Happiness and Health

The Relationships between Physical Activity and Life Satisfaction and Happiness among Young, Middle-Aged, and Older Adults

Physical activity has benefits on physical and psychological health. The aims of this study were to investigate (1) the relationships between physical activity and life satisfaction and happiness in young, middle-aged, and older adults while controlling for demographic characteristics, and (2) the relationships between age and life satisfaction and happiness for different physical activity levels. A total of 2345 healthy adults were recruited. Demographic characteristic, physical activity, life satisfaction, and happiness were collected. Participants were divided into young, middle-aged, and older adult groups based on age, and physical activity was categorized as high, moderate, and low. After controlling for demographic characteristics, participants with high and moderate activity levels had significantly higher life satisfaction and happiness than those with a low activity level across the total population and the three age groups. Age squared was a significant predictor of a positive curvilinear between age and life satisfaction and happiness. Physical activity was significantly related to life satisfaction and happiness in young, middle-aged, and older adults. In addition, life satisfaction and happiness increased with increasing age. The results support the promotion of physical activity.

Positive emotions and favorable cardiovascular health: A 20-year longitudinal study

No studies have examined whether positive emotions lead to favorable cardiovascular health (CVH) early in the lifespan, before cardiovascular disease is diagnosed. Moreover, the direction of the association has not been thoroughly investigated. Among younger adults, we investigated whether baseline positive emotions were associated with better CVH over 20 years. We also considered whether baseline CVH was associated with subsequent positive emotions during the same period. Participants included 4196 Black and White men and women from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults Study. Positive emotions and cardiovascular-related parameters were each assessed in 1990 (this study's baseline), with repeated assessment through 2010. CVH was defined by blood pressure, lipids, body mass index, diabetes, and smoking status. Primary analyses used linear mixed effects models adjusting for potential confounders; secondary analyses stratified by race and sex. Controlling for sociodemographic factors, greater baseline positive emotions were associated with better CVH across time (β = 0.03, 95% confidence interval = 0.007-0.06). However, positive emotions were unrelated to rate of change in CVH across time. Baseline CVH was also associated with greater average positive emotions across time (β = 0.09, 95% confidence interval = 0.02-0.15), but not rate of change. Positive emotions' association with CVH was stronger for women than men, but race did not modify associations. Positive emotions in early to middle adulthood were associated with better CVH across several decades. Baseline CVH was also associated with greater positive emotions during follow-up. Future research may be able to disentangle these relationships by assessing positive emotions and CVH earlier in life.

Association of Positive Affect Instability With All-Cause Mortality in Older Adults in England

IMPORTANCE

There is increasing recognition that positive affective states have a protective association for all-cause mortality. However, positive states of happiness and excitement vary over time, and little is known about the association of fluctuations in positive affect with survival.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the association of positive affect instability, conceptualized as fluctuations in momentary positive affect, with mortality in a population-based sample of older adults in England.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

This survey study used data from a longitudinal survey collected in wave 2 (2004) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, a nationally representative sample of older men and women living in England, with follow-up continuing until March 2018. Participants included people aged 50 years or older at recruitment. Data were analyzed from September 2019 to April 2020.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

The main outcome was all-cause mortality. Positive and negative affect were measured at 4 time points over the course of 1 day: soon after waking, 30 minutes after waking, at 7:00 pm, and at bedtime.

RESULTS

Data were analyzed from 3834 participants (mean [SD] age at baseline, 64.0 [7.4] years; 2082 [54.3%] women) with a mean (SD) follow-up of 12.25 (2.60) years. Adjusting for demographic characteristics, baseline illness, health behaviors, and mean level and instability in negative affect, Cox proportional hazards regression showed that high positive affect instability was associated with greater mortality, with a hazard ratio of 1.25 (95% CI, 1.04-1.49; P = .02). Associations did not differ by age, suggesting that the increased mortality risk associated with high positive affect instability was not restricted to older ages.

CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCE

These findings suggest that temporal fluctuations in positive affect were associated with mortality risk in older adults. These findings illustrate the value of incorporating dynamic assessments of positive affect in distal health outcomes such as mortality.

