Gallup surveys the world to see where the happiest people are: “Using data collected in 155 countries or areas since 2005, Gallup classifies respondents as ‘thriving,’ ‘struggling,’ or ‘suffering,’ according to how they rate their current and future lives on a ladder scale based on the Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale.”
The outlook seems best in the Nordic lands of dreary weather and high taxes, with 82 percent of Danes, 75 percent of Finns, 69 percent of Norwegians, and 68 percent of Swedes classified as “thriving.” The Dutch (68 percent) and Swiss (62 percent) also stand out in the ranks of small happy European countries. The Australians, Israelis, and Canadians (all 62 percent) are almost as happy as the thriving Euros. The US lags a bit at 57 percent, just behind Brazil at 58. The big European countries like Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the UK, etc. are all less happy
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