5 Reasons Finland’s People Are So Happy

Why Finland's People are so Happy

The United Nations World Happiness Report ranks the world's 2019, Finland placed first for the second year in a row. Which leads to the question: why are the Finnish people so happy?

The world happiness ranking is determined by polling citizens of each country, asking them to rank their personal happiness levels on a scale of 0 through 10. The report also analyzes individuals' self-reported happiness in terms of each Country's levels of GDP, life expectancy, social support, generosity, freedom, and corruption.

Experts in psychology and sociology, as well as Finnish people themselves, have suggested several reasons why Finland or Scandinavian nations  similar

1. Trusted governmental institutions

Happy nations in general have stable governments. This notion makes sense, with war-tom nations like Syria and It's hard to feel personal happiness when death and destruction surrounded you. But beyond mere stability, the happiest countries have a strong trust in their government's honesty and high confidence that the people in charge are genuinely looking out for the best interests of their citizens. There are low rates of corruption, and when corruption is discovered, it is attacked as a public scandal with legal consequences.

2. Strong social support systems

Finland and other Scandinavian nations have some of the best social support systems on the planet. Universal health care, excellent and well-funded education, generous leave policies for workers, including paid maternity and paternity leave and subsidized child care, and a strong social safety net for the poorest in society are hallmarks of policy in these nations.

These support systems take a lot of common worries off the table for citizens. They know that they will have shelter and food no matter what, that their children will be well educated, and that even a serious illness will not spell economic disaster for their family. The Finnish people themselves often attribute their own happiness to knowing that these basic supports are out there when they are needed.

3. Civic engagement and volunteerism

Finland and other Scandinavian nations have high rates of volunteerism among their citizens. People get out and work together on community improvement projects and fundraising for less fortunate people.