Hedonic Treadmill
Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30
CORE DEFINITION
People have a remarkable ability to return their emotional state to a baseline level. No matter how good (winning the lottery, promotion) or bad (amputation, imprisonment) the event, after a period of adaptation, one's happiness will fall back to the original baseline, like running on a treadmill for a long time but staying in place.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
Manage expectations. It reminds us that the happiness brought by material achievements is short-lived. To improve long-term happiness, we should not rely solely on 'changing the environment' (buying a better car), but on 'changing the baseline' (such as gratitude practice, good relationships).
Anchor fast decisions
Synonymous with 'hedonic adaptation': happiness level is like a treadmill; external improvements only temporarily raise it and then it falls back to baseline, requiring constant acceleration to maintain.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedonic_treadmillverified
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