The 10th annual World Happiness Report for 2022 was released taking into account the impact of the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic, as well as revolts, wars, military developments, and so on.
Lebanon ranked the second-lowest among 146 countries in the ranking of happiness for three years (2019-2021), barely making it to the 145th place, with the last being Afghanistan.
The 2022 Report stated, “While interest in happiness has mushroomed over the ten years of World Happiness Reports, the global average of national life evaluations has been relatively stable”, yet Venezuela, Afghanistan, and Lebanon have fallen the most.
According to the report, long-term stress, worry, sadness, and the decline in the “enjoyment of life”, all affect the scores.
The report also looked at links between trust in government and happiness. “The findings demonstrate that communities with high levels of trust are happier and more resilient in the face of a wide range of crises,” said the authors during a press release on Friday.
The ranking is based on the following five main criteria:
- Global Patterns of Balance in Life
- Global Patterns of Peace with Life
- Global Patterns of Experiencing Calmness
- Global Patterns of Preference for Calmness
- Global Patterns of Caring for Self v/s Other
Out of the 146 countries surveyed, Finland has been named the happiest country in the world, with Denmark coming in second, followed by Iceland, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
The five countries named the least happy countries in the world are: Lebanon, Afghanistan, Botswana, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe.