“Small Happiness” Buffers Against Socioeconomic Disparity In Mental Health In Japan and the US

We examined “small happiness” (mundane and frequently occurring experiences that elicit low-intense happiness) as a moderator of the socioeconomic disparity in mental health. Across Study 1 (N_JP=358; N_US=395) and preregistered Study 2 (N_JP=384; N_US=396), we consistently found that the frequent experiences of small happiness mitigated the socioeconomic disparity across cultures.