The Global Social Network
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People in emerging markets are happier than they’ve been in years, according to a Pew Research Center study. That assessment comes despite the gloomy march of capital out of emerging markets and the Fed calling it quits on the easy money that’s spurred growth there. So what’s the twist? They’re richer–or at least feel that way.
Richer countries, on average, report being happier, the study shows. This holds both on a national and individual level. Asians are the most optimistic of the bunch, with some of the biggest gains in perceived well-being from 2007 to 2014 in Indonesia, China, Pakistan and Malaysia.
Pew conducted the survey in 43 countries by asking where people rate themselves on a “ladder of life” scale from zero to 10.
While wealth isn’t the only ingredient of happiness, “material well-being” had the biggest effect on overall happiness, the report said. Other lesser factors are economic—such as job satisfaction and living standards—and personal—such as family, friends and religion.
Life satisfaction also rose in countries with higher GDP growth during the study’s seven-year span. Malaysia, which had one of the fastest growth rates since 2007, boasted some of biggest leaps in life satisfaction, according to the report. This is nowhere more evident than in China, where GDP grew by