While the research shows that religious people can have both physical and psychological problems, most studies show that one's faith clearly is associated with more benefits than detriments. The future of psychology of religion, as well as its parent discipline, social psychology, looks promising.
Life satisfaction or happiness is only minimally affected by external circumstances, such as money (e.g., a person simply cannot buy happiness).
More importantly, what affects happiness is what a person thinks, does, and the individual's relationships with God and humankind.
Seligman (2002) found that people are happier if they are satisfied with their past, have hope for their future, and optimism in the present.
Those who have close relationships, gratitude and forgiveness in their heart, optimism in their thoughts, positive personality traits, a sense of humor, and emotional flow (engagement) in work and leisure activity contribute to human happiness.
The Psychology of Religion and Happiness. The former is a social institution, the latter is largely thought of as a socio-psychological phenomenon. These characteristics of people and culture are important elements in the social psychology.
For, measurements of both religiosity and happiness provide insight into cultural attributes that reinforce, reproduce and reconstruct the social fabric of a culture.
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