For a Perfect Life, Science says Strive for Averageness
What is the ideal life? Is it jet-setting around Europe, always being the smartest person in the room, or living forever? For most, the ideal life is slowly becoming more and more modest.
It’s a surprise that when given the choice, people don’t want to maximize various aspects of life like pleasure, intelligence or freedom. This study from the Psychological Science Journal states that people don’t want to live life to the ideal max.
“Our research shows that people’s sense of perfection is surprisingly modest,” says the author of the research, scientist Matthew Hornsey. He found that people want about 75 percent of an all good life, without strict exclusion from the bad stuff, just better than bad.
It makes sense that not everyone wants a perfect life; some of the most moving parts of film, music and literature are the sorrow and tragedy of it and that’s what we relate to and contextualize to our own lives. With a “perfect” life, we’d miss out on relating to those beautiful moments.
On average, people said that they would like to live until 90 years old, which is just slightly higher than the current life expectancy. When people were asked what their ideal IQ would be, the average answer was 130, which is smart but not a genius. Being levels above others in intelligence can cause a disconnect and lack of friends. Does that sound like the perfect life? I think not.
To find these results, Hornsey and his colleagues analyzed data from a total of 2,392 participants in Australia, Chile, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Peru, Russia and the United States. Participants in each region received a questionnaire translated into their native language. In response to a series of questions, participants reported their ideal level of intelligence; they also reported how long they would choose to live under normal circumstance and how long they would choose to live if they could take a magic pill ensuring eternal youth. In general, they found that participants tended to rate their ideal levels of individual characteristics to be about 70-80 percent. Their ideas were also relatively modest for both intelligence and longevity, even when there were no limits on the levels they could choose.
“People have much more complex, blended notions of perfection, ones that embrace both light and dark,” says Hornsey.
So, maybe, by this definition, we are already living our ideal lives. It’s something to think about for sure.
Savannah Patton
Savannah Patton is the ICF Communications Assistant and a freelance writer for Kentucky Sports Radio. She graduated in May 2016 from the University of Kentucky with a bachelor's degree in Integrated Strategic Communications with a focus in Public Relations.
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