Houses have gotten bigger over time, but people haven't gotten any happier - thanks to social psychology. Our satisfaction is derived by social comparisons with our neighbors, and a cycle of one-upsmanship and social disconnection erodes our happiness. theatlantic.com/family/archive… pic.twitter.com/LhNdtJYBVj

The average new house is about 1,000 square feet bigger than it was 40 years ago—but Americans aren't any more satisfied with their homes. My latest for @TheAtlantic

Americans have an inferiority complex about the size of their houses, writes @jpinsk

Americans have an inferiority complex about the size of their houses, writes @jpinsk

Americans have an inferiority complex about the size of their houses, writes @jpinsk

Houses getting bigger, Americans not getting happier—median home size went from 1,500 sqft to 2,500 in 40 years, satisfaction with them went nowhere. Blame the Joneses (@econnaturalist has been pointing this out for a long time): buff.ly/2X3xWRY pic.twitter.com/GPHsXJO1GQ

We love our big house—we’d just like it a lot more if the guy down the street had a smaller one.