Would you be happier if you moved more? Physical activity focusing illusion

Abstract

Research shows that individuals who are more physically active also report greater happiness. However, subjective well-being is prone to cognitive biases. For instance, people overrate the influence of single factors (e.g., money) on their happiness; a phenomenon termed the focusing illusion. In this study, we examined whether the relationship between physical activity and subjective well-being is stronger when individuals focus on physical activity explicitly compared to individuals with no specific focus. We experimentally manipulated the physical activity focus by varying the order of scales administration. Participants (N = 200) completed questionnaires that measured physical activity and subjective well-being placed in separate envelopes and provided in a random order. We found that individuals with higher levels of vigorous physical activity were more satisfied with life regardless of the order of scale presentation (no focusing effect). However, we found evidence of a possible focusing illusion for moderate-intensity physical activity. Individuals with higher levels of moderate-intensity physical activity reported higher subjective well-being when they were asked about physical activity first but not when they reported their well-being unaware of the upcoming physical activity questions. Thus, subjective well-being judgments can be biased by a prior focus on moderate-intensity physical activity. The order of scale administration when assessing subjective well-being should be carefully considered.