Why Are Religious People Happier?
Across eight studies, one variable statistically explained why.
Updated May 22, 2026 | Reviewed by Tyler Woods
This article was co-authored with Dr. Nick Kerry , a social science researcher at the University of Vienna.
For decades, psychologists have observed a consistent pattern: religious people tend to report being happier and more satisfied with their lives than non-believers. But why this happens has been much harder to pin down. Is it the social support of belonging to a faith community? A stronger sense of meaning? Hope in the face of hardship? Or perhaps, as the medieval philosopher Thomas Aquinas once suggested, simply the comfort of contemplating God?
Much of this research involves a simple method: researchers hypothesize what they think could be driving the relationship between religion and wellbeing, such as being a part of a close-knit community. Then researchers measure being in a close-knit community and examine, when controlling for it, what happens to the relationship between well-being and religiosity . If the relationship stays the same, community isn’t driving the relationship. If the relationship gets smaller, then researchers start having reason to think that maybe religion impacts well-being by fostering community.
Here at the Penn Primals Project, our main research program is focused on primal world beliefs —people’s most basic assumptions about the nature of reality. There are 26 primal world beliefs, such as the belief that the world is abundant versus barren, interesting versus dull, and so forth. Primal world beliefs aren’t religious doctrines or personality traits, but views that people have about what is objectively true of the world generally. Researchers suspect they might function as lenses that color how people interpret new experiences and information.
In our study , recently published in the Journal of Positive Psychology , we analyzed data from eight samples involving more than 3,000 American adults, using multiple different measures of happiness and religiosity. Across all of them, we found the same age-old correlation: religious people were (on average) happier.
Did any primal world beliefs play a role in this relationship?
In sample after sample, one primal world belief played the biggest role
This happened not just in a few samples, but was remarkably consistent across all of them. No other world belief explained the link as well. So, it wasn’t just that religious people tend to think more positively about life, they had to be positive in this one highly specific way.
The belief that the world “Needs Me” fully explained the religiosity-wellbeing relationship
Across all samples and religions we examined, people who were more religious were more likely to believe that the world needs them. That belief, in turn, had to be present for religious people to get that wellbeing bump.
Once this belief was controlled for, religiosity did not predict well-being at all .
Whether our participants were healthy adults, people living with illness, or those who had faced trauma , the same pattern held.
What is this belief exactly?
This belief is the view that the universe is like this enormous jigsaw puzzle, with one particular—even unique—piece missing, and you are that piece. You, specifically, have an important part to play in this world. You are not simply interchangeable in the cold calculus of the universe’s machinery.
To measure this belief, study participants note how much they agree or disagree with four statements:
The point is not self-glorification, but need-person fit.
Importantly, this belief is not the same as narcissism or self-importance. Several studies show that people who strongly endorse “the world needs me” don’t necessarily think they’re better than others—they might simply feel that they have a specific role to play. A doctor might feel her hospital needs her especially; a father might feel his children need him especially; activists might believe they have a unique contribution to make to their cause.
Why it might matter—for everyone
For religious people, perhaps there are ways that one’s faith can promote this primal world belief even more. Many religious traditions already teach that each person has a divine purpose, that their life fits into a larger plan. By emphasizing these teachings, perhaps believers could enjoy even higher well-being.
These findings are especially hopeful for secular folks. Seeing the world as a place that needs you does not require you to be religious.
Feeling needed doesn’t have to come from your career . Other people might focus on their roles as a parent, dog owner, or being someone who brings people together by throwing great dance parties.
Our research suggests that non-religious people might have a path to well-being, that perhaps they have not considered: even without religious faith, perhaps people can cultivate the belief the world “needs me” through reflection, service, and meaningful roles like volunteering, caregiving , mentoring, or creative work.
Reasons for caution and next steps in research
It’s worth remembering that these findings rely on correlations—statistical explanation is not causal explanation— and do not prove that believing "the world needs me" directly causes happiness. The next step for research is to test whether this belief can be deliberately strengthened—perhaps by helping people notice where their efforts genuinely matter—and whether doing so leads to lasting gains in well-being. We hope that future experiments can test whether it’s possible to strengthen the belief that “the world needs me” directly—perhaps by guiding people to notice how their actions affect others or how their work contributes to something larger. If so, researchers can test whether (and how) this leads to increases in happiness and meaning.
Humans thrive on being needed. To be needed is to belong, to matter. Religiosity may foster greater happiness, but in practice it may only do so alongside the belief that the universe has a role for you. Regardless of your religious views, finding that role—or just being more aware of the important roles you already have—may make you a happier person.
https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2025.2587058
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Jer Clifton, Ph.D. , studies the psychology of extremely basic world beliefs, such as "the world is dangerous," and "life is beautiful"—called "primals"—at the University of Pennsylvania as Director of the Primals Project.
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This article is part of the Bringwise Psychology Journal — daily insights on human behavior, mental health, and personal growth.