Chinese people need not only affluence, but also a real feeling of security and a greater sense of equality to be truly happy

Happiness is based on security. It is unimaginable that someone lacking a sense of security can enjoy a sustained happy experience. So, if we turn that around, a sense of security is perhaps an effective way to examine Chinese people's sense of happiness.

Francis L.K. Hsu, the noted anthropologist who wrote extensively on the interaction between Chinese and United States cultures, pointed out, in his research on cross-cultural communication, that everyone has two worlds, the inner world of his heart and the outside world.

Different cultural psychological temperaments control a nation's understanding and it's experiencing of happiness.

According to Hsu, going too far or falling short in either the inner world or outer world will cause a great sense of insecurity for Chinese people. But US citizens are egotistical, so they demonstrate their individuality through their conquering nature or pursuit of material wealth.

Social resentments against the rich and corrupt, and distributive equalization are both manifestations of an old Chinese saying "what matters is not wanting but unfairness", which is in line with the basic psychological characteristics of Chinese people.

When we conducted field research on a private enterprise in Anhui province, an enterprise owner told us frankly that he adhered strictly to the principles of "three hides": hide wisdom, hide personal influence and hide wealth. An old adage still functions today, demonstrating the stability and practicality of culture psychology.

Poverty cannot produce a sense of happiness, not only because of the hardships, but also because of society's coldness and discrimination against the poor.

But riches can't ensure happiness either, because wealthy people are supposed to shoulder more social and economic responsibilities. If they fail to fulfill their social obligations, as expected by the public, they will face increasing social pressure or even hatred. Robbing the rich to assist the poor was long regarded as moral behavior to realize social justice in China. This mentality still exists in modern Chinese society, generating insecurity for those better off.

Cao Jinqing, sociologist of the East China University of Science and Technology, points out that Chinese people not only need affluence, but also a sense of security and more equality.

The main difference between antiquity and modernity is that stimulated by consumerism, the sense of "relative deprivation" hits harder and faster.

Sociologists classify this phenomenon as a negative influence on people's lives. Easier access to information worldwide subverts people's reference system by which they define their happiness. Their expectation of happiness no longer originates from their lives, but from the virtual world constructed by the media.

The US way of life has thus become the frame of reference for Chinese, who now believe everyone deserves a Hollywood lifestyle.

The media's intentional publicity of the lifestyles of the rich and famous resets common people's standards of success and their expectation for the future.

But an affluent state doesn't necessarily benefit the public. It is estimated that the China's financial revenue will reach 8 trillion yuan ($1.19 trillion) in 2010, the second largest after the US. But 8 trillion remains only a figure if it does not result in ways to solve the problems in education, medical care and housing.

The increase in the government's financial revenue should be translated into real world solutions, otherwise people will naturally feel lost or disappointed at the increasing national wealth.

What the government urgently needs to do is improve the communication channels from the bottom up and turn the astounding national wealth into concrete benefits for common people.

Only when people's lives are improved together with national development, can people feel a real sense of happiness and harmony.

The authors are scholars of psychology at Nankai University.