Here's what happiness looks like around the world

"On the flip side: poverty, inequality and a lack of interconnectedness often appear to hamper happiness. In the United States, as families gather for Thanksgiving, the national moment of togetherness comes in stark contrast to a growing trend in everyday life: More than 1 in 4 Americans reported eating all their meals alone on a typical day in 2023, up from 1 in 6 in 2003."

"Finland has reigned supreme in the world happiness charts for eight years, including in the most recent report, released earlier this year. "Finland is the land of quiet satisfaction," said Frank Martela, a professor researching human well-being and motivation at Aalto University in Finland. "When Finnish people stop to think about their lives, they realize that things are relatively okay.""

Philosophical debate has long questioned the nature of happiness and how it differs from living or doing well. Researchers behind the World Happiness Report have developed comparative measures to direct global policy toward human happiness. Measured factors include material well-being, sharing meals, giving to others and helping strangers. Social connections and actions that foster them strongly promote happiness. Poverty, inequality and lack of interconnectedness impede happiness. In the United States, solitary eating has increased, with over one in four Americans eating all meals alone on a typical day in 2023. Finland repeatedly ranks highest, characterized by widespread quiet satisfaction.

Read at The Washington Post