Touching the social robot PARO reduces pain perception and salivary oxytocin levels

Human-human social touch improves mood and alleviates pain. No studies have so far tested the effect of human-robot emotional touch on experimentally induced pain ratings, on mood and on oxytocin levels in healthy young adults. Here, we assessed the effect of touching the robot PARO on pain perception, on mood and on salivary oxytocin levels, in 83 young adults. We measured their perceived pain, happiness state, and salivary oxytocin. For the 63 participants in the PARO group, pain was assessed in three conditions: Baseline, Touch (touching PARO) and No-Touch (PARO present). The control group (20 participants) underwent the same measurements without ever encountering PARO. There was a decrease in pain ratings and in oxytocin levels and an increase in happiness ratings compared to baseline only in the PARO group. The Touch condition yielded a larger decrease in pain ratings compared to No-Touch. These effects correlated with the participants' positive perceptions of the interaction with PARO. Participants with higher perceived ability to communicate with PARO experienced a greater hypoalgesic effect when touching PARO. We show that human-robot social touch is effective in reducing pain ratings, improving mood and - surprisingly - reducing salivary oxytocin levels in adults.

Positive affect and chronic pain: a preregistered systematic review and meta-analysis

Chronic noncancer pain (CNCP) is a significant health burden among adults. Standard behavioral therapies typically focus on targeting negative affect (NA) and yield only modest treatment effects. The aims of this study were to systematically review and investigate the association between positive affect (PA) and pain severity among adults with CNCP. Databases that were searched included MEDLINE (PubMed), PsycINFO, CINAHL, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, OLASTER, Open Grey, and PsyArXiv (inception to July 23, 2019). We analyzed studies that: (1) used observational, experimental, or intervention study designs; (2) enrolled individuals with CNCP (pain ≥ 12 weeks); and (3) reported full quantitative results on outcomes. Two researchers independently screened articles, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias. The main meta-analysis was followed by subgroup analyses. All analyses were performed using random-effects models. Formal tests for heterogeneity (Q-statistic; I) and publication bias (p-curve and p-uniform*) were performed. We meta-analyzed 29 studies with 3521 participants. Results demonstrated that PA inversely impacts pain severity in people with CNCP (r = -0.23). Subgroup analyses showed a significant effect for gender and marginally significant effects for age in studies that adjusted for NA. On average, effect sizes for observational studies were larger in studies with a higher proportion of female respondents and in studies that did not adjust for NA. Finally, larger effect sizes were found in intervention studies with older compared with younger samples.

An outcome-wide analysis of bidirectional associations between changes in meaningfulness of life and health, emotional, behavioural, and social factors

The sense that one is living a meaningful life is associated with positive health outcomes, but less is known about the role of changes in sense of meaning. This outcome-wide analysis investigated bidirectional associations between changes in ratings of doing worthwhile things in life and 32 factors in 6 domains of human function in 5,694 men and women (M = 66.65 years) from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Participants rated the extent they felt that the things they did in life were worthwhile in 2012 and 2014. Analyses were adjusted for age, gender, education and social class, and were weighted for non-response. We found that health (e.g. few chronic diseases, no chronic pain), emotional wellbeing (e.g. few depressive symptoms, good sleep), greater physical activity, social factors (e.g. close relationships, friends, organizational membership, volunteering, cultural engagement), and economic factors (wealth, income), at baseline were associated with 2 year increases in worthwhile ratings. Conversely, increases in worthwhile ratings over 2 years were related to more favourable health, emotional, behavioural, and social changes between 2012 and 2016 independently of baseline levels. These bidirectional relationships highlight the importance of maintaining worthwhile activities at older ages.

Temperament, Character, and Subjective Well-Being in Croatian War Veterans Suffering From Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Subjective well-being is decreased in war-affected populations. However, no previous research has investigated the role of temperament and character dimensions in life satisfaction among war veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study enrolled 148 Croatian male war veterans being treated for combat-related PTSD. The participants completed the Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition, Satisfaction with Life Scale, and Temperament and Character Inventory-Revised. Two multivariate regression analyses with life satisfaction as a dependent variable and temperament and character dimensions, respectively, as predictor variables, were performed. Temperament dimensions harm avoidance and novelty seeking as well as character dimensions self-directedness and cooperativeness were unique predictors of life satisfaction, while controlling for the influence of depressive symptoms, education level, and employment status. Given the influence of personality dimensions on life satisfaction, the routine assessment of these dimensions might help to establish the individually tailored treatment among war veterans with PTSD.

