical psychologist at mindovermood.com.

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