More is less when it falls below expectation

London, June 10 (IANS) Getting more money may not make you happier, especially if you are a neurotic, as a salary hike may be viewed as a failure if it is not as much as you expected.

Eugenio Proto, CAGE (Centre for Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy) economist at the University of Warwick, looked at how personality traits can affect the way we feel about our income in terms of levels of life satisfaction.

Neuroticism is a fundamental personality trait which refers to a tendency to experience negative emotional states. Such people have higher sensitivity to anger, hostility, or depression, according to a Warwick statement.

Proto, who co-authored the paper with Aldo Rustichini from the University of Minnesota, said people who are on a high salary and have high levels of neuroticism are more likely to see a payrise as a failure.

"Someone who has high levels of neuroticism will see an income increase as a measure of success. When they are on a lower income, a pay increase does satisfy them because they see that as an achievement," says Proto.

However, if they are already on a higher income they may not think the pay increase is as much as they were expecting. So they see this as a partial failure and it lowers their life satisfaction," adds Proto.

Proto who will be presenting the research at next month's Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Research Methods Festival, used data from the British Household Panel Survey and the German Socio-Economic Panel.