The happiest people in the world

In the last 10 years, social research institutes and analysis institutes have questioned hundreds of thousands of people all over the globe in an attempt to measure how satisfied and happy they are. Two of the most comprehensive surveys ranking citizen contentedness are the World Map of Happiness from the University of Leicester and the World Database of Happiness from Erasmus University in Rotterdam. And all the researchers generally ask the same question: How happy are you?

Regardless of the interviewing technique, the nature and subject of the questions, which include the economy, family, working conditions, social conditions and spare time (the survey from Erasmus University comprises 953 indicators), the results show that Denmark is the happiest country in the world.

Thorough regulation
Happy Danes? The world-leading position puzzles not only Danes themselves, but also many foreign media. Isn’t Denmark a tiny pancake of earth north of the wine-growing horizons, where summers are sunless and winters are windswept? Where taxes are sky-high and the society is ruled by a folk-law that says: “Don’t think you are anything special – you are no better than the rest of us.” Where everything is so regulated and disciplined that even in the dead of night in a deserted street, pedestrians conscientiously wait for the green light before they cross.

How can this make people happy? America’s ABC News sent news anchorman Bill Weir to Denmark to find out. Everyone he talked to, he asked to rate their own feeling of happiness on a scale from 0–10. Nobody rated themselves at less than eight, many said nine and several said ten. Not until he had asked a lot of people did he find someone – an old lady – who didn’t think Danes were so happy. Nonetheless, she admitted that she was quite satisfied with her existence, and that Danes in general have very little to complain about. Of course there’s the high taxes, but on the other hand there’s free healthcare, free education throughout life, and Denmark spends more per capita on welfare for children and the elderly than any other country.

Social welfare
But even so, why aren’t the happiest folk to be found on idyllic tropical islands where long drinks and lounging around in hammocks is the image of the unworried citizen? Or God’s own country, where the dream of becoming a millionaire is still very much alive, if you start your paper round early enough in life?

While the hammock-supported lifestyle applies at least to some extent in the Bahamas, which came in 5th in a survey from Leicester University, there is a long way down to the USA, which only managed 23rd.


Adrian White, analytic social psychologist at Leicester University, has prepared a world map of ‘happiness’. The map shows the highest concentrations of happiness in Europe, North America and Australia. His survey is based on 80,000 interviews worldwide, and measured on all parameters, Danes also top his survey of the world’s happiest.

In association with the publication of his survey he said, according to BBC, that when people are asked whether they are happy, it is citizens in countries with a good healthcare system, a high GDP per capita and with good access to education who are the happiest. Adrian White acknowledges that the measuring methods are not perfect, but they are the best available.

Professor Ruut Veenhoven of Erasmus University in Rotterdam has reached the same conclusion. His happiness barometer is the most comprehensive in the world and is being continuously updated. Throughout all the years it has been applied, the barometer has shown that personal wealth in itself is not essential for feeling happy and satisfied with your existence. Instead it is social wealth, well-functioning social conditions, including a good healthcare system and good access to education, which brings contentment.

Denmark fulfils exactly those criteria, and everything suggests that it counterbalances low taxes, ceaseless sun and the idle life of millionaires.


Glad to pay tax
Denmark is the world’s 7th richest country with a GDP of approx. USD 45,000 per capita. But the country is also known for its relatively high taxes, and the rest of the world is puzzled as to how high taxes make people happy. But if you ask Danes themselves, the vast majority say that they pay their taxes gladly.

Because
In Denmark, taxes finance the free educational system. There are 10 years of compulsory school attendance, and thereafter education is also free at high schools and other centres of further education. All young people in education have the right to state financial help during their training. In addition, the Danish labour market system comprises a number of agreements that ensure lifelong further training. The state spends approx. 9% of GDP on education.

Because
The Danish healthcare system is free. All Danes are assigned a GP, who is paid via taxes. Hospitals are free, and there is free access to all specialist physicians. There are large subsidies applied to for example pharmaceuticals and facilities for disabled people. The state spends approx. 20% of GDP on the healthcare system.

Because
All Danes receive a basic state pension from the age of 65. Denmark also spends more money on children and the elderly than any other country. The state uses approx. 20%
of GDP on social welfare.