Racial exclusion causes acute cortisol release among emerging-adult African Americans: The role of reduced perceived control

Racial discrimination contributes to stress-related health disparities among African Americans, but less is known about the acute effects of racial exclusion on the hypo-pituitary-adrenocortical response and psychological mediators. Participants were 276 Black/African American emerging-adults (54% female; M _age = 21.74, SD = 2.21) who were randomly assigned to be excluded or included by White peers via the game Cyberball. Racial exclusion (vs. inclusion) predicted: greater negative affect (F(1, 276) = 104.885, p < .0001), lower perceived control (F(1, 276) = 205.523, p < .0001), and greater cortisol release (F(1, 274) = 4.575, p = .033). Racial exclusion's impact on cortisol release was mediated by lower perceived control (95% CI: .027, .112), but not negative affect (-.041, .013). These findings suggest that racial exclusion contributes to acute cortisol release, and that reduced perceived control is a consequence of racial discrimination that has important implications for the health of those who experience discrimination.

The Unprecedented Movement Control Order (Lockdown) and Factors Associated With the Negative Emotional Symptoms, Happiness, and Work-Life Balance of Malaysian University Students During the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic

Background and Aims: Malaysia's first Movement Control Order (MCO) or "lockdown" was in place for 6 weeks to curb the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Consequently, all universities were forced to close temporarily with abrupt changes to teaching and learning activities. However, there has been a lack of consensus regarding students' actual psychological status and mental health during the MCO implementation. This study investigates the link, state, and differences of negative emotional symptoms, happiness, and work-life balance among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: This study recruited 1,005 university students across Malaysia. Data was collected online using Qualtrics to measure negative emotional symptoms (The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale), happiness (The Oxford Happiness Inventory), and work-life balance (Work-Family Conflict Scale). All data was analyzed using SPSS version 25 and AMOS version 26 using T-test, ANOVA, logistic regression analyses, and path analysis method. Findings: Findings indicated that 22, 34.3, and 37.3% of the university students scored moderate to extremely severe levels of stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms, respectively. Half scored rather happy or very happy (50%) for happiness levels. Meanwhile, 50.4 and 39.4% scored high to very high levels of work-to-family and family-to-work conflict. Significant differences in stress, anxiety, depression, happiness, work-family conflict, and family-work conflict were recorded across different demographic factors. Happiness was found to be a protective factor with a lesser likelihood of experiencing severe stress (OR = 0.240, 95% CI: 0.180, 0.321), anxiety (OR = 0.336, 95% CI: 0.273, 0.414), and depression (OR = 0.121, 95% CI: 0.088, 0.165) with higher happiness levels. Higher score of work-to-family conflict contributes to greater odds of having severe levels of anxiety (OR = 1.453, 95% CI: 1.161, 1.818). While greater likelihood of developing severe stress (OR = 1.468, 95% CI: 1.109, 1.943) and severe anxiety (OR = 1.317, 95% CI: 1.059, 1.638) under increasing score of family-to-work conflict. Besides, happiness is found to negatively linked with lower negative emotional symptoms, while work-family conflict and family-work conflict are positively linked with higher negative emotional symptoms. Conclusion: Lockdown implementation during the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have a significant impact on university students' negative emotional symptoms, happiness, and work-life balance. Happiness was found to be a protective factor while the state of work-life balance is a risk factor that can predict students' negative emotional symptoms.

Inequalities in Life Expectancy and All-Cause Mortality in the United States by Levels of Happiness and Life Satisfaction: A Longitudinal Study

BACKGROUND

Despite having one of the highest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita levels, United States (US) ranks lower in subjective well-being, including happiness and life satisfaction, compared with European countries. Studies of the impact of happiness and life satisfaction on life expectancy and mortality in the US are limited or non-existent. Using a national longitudinal dataset, we examined the association between levels of happiness/life satisfaction and US life expectancy and all-cause mortality.

METHODS

We analyzed the 2001 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) prospectively linked to 2001-2014 mortality records in the National Death Index (NDI) (N=30,377). Cox proportional hazards regression was used to model survival time as a function of happiness, life satisfaction, and sociodemographic and behavioral covariates.

