Contrary to popular belief that perceives socialising to make people happier, it has been found that for highly intelligent people, socialising does not increase satisfaction and may even lower it! Moreover, the study has also shown that people who live in less densely populated areas are more satisfied with life itself.
The study highlights that socialisation increases happiness for most people. The reason why it may not be the case for highly intelligent people may be that intelligence compels us to focus more on our long-term projects and goals and socialising may serve to be a distraction from these projects.
Interestingly, there is also an evolutionary explanation to it. People with higher levels of intelligence are better able to adapt themselves to the modern world and since the human race is no longer a hunter-gatherer species, there is not much need to maintain close contact with one’s social group. Thus, more intelligent people can be said to adapt better to the less pack-oriented lifestyle.
Category(s):Mental Health in Asia
Source material from Psyblog
