Affect dynamics

How do our feelings shift between good and bad states throughout the day, and what can these shifts tell us about our psychological well-being? Our new study reveals that most people don’t gradually drift between feeling good and bad – instead, they tend to remain in one state before suddenly “tipping” into another, much like a lake switching between clear and turbid states. More importantly, we found that what matters for well-being isn’t how intensely we feel, but how we transition between these states. This discovery opens up new possibilities for simpler and more intuitive ways to measure and understand psychological health.