Scientists found out who has a higher chance of feeling better with age

Scientists tracked people's psychological well-being over 25 years and found that those who started with low well-being most often improved over time. The study was published in the journal Nature Mental Health.

The researchers analyzed data from 2,420 participants in the long-term Americans' Changing Lives project, which began in 1986. Well-being was assessed based on life satisfaction, emotions, self-acceptance, sense of control over one's life, and quality of relationships.

The scientists identified four types of trajectories. About 60% of people maintained roughly the same level of well-being, 30% gradually "rose" from a low starting point, 8% sharply lost their high well-being, and another 2% significantly improved their state but were unable to sustain it. This diversity of trajectories shows that well-being is not a fixed character trait but a value that changes over time. Notably, among those who started with low well-being and elevated depressive symptoms, improvement over time occurred in 57%.

The strongest predictor of future changes turned out to be the baseline level itself: the lower a person started, the higher the chance that things would get better. However, about a quarter of the "stable" group remained at a consistently low level throughout all the years.

According to the authors, assessing such trajectories could become a screening tool — to identify in a timely manner people who need support and to select appropriate types of assistance. The study covered a quarter century of continuous observation, which is rarely achieved in well-being research. At the same time, these are patterns observed in large groups, not predictions for any specific individual.