nvy is a universal emotion and few, if any, of us are immune to it. But are some of us more envious than others? Who envies whom and why? These questions have been answered in a study by the University of California.
My neighbor has a new car again, but I just drive around in the same old ratty car year after year.
Emma at the front desk has the most amazing hair in the world, but her own ponytail gets smushed to her scalp as soon as the hairdryer turns off.
My best friend got the most amazing spouse and the competitive sister from school got a top job at her dream company.
Yes. When someone else has something that I want but can’t have, that’s when envy strikes.
Jealousy is a difficult emotion that can lead to bad actions.
“Envy is a powerful emotion. In the Christian tradition, it is even listed as one of the seven deadly sins,” says Christine Harris, a professor of psychology at the University of California.
Envy as a research topic interested Harris and graduate student Nicole Henniger primarily because it evokes such strong negative emotions in people and because it causes some of us to do unpleasant – in some cases harmful and downright dangerous – actions.
As an experiencer and target of envy throughout adulthood
Henniger and Harris’ study was in two parts: In the first, over 900 participants aged 18 to 80 talked about their own feelings and experiences of envy.
In another study, over 800 respondents, also aged 18 to 80, told us what it was like to be envied by others. The majority of respondents were from the United States.
Envy – like many other phenomena – has previously been studied mostly among university students. The researchers say their study is the first to include adults of all ages, from those in their twenties to the elderly.
Envy fades with age
Envy was a familiar feeling among the respondents. Over 75 percent of all respondents reported having felt envy in the past year. Women were slightly more envious than men.
Envy decreased with age. About 80 percent of those under 30 said they had been envious in the past year, while only 69 percent of those over 50 said they had been envious.
It has been a mystery for a while now why younger people are more envious than older people. Longitudinal research is needed to find out what exactly happens to envy as we age, the researchers say. For one reason or another, it seems to lose its importance as we get older.
Men are jealous of other men and women of women.
Interestingly, the study subjects reported being significantly more jealous of members of their own gender than of others – women envied women and men envied men, regardless of the subject of their envy.
For example, women envy other women for their wealth and success in working life, even though many men’s status and earnings were higher than women’s, researchers say.
People of the same age were most envied
It seems that we envy those who are similar to us the most.
In addition to gender, age also influenced feelings of envy. The participants in the study envied the most those who were approximately the same age (+/- 5 years) as themselves.
When you’re young, you envy your looks and popularity.
The topics of envy changed with age. Young adults reported envying others’ appearance, romantic relationships, academic success, and popularity among others.
For example, 40 percent of those under thirty who participated in the study said that they envied the happiness of others in the dating market, while only less than 15 percent of respondents over 50 said this.
Money, career, and other people’s happiness cause envy in people of all ages.
Envy of money and career was common in all age groups, but somewhat more common among older people than younger people.
The happiness of others was envied equally, regardless of age.
The reasons for envy in men and women are mostly the same
Men and women envied largely the same things, but there were also differences. Men were more envious of others’ success in working life than women.
Women’s envy was more directed at the attractive appearance of other women than men’s.
Envious and jealous for the same reasons
When the study participants were asked what things others envied them for, roughly the same things came up: career, wealth, appearance, popularity, etc.
However, in the study, there were clearly more people who were envious of money than those who said others were envious of their wealth.
Friends are envied more than family members
The study also examined whether feelings of envy are influenced by the relationship between the envious person and the object of envy. It turned out that close friends are envied almost three times more often than family members and other relatives.
Researchers believe that the success of family members and relatives is often a source of joy and pride rather than envy. There are undoubtedly exceptions.