Happiness is not something that a person can borrow or win, it has to be achieved and it can only prosper in the right environment. The prime example of this is Finland which has, once again, secured the top position in the World Happiness Report for the year 2024. It has been named the happiest country for the 7th time in a row. The reason behind its achievement is pretty simple but it’s still something that other countries try to attain – being close to nature and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. It should be noted that none of the world’s largest countries made it to the top five this year.
World Happiness Index reveals how the happiness index varies across landscapes, cultures and geographical features. This year, six key variables were studied to rank countries – GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity, and perceptions of corruption and Finland emerged as the winner (again). Perhaps, some of the attribution goes to its clean air, wondrous winter scenery, delectable culinary scene and high-class education system. Millions of tourists are attracted to this country for its untamed wilderness, gorgeous Northern Lights and iconic architecture.
According to France24, happiness researcher Jennifer De Paola at the University of Helsinki in Finland told news agency AFP that the key contributors to Finns’ life satisfaction are their close connection to nature, healthy work-life balance, strong welfare society, trust in state authorities, low levels of corruption and free healthcare and education. They may have a “more attainable understanding of what a successful life is,” as per De Paola. “Finnish society is permeated by a sense of trust, freedom, and a high level of autonomy,” she added.
After Finland, the country that ranked second is Denmark. Danish people are well-known for relishing a hygge lifestyle. This custom is also sometimes dubbed as “Danish Happiness.” Up next in the happiness ranking are Iceland and Sweden at number 3 and 4, respectively. The number 5 is a surprising name. Given the Hamas war, it was quite unexpected that Israel would make it to the top 5 in the happiness report. The next five countries in the list are the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Australia.
World Happiness Report is a partnership of Gallup, the Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network and the WHR’s Editorial Board. The 2024 report is published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, UK. According to the report, some countries have displayed an increase in happiness while some have sunken down. For instance, Serbia (No. 37) and Bulgaria (No. 81) have had the biggest increases in happiness scores since they were first measured by the Gallup World Poll in 2013. The other two countries showing the largest increases in happiness scores are Latvia (No. 46) and Congo (No.89).
Surprisingly, the United States of America (No. 23) has dropped down from the top 20 for the first time since the World Happiness Report was first published in 2012. As per the report, Afghanistan remains at the bottom of the overall rankings (No. 143) as the world’s “unhappiest” nation, plagued by a humanitarian catastrophe because of the Taliban.
Lithuania tops the list for happiest children and young people under 30, whereas Denmark is the happiest country for those 60 and older. Furthermore, those born before 1965 are, on average, happier than those born since 1980. People are happier living in countries where the equality of happiness is greater, says the report.
