And now for some good news: Apparently being older and wiser really does add up to being happier. Researchers Sarah Etezadi and Dolores Pushkar of the Center for Research in Human Development and Concordia University in Montreal investigated the relation between wisdom and emotional well-being in older adults "with an aim to elucidate pathways of positive development in adulthood." Their findings, which they published in the Journal of Happiness Studies, demonstrated that "higher levels of perceived control and life engagement in conjunction with an increased use of problem-focused and positive reappraisal coping account for the enhanced emotional well-being associated with wisdom."
In their conclusion, they wrote: "Wisdom is traditionally presumed to be the pinnacle of human development and is generally viewed as one of the important positive outcomes of aging. The present study has demonstrated that the relation between wisdom and affective well-being in older adults is mediated by perceived control, dispositional coping, and life engagement. Thus wise individuals emerge as proactive self-regulators whose keen insight allow them to expertly interact with the environment in order to maximize well-being."
