US beaten by neighboring country in new flourishing ranking heres why were lagging
Money can’t buy happiness — and these countries prove it.The first-ever Global Flourishing Study has determined the countries where people “flourish” the most.Expands beyond the annual World Happiness Report — which often highlights the high quality of life in Nordic nations — the new research digs deeper into all areas of people’s lives beyond ranking how satisfied they are with their lives.Researchers from Harvard University surveyed more than 200,000 people from 22 countries spanning the six populated continents — representing 64% of the world’s population.Indonesia topped the list, followed by Israel, the Philippines, Mexico and Poland, according to findings that were published in the journal Nature Mental Health.Next, Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania and Argentina rounded out the top ten.And despite being one of the wealthiest countries on the list, the US came in at a humbling No.
12, right behind Hong Kong, while the UK was found at a paltry No.20.Researchers defined flourishing as “a state in which all aspects of a person’s life are good,” meaning that “a well-lived life is more than just health and happiness.”The researchers added additional facets to determine a well-lived life, including happiness and life satisfaction, mental and physical health, meaning and purpose, character and virtue, close social relationships, and financial and material stability.Indonesia is not a rich country, but it ranked highly in measures of relationships and pro-social character traits, which foster social connections and community.
On the opposite end of the scale, Japan was listed as the place where people flourish the least.Despite being a wealthy country where citizens tend to live well into old age, people in Japan are least likely to have a close friend.“We’re not here to say those outcomes [wealth, longer lifespans] don’t matter a lot, or that we shouldn’t care about democracy, we shouldn’t care about economic growth, we shouldn...