People only want to be happy 80pc of the time, study says

MOTIVATIONAL slogans continually encourage people to follow their dreams and chase happiness, but people are actually more content with an unremarkable life, a study has found.

In fact, most people agree they only want to be happy around 70 to 80 per cent of the time, and realise a healthy amount of sadness, discontent and failure is vital.

Researchers recruited more than 8,000 participants from 27 countries to find out if they had universal ideals and aspirations.

They found that most people’s ambitions are limited, with only a minority feeling compelled to strive for the perfect job, relationship or physique.

Results, published in the journal Psychological Science, showed people’s sense of perfection is more modest than may have been assumed.

The team say the results may help explain characteristics that could seem self-defeating.