We don’t want to be the cause of any existential crises, but it’s an interesting question – and one that the United Nations is interested in as a measure of social progress.
So how happy are Canadians? As of this year, we’re number 6 on a list of 156 countries in the U.N.’s World Happiness Report. Let’s face it: we have it good (despite who’s running the country!).
But what does the data tell us about world happiness and public policy decisions?
According to Benjamin Radcliff, a professor of political science at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, it shows that a strong social safety net is conducive to human happiness.
“The relationship could not be stronger or clearer,” wrote Radcliff in a recent opinion piece for CNN “However much it may pain conservatives to hear it, the ‘nanny state,’ as they disparagingly call it, works. Across the Western world, the quality of human life increases as the size of the state increases. It turns out that having a ‘nanny’ makes life better for people.
In his piece, Radcliff points to the five countries topping the report: Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, the Nertherlands and Sweden – countries with a strong social safety net and a high unionization rate.
That’s right: turns out living in a country with strong unions makes you happy.
“Not only are workers who belong to unions happier, but the overall rate of happiness for everyone — members and non-members — increases dramatically as the percentage of workers who belong to unions grows, reflecting the louder political voice that organization gives to ordinary citizens.
All this remains true when controlling for the many other things that might also affect quality of life, such as income, age, gender, marital status, or their country’s culture, history, or level of economic development. Critically, ‘big government’ and labor unions also promote happiness not merely for those toward the bottom or middle of the income distribution, but for everyone, rich and poor, men and women, conservatives and liberals.”
And it’s not like any of these countries topping the charts were spared in the recent global economic crisis.
Even Denmark, who holds the coveted first place, is still reeling from a severe economic crisis. The Agence France-Presse recently reported on how Danes remain happy despite these challenges:
“One of the most important things making the Danes happy is the security in Danish society,” said Meik Wiking, director of the Happiness Research Institute, a Danish think-tank aiming to improve the quality of life in Denmark and abroad.
“There is a high degree of financial security. If we lose our jobs we get support, when we fall ill we can go to the hospital, and so on,” he added.
And it also looks like higher taxes are having no effect on the Danes’ happiness: Denmark has the highest taxes as a percentage of GDP. Sweden comes in at a close second.
So remember all of this information when you get into a debate with that one conservative family member this holiday season! Turns out strong public services are pretty darn important to your happiness! (but we already knew that, right?).