Three IU researchers recently published their findings on mood and happiness in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, according to an IU news release.
In three studies, the researchers found that people who consider themselves happy choose more creative activities, have more power to transform unpleasant experiences into pleasant ones and are more likely to choose creative things to do when they believe their mood can change, according to the news release.
The researchers conducting the studies included Edward Hirt, associate professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Erin Devers, who is also with the department and Sean McCrea from the Department of Psychology at the University of Konstanz in Germany.
"One thing we discovered in our research is that people are aware of the fact that being creative makes them feel good, and so tasks that afford potential for creativity are particularly appealing when in a positive mood," Hirt said in the news release.