RESULTS

Life expectancies at age 18 among adults with high levels of happiness and life satisfaction were, respectively, 7.5 and 8.9 years higher compared to those with low levels of happiness and life satisfaction. In Cox models with 14 years of mortality follow-up, all-cause mortality risk was 82% higher (hazard ratio [HR]=1.82; 95% CI=1.59,2.08) in adults with little or no happiness, controlling for age, and 36% higher (HR=1.36; 95% CI=1.17,1.57) in adults with little/no happiness, controlling for sociodemographic, behavioral and health characteristics, when compared with adults reporting happiness all of the time. Mortality risk was 107% higher (HR=2.07; 95% CI=1.80,2.38) in adults who were very dissatisfied with their life, controlling for age, and 39% higher (HR=1.39; 95% CI=1.20,1.60) in adults who were very dissatisfied, controlling for all covariates, when compared with adults who were very satisfied.

CONCLUSIONS AND GLOBAL HEALTH IMPLICATIONS

Adults with higher happiness and life satisfaction levels had significantly higher life expectancy and lower all-cause mortality risks than those with lower happiness and satisfaction levels. These findings underscore the significance of addressing subjective well-being in the population as a strategy for reducing all-cause mortality.

Psychological well-being as part of the public health debate? Insight into dimensions, interventions, and policy

BACKGROUND

Increasing evidence suggests that psychological well-being (PWB) is associated with lower disease and mortality risk, and may be enhanced with relatively low-cost interventions. Yet, dissemination of these interventions remains limited, in part because insufficient attention has been paid to distinct PWB dimensions, which may impact physical health outcomes differently.

METHODS

This essay first reviews the empirical evidence regarding differential relationships between all-cause mortality and multiple dimensions of PWB (e.g., life purpose, mastery, positive affect, life satisfaction, optimism). Then, individual-level positive psychology interventions aimed at increasing PWB and tested in randomized-controlled trials are reviewed as these allow for easy implementation and potentially broad outreach to improve population well-being, in concert with efforts targeting other established social determinants of health.

RESULTS

Several PWB dimensions relate to mortality, with varying strength of evidence. Many of positive psychology trials indicate small-to-moderate improvements in PWB; rigorous institution-level interventions are comparatively few, but preliminary results suggest benefits as well. Examples of existing health policies geared towards the improvement of population well-being are also presented. Future avenues of well-being epidemiological and intervention research, as well as policy implications, are discussed.

CONCLUSIONS

Although research in the fields of behavioral and psychosomatic medicine, as well as health psychology have substantially contributed to the science of PWB, this body of work has been somewhat overlooked by the public health community. Yet, the growing interest in documenting well-being, in addition to examining its determinants and consequences at a population level may provoke a shift in perspective. To cultivate optimal well-being-mental, physical, social, and spiritual-consideration of a broader set of well-being measures, rigorous studies, and interventions that can be disseminated is critically needed.

Effect of Teachers' Happiness on Teachers' Health. The Mediating Role of Happiness at Work

The present study aims to expand the understanding of the effects of dispositional happiness and self-esteem, as dispositional traits, on the health of teachers, as well as to understand the role played by the working environment in generating positive affection, thus mediating between the dispositional traits and teachers' health. Two hundred and eighty-two full-time in-service teachers (93.6% female) from Rome (Italy) took part in this study. Their ages ranged from 26 to 55 (M = 40.49 years, SD = 5.93). Participants' teaching experience ranged from 1 to 31 years (M = 9.95 years, SD = 5.65). 30.6% of participants taught in kindergarten (for children aged 0-5 years), 42.6% in primary schools (for children aged 6-11 years), 15.8% in middle schools and 10.9% in high schools. A questionnaire was administered, containing: the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS); the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES); The adapted version for teachers of the School Children Happiness Inventory (Ivens, 2007); the Physical and Mental Health Scales (SF12). The data were analyzed using the MPLUS software, version 8. Our results showed that teacher happiness at work partially mediates the relationship between dispositional happiness and teacher health, and fully mediates the relationship between self-esteem and teacher health. To the best of our knowledge, the mediational role of teacher happiness has not been addressed before, concerning these dimensions. At the same time, our findings confirmed the role of self-esteem in endorsing health-related behaviors, thus promoting physical and mental health. Moreover, according to our study findings, when teachers acknowledge their workplace as a context in which they feel happy, the impact of dispositional happiness and self-esteem on health conditions is higher. Effective measures to promote teachers' well-being are discussed.

