[venusss]

yes, I know my country is quite down low on the list. I blame the Habsburgs!

[Fresia]

Thanks for posting, curious. Also, is this the study that China did or has another one been done?

[DenisDonnacha]

wow Ireland is only one point over Iraq... and um they've been through some worse stuff than us for like a long time. And here I was thinking that our humour always got us through tough times... shows how much the last government really did f**k us over lol.

[Umbral_Seraph]

Not the first time I've seen the happiness index, but every time I see it, I think of how interesting it is that some of the happiest countries in the world also have the highest taxes in the world. Nigeria and Colombia suprise me though.

Happiness is hard to quantify...therefore, how much weight should we really invest in this study? Not much. C'mon the Philippines is not even represented and I know they're a happy people, I've worked with Filipinos much of my adult life. Again, what is happy (rhetorical only)?

[Oxidopamine]

I find several things interesting from this scale. First, West Africa appears to be quite happy, considering Nigeria and Ghana are very high on the list, while South Sudan is mid-way and South Africa, Kenya and Egypt are much lower. Second, I expected the US, Canada and France to be much higher on the list. Third, Saudi Arabi is apparently quite happy, while its neighbour Iraq is much lower on the list. It suggests there are not only geographic boundaries but also social and psychological boundaries.

No matter how I look at the scale, one thing I cannot shake is the wording of their questions and whether they compared definitions of happiness. It would be very interesting to see if countries high on the list share similar definitions, while countries mid-way share their own definitions and countries toward the bottom share yet another definition.

[venusss]

I did not really expect the US to be too high....................... that country is too obsessed with happiness to be truly happy.

what i find highly interesting that Bosnia is quite high up... but than again, I am not suprised. I know Bosnians, they probably discovered the secret of rocking on and being quite at peace (no pun intended) no matter what.

Now, Serbia lingers at bottom of the list. I guess losing it all, including your reputation and honor is not good for your happiness. I wonder what can be done for such country.... it is country with severe PTSD and depression on national level.

[Timgt5]

I tend to take little stock in these measures of happiness, the components that make up what one would call "happiness" are too variable and complex to be quantified. Also one has to factor in expectations in determining happiness. If for example expectations are low and easily met then it is more likely to rate higher in happiness than some other people or group with higher expectations.

Also contentment on a societal scale leads to stagnation. It is in fact our collective unhappiness that is responsible for every technological advancement since we figured out how to harness fire.

[DenisDonnacha]

I wonder what day this survey would have been done on? Because if it was from Monday to Wednesday in Ireland that would explain the low scores, we hate those days lol, too far from the fun of the weekend haha

Happiness can also be measured by comparisons. If a country was very prosperous and employment was good for a while, and now the cuts are coming....that would cause many people to be unhappy. If another country had been in constant war and poverty, and somebody brings an end to the war...they may still be lacking in many ways but are happier because of the changes. Therefore, it is true what gulas said...it is very hard to quantify happiness.