There was a report in the popular press this last week about a “mental exercise” aimed at increasing happiness. The essence of the technique is to “every night, think of three good things that happened during the day and analyze why they occurred.”

Sounds rather too simplistic, doesn’t it?

However, a self-described “chronic worrier” quoted in the article by AP Science Writer Malcolm Ritter, reported that “the quality of my dreams … changed, I never have trouble falling asleep and I … feel happier…”

Apparently there is some research evidence to support the conclusion that this approach may, indeed, contribute to increased happiness, not only for a day or two, but over a longer term.

As the article indicates, “a widely accepted view has been that people are stuck with a basic setting on their happiness thermostat.” That is certainly a premise I’ve tended to operate on, using my own life experience as an example. Maybe that isn’t necessarily so?

Can something this simple be effective at all ? Stranger things have happened, I suppose!