Sense of Purpose in Life and Cardiovascular Disease: Underlying Mechanisms and Future Directions

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

In this review, we synthesize recent research that has reported associations of a higher sense of purpose in life with reduced risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD), and then explore mechanisms that might underlie these associations.

RECENT FINDINGS

Accumulating observational and experimental evidence suggests that having a higher sense of purpose might influence CVD risk through three pathways: (1) enhancement of other psychological and social resources that buffer against the cardiotoxic effects of overwhelming stress; (2) indirect effects through health behaviors; and (3) direct effects on biological pathways. A sense of purpose in life is emerging as an independent risk factor for incident CVD. A key remaining question is whether purpose causally effects CVD risk; in the "Future Research Directions" section, we focus on work needed to establish causality and provide suggestions for next steps.

Moderating Role of Self-Esteem Between Perceived Organizational Support and Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose

Nurses are undertaking tremendous physical and psychological pressure, which may reduce their subjective well-being (SWB). This study is aimed to identify the relationship among perceived organizational support (POS), self-esteem, and SWB, and to further explore whether self-esteem could be a moderator in the association between POS and SWB in Chinese nurses.

Materials and Methods

This study was conducted in Liaoning Province in China, in 2018. 606 valid questionnaires were collected. Demographic factors, job conditions, the Index of Well-Being, Survey of Perceived Organizational Support (SPOS), and Rosenberg's Self Esteem Scale (RSES) were included in each questionnaire. The association among POS, self-esteem, and POS × self-esteem interaction with SWB were examined by hierarchical multiple regression analysis. The interaction was visualized by using simple slope analysis.

Results

Average score of SWB in Chinese nurses was 8.27 ± 2.64. Being married was positively related to SWB, while having longer work time per week, having night shift and dissatisfied with nurse-patient relationship were correlated with lower SWB. POS and self-esteem were important factors for SWB. Self-esteem could moderate the relationship between POS and SWB. When self-esteem was higher, POS had a greater effect on SWB.

Conclusion

Subjective well-being of nurses in the study was at a low level. Self-esteem could moderate the association between POS and SWB. More interventions related to POS and self-esteem will be helpful to improve SWB among nurses.

Investing in Happiness: The Gerontological Perspective

Optimising happiness is a desirable societal aim in itself, but there are four more specific reasons why research on happiness is an important emerging theme in gerontology. First, happiness is not merely the mirror of depression, anxiety or distress, but has distinct relationships with a range of outcomes, so benefits from study in itself. Second, happiness appears to be a protective factor for morbidity and mortality; although studies are complex and take a long time to complete, there is accumulating evidence that greater happiness predicts survival among older people independently of covariates including health status and depression. Third, happiness has broad ramifications at older ages, being related to personal and social relationships, economic prosperity, biological risk factors, health behaviours, and time use as well as health. Fourth, happiness is malleable, and can potentially be modified in ways that will enhance the health and well-being of older people.

School Absenteeism, Health-Related Quality of Life [HRQOL] and Happiness among Young Adults Aged 16-26 Years

This study examines the association between school absenteeism, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and happiness among young adults aged 16-26 years attending vocational education. Cross-sectional data from a survey among 676 young adults were analyzed. School absenteeism was measured by the self-reported number of sick days in the past eight weeks and hours of truancy in the past four weeks. HRQOL was measured by the 12-item Short Form Health Survey; physical and mental component summary scores were calculated. General happiness was assessed on a scale of 0-10, higher scores indicating greater happiness. Linear regression analyses were performed. The study population had a mean age of 18.5 years (SD 2.2); 26.1% were boys. Young adults with ≥5 sick days or ≥6 h of truancy reported lower mental HRQOL compared to young adults without sickness absence or truancy (p < 0.05). Young adults with 1-4 and ≥5 sick days reported lower physical HRQOL compared to young adults who had not reported to be sick (p < 0.05). Young adults with 1-5 h and ≥6 h of truancy reported higher physical HRQOL compared to young adults who were not truant (p < 0.05). No associations were observed between school absence and happiness. Lower self-reported mental HRQOL was observed among young adults with more school absenteeism due to sickness or truancy. Sickness absence was additionally associated with lower physical HRQOL.

