Scientists and psychologists have been researching the secret to happiness over and over again. Clearly, there is not one value that solely contributes to happiness. When we look at the World Happiness Report, Scandinavian countries take the lead in the ranking almost every year whereas the United States stands in the 10- 16 range. What are they doing right and how can we apply those values into our lives?

According to the 2021 World Happiness Report, although all of us were negatively affected by COVID-19, we still kept a stable level of happiness which shows our resilience as humans. When we dive deeper, we can see that there are a few values and characteristics that contribute to happiness significantly. These are public trust, certain positive psychological characteristics, and working.

Public trust and benevolence

Apparently having a sense of trust towards our environment and society contributes to our happiness significantly. According to the World Happiness Report, the importance of public trust and benevolence has been measured for years. However, especially during a health crisis that rattled the world, public trust plays an even more significant role.

When we trust our community and public, we tend to collaborate and cooperate rapidly and efficiently. This gives us a chance to serve others or be surrounded by a population that thinks and acts similarly. Reports from the 2021 World Happiness Report write that “In World Happiness Report 2020 we found that individuals with high social and institutional trust levels were happier than those living in less trusting and trustworthy environments.”

We can conclude that where we sense mutual trust, we also feel happier maybe because we feel protected, comfortable, and part of a social group.

They measure the public trust element with something called the “wallet question”. They ask participants the likelihood of the return of their hypothetical wallet. The wallet contains 200$ and “accidentally” dropped on the street. The question is, how likely is it for you to have your wallet back by a public persona such as a police officer, neighbor, or stranger. This measurement works great because when someone finds a wallet, they actually have to go out of their way -whether looking up an address, driving the wallet to its owner, calling the police, etc.- to return it back to its owner. As a result, people who think it’s likely that they will receive their wallet back are more trusting to the public. It’s no coincidence that they are also happier overall where they feel supported.

Another example from the 2021 World Happiness Report states “In World Happiness Report 2013, we found that the happiness consequences of the financial crisis of 2007-2008 were smaller in those countries with greater levels of mutual trust.”

Positive psychological characteristics, living with a partner, or using social media can have positive effects on happiness 

Social media - Who knew after all social media can have somewhat positive effects on our well-being. 2021 World Happiness Report explains it well. Especially during the COVID pandemic, social media seems to support many people through the pandemic whether it’s via connecting with others, expressing emotions, or social interactions.  

When we look at different research studies, we see that not all social media channels give us the same feeling or provide positive well-being. It really depends. A study conducted by Italian researchers suggests that active usage of Instagram was linked to both greater satisfaction in life and higher negative affect. Social media can be helpful when we are engaging with others but also may not be as positive when we are just scrolling down through the home page or stalking someone.

Living with a partner - At the beginning of the pandemic, we all thought that there is going to be either influx of divorces or babies at the end of the year. However, when we look at the research data, the results show different. Two studies show that undergraduates who live with partners reported feeling more socially connected.

After all, as humans, we are social beings and we tend to feel stronger when we are with a partner who we can trust.

Positive psychological characteristics – According to the 2021 World Happiness Report, there are certain psychological characteristics and values that can elevate a person’s well-being. A study that was done in Spain and published in Cambridge University Press reported that gratitude, resilience, and good family functioning found to be correlated with personal growth. Another research that was done in the U.S found that extraversion is associated with more positive affect and life satisfaction. This can be explained by extroverts naturally engaging in more social activities even if the activities are through online channels.

Working can make us happier 

Before COVID, many of us were just praying for a day off. When we had to face quarantine and total shut down of our cities, we quickly realized that we don’t actually enjoy just not doing anything all the time. 2021 World Happiness Report confirms that working is strongly correlated with happiness.  

It is reported that “One of the most robust and well-documented findings in the economics of subjective well-being is that the unemployed are significantly less happy than the employed. Yet, the relationship between employment and well-being also tends to be moderated by background labor market conditions.”. In other words, yes, working is correlated with happiness but the work environment determines the results.  

This can be explained by the satisfaction feelings we get when working. Working can make us feel purposeful, meaningful, or supportive. On the other hand, when someone is not satisfied with the work environment due to issues such as lack of work-life balance, unrealistic expectations from managers, or feeling unvalued, working can counteract and contribute to unhappiness instead.