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In comparison Western values accord significance to only one category: that of hard work and frugality (although this is more in theory than in practice). The Western person is told to think for himself and to be 'his own individual'. He is told to question norms and adopt his own values -- the more deviant the better. He may be told to practice self-control -- as means to accumulate wealth and Western success -- but is certainly not required to acquire humility or austerity. Western culture, in other words, is the precise opposite of Confucian values, and, accordingly, Western conception of happiness differs too.

Western happiness as we well know comes through 'independence, 'success', the ability to stand alone, be unique, obtain a sense of self-esteem, self-efficacy, self-reliance (note the reiterate term' self') and, an accordingly, accumulation of money and power in order to achieve survival in a world where each is attempting to torpedoes the other. Families are splintered in the Western world. Many are unaware of their ancestors; others seek to serrate themselves form them. Attention is on the self and on augmenting this self, whilst success - erroneously as positive psychology has shown -- is equated with happiness. And success in Western terms means: Wealth.

That cultural values influence emotion is evident in at least one qualitative study conducted by sociologists that found that in Japan the internalization of Eastern values that included harmony of interpersonal relationships, achievement at work, and contentment with life presented happiness (Lu & Shih, 1997). Meanwhile, as Diener and colleagues (1995) discovered obtainment of individuality gave