Association Between Subjective Well-being and Living Longer Without Disability or Illness

IMPORTANCE

Subjective well-being is associated with reduced mortality, but it is not clear whether additional time is spent in good health or with chronic disease and disability.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the associations between affective well-being, total life expectancy, and life expectancy free of disability and chronic disease.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

This survey study used data on 9761 participants from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing who were followed up for a maximum of 10 years (mean [SD] follow-up, 6 [3.7] years). Discrete-time multistate life table models were used to estimate total life expectancy and life expectancy free of disability or chronic disease. Data were collected between March 2002 and March 2013 and analyzed from December 2018 to April 2019. Analyses were adjusted for wealth and cohabiting status.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

The main outcome was life expectancy free of disability and chronic disease. Affective well-being was assessed at baseline as a combination of enjoyment of life and the lack of significant depressive symptoms. Disability was measured in terms of impaired activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living, and chronic disease as the occurrence of 6 serious illnesses.

RESULTS

Data were analyzed from 9761 participants (5297 [54%] female; mean [SD] age at baseline, 64 [9.9] years). High affective well-being was associated with longer life expectancy and with longer disability-free and chronic disease-free life expectancies. For example, a woman aged 50 years who reported high affective well-being could expect to live 6 years longer than a woman of similar age with low well-being; 31.4 of her remaining years (95% CI, 30.5-31.9 years) would be likely to be free of disability, compared with 20.8 years (95% CI, 20.1-22.1 years) for a woman with low affective well-being. A man aged 50 years with high affective well-being could expect to live 20.8 years (95% CI, 18.7-22.4 years) without chronic disease, compared with 11.4 years (95% CI, 8.5-14.6 years) for a man reporting low well-being. Similar patterns were observed at the ages of 60, 70, and 80 years.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

This study suggests that people who report high levels of subjective well-being live longer and also healthier lives than those with lower well-being. These findings add weight to endeavors to promote the subjective well-being of older people.

Determinants of Well-Being and Their Implications for Health Care

The paper explains how subjective well-being can be measured, how the resulting data are being used to document human progress and how health care can be changed to take advantage of what has been learned. The evaluations that people make of their own lives document, and permit the explanation of, life satisfaction levels that differ greatly among countries and communities. Research seeking to explain these happiness differences, and their related differences in mortality and morbidity, exposes the importance of the social context. There is an opportunity and need to change health care from the diagnosis and treatment of illness to the fostering of wellness. The importance of the social context in the successful design and delivery of health and happiness is so great as to support a prescription to turn the “I” into “we,” thereby turning illness into wellness by making the production and maintenance of health and happiness a much more collaborative activity, even in the presence of the increasing complexity of medical science.

BPSM-D-19-00022R2 Subjective well-being and problem-solving skills for alleviating the stress of elderly men attending a randomized controlled trial of shogi-assisted cognitive behavioral therapy

Shogi is a popular board game in Japan, and shogi-assisted cognitive-behavioral therapy (S-CBT) has been applied in Kakogawa City, a Japanese municipality. The purpose of this study was to clarify the effects of S-CBT on the subjective well-being of elderly men. Participants were 61 elderly men with amateur skill at shogi. They were randomly assigned to either the S-CBT group or a wait list group (control). The S-CBT group participated in a weekly, six-session S-CBT program. The intervention outcomes were scores on the K6, Lubben Social Network Scale, and a five-item cognitive-behavioral functioning scale. The Subjective Well-being Scale was used to assess happiness and satisfaction with life, and all the participants were classified into high- and low-happiness groups using the median score as the cutoff. The results showed that scores on "self-reinforcement" were significantly (P < 0.05) increased for those receiving S-CBT compared with controls, regardless of the participants' happiness scores. In contrast, the scores on "problem solving skills for alleviating stress" were significantly (P < 0.05) increased for those receiving S-CBT compared with controls only among those in the low-happiness group. These results remained significant after controlling for the effects of age and baseline scores on the K6, Social Network Scale, and "problem solving skills for alleviating stress" category. The S-CBT may be especially beneficial when focused on practical advice for the stress management of older people with low subjective well-being. (trial registration: 000036003 [UMIN, Japan]). Trial Registration: Trial registration number: 000036003 [UMIN, Japan].