How do you like living in your country? Since you’re reading this on the internet, you’re probably pretty set for now, but would you say you’re happy? Interestingly, despite the devastating events of the past year, the changes in the ranking of the happiest countries are very insignificant compared to 2020 or even 2019.
For the fourth year in a row, Finland is ranked number one in the global poll. What’s so great about this Nordic utopia? Researchers are not surprised that Finland has retained its leading position again. It has always been at the top position in terms of mutual trust between citizens and the government. This trust has been recognized as one of the main factors that helped protect people’s sanity during the pandemic.
Iceland, Denmark, Switzerland, and the Netherlands are ranked second, third, fourth, and fifth, respectively. So far, Europe is winning. By the way, Iceland moved up from fourth to second, and Norway dropped from fifth to eighth. Aside from that, the ranking was, for the most part, strikingly similar to the previous year, which sociologists consider a positive sign.
Where is the US, you ask? The “land of the free” rose from 18th to 14th place, while Britain dropped to 18th. Next time someone tells you how great Britain is, you are allowed to slap them with the facts!
However, it is worth noting that this year the Global Happiness Report was done a little differently due to the pandemic. Researchers not only failed to conduct face-to-face surveys in some countries, but they also had to completely change their assessment approach, focusing on the connection between people’s well-being and Covid-19. Perhaps we see the virus as an external threat affecting everyone, which has generated a greater sense of solidarity and empathy.
These are the ten happiest countries in the world, according to the UN:
- Finland
- Denmark
- Switzerland
- Iceland
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Sweden
- Luxembourg
- New Zealand
- Austria
It would be amazing to actually live in one of these places and compare the data, but beggars can’t be choosers. You always have to look at the brighter side of things!
