As part of our ongoing consumer studies, we measure a number of different attitudes. Given our belief in the importance of Positive Psychology, we recently started tracking a few new ones:

• I feel loved and appreciated
• I am optimistic about my future
• I lead a purposeful and meaningful life

Since I’m in Montreal at the World Congress of Positive Psychology, I decided to examine these attitudes in our most recent benchmark study of 10,000 U.S. consumers. I analyzed the data by gender and age (“genderations”) and found that:

• Older people feel the most loved and appreciated, along with 25- to 44-year-old males. Females older than 45 feel more loved and appreciated than males, whereas younger males tend to feel more loved and appreciated than females.
• 25- to 34-year-olds are the most optimistic about their futures. The largest gender gaps are with 45- to 54-year-olds, where females are more optimistic, and with the oldest group, where males are the most optimistic.
• Older females and 25- to 44-year-old males most frequently agree that they lead a purposeful and meaningful life. Females older than 45 are more likely than males to believe they are leading a purposeful and meaningful life. The opposite is true with younger consumers.
• Across all three attitudes, 45- to 54-year-olds fall to the bottom.