The grass might not be greener on the other side of the border, a new study has found.
Economic migrants travelling to different shores for greater income could be set for disappointment because the pursuit of wealth does not equate with happiness.
The study sought to establish whether those who were motivated by higher incomes in a wealthy country actually gain greater happiness via migration. The research team examined whether these economic migrants might have exaggerated expectations about what they will achieve and experience, such that there is some significant disappointment.
The study results, after studying 1400 participants, suggest that economic migrants might well experience disappointment. Migrants do gain happiness from higher incomes, to a greater extent than natives; but the relationship is weak even for migrants. In fact, it also works out that migrants are less happy than natives. The probable reason is that they expect to be happier by virtue of earning the greater incomes available in a wealthy country - but they end up wanting even more after they get there: aspirations probably increase at least as much as incomes.
Many of us are guilty of believing that money is more important for happiness than it is - and this research suggests that migrants are not terribly different in this regard. Life as an immigrant in a wealthy country can be very hard, note the researchers.
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