Labyrinth of Happiness
By Dr Arvind Kumar
Leo Tolstoy, in
his great work Anna Karenina says, “Happy
families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” The
notion of happiness, which once adorned the works of the novelists and philosophers,
is now hecticly sought after by the politicians, economists and psychologists
who think it can be distilled into a “science” and translated into
pro-happiness policies. It has become a buzzword with almost all govrnments of
the day who swear by it to allure the voters without making them ‘happy.’ The World Happiness Report, released
recently, reflects a new worldwide demand for more attention to happiness and
absence of misery as criteria for government policy. It reviews the state of
happiness in the world today and shows how the new science of happiness
explains personal and national variations in happiness.
According to the
report, the happiest countries in the world are all in Northern Europe
(Denmark, Norway, Finland, Netherlands), and the least happy countries are all
poor countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (Togo, Benin, Central African Republic,
Sierra Leone). The findings of the report indicate that it is not just wealth
that makes people happy: Political freedom, strong social networks and an
absence of corruption are together more important than income in explaining
well-being differences between the top and bottom countries. At the individual
level, good mental and physical health, someone to count on, job security and
stable families are crucial. However, governments can often mitigate sources of
unhappiness (starvation, unemployment, disease), but happiness is more than the
absence of misery. If we could manufacture happiness, we could repeal the ‘human
condition.’ Creating universal happiness is an impossible goal and fraught with
contradictions abound. The pursuit of happiness may be a ‘right,’ but the
achievement of happiness is not an entitlement.
#Entitlement #Happiness #Individual #Report #Countries #Africa #JobSecurity
#Entitlement #Happiness #Individual #Report #Countries #Africa #JobSecurity
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