Compared to 2015, Belgium has gone up one place in the ranking and is now 18th in the World Happiness Report (WHR), compiled by the Earth Institute of the renowned University of Columbia. The report was presented in Rome on the occasion of the UN's World Happiness Day.
The top three on the list are Denmark, Switzerland and Iceland, while Afghanistan, Togo and Syria are bottom of the list of the 157 countries, with Burundi bringing up the rear.
The report ranks countries on the basis of the happiness of their citizens and their subjective well-being. This year, the effects of inequality in societies were measured and included for the first time.
How is happiness measured, though? Researchers examine per country the income (gross domestic product), life expectancy measured in 'healthy years', social safety net in the sense of relief in times of difficulty, confidence that the government and economy are corruption-free, freedom to make choices and generosity (measured in donations). In addition, the people participating in the study were given a ‘happiness ladder’, on which they had to position themselves, from step 0 to step 10.
The keen interest in the WHR, which has now been published for the 4th time, reflects the growing global interest in the use of happiness and subjective well-being as primary indicators for the quality of human development. On account of this growing interest, many governments, communities and organizations utilize these 'happiness data' and the results of subjective well-being research to develop policies that support a better quality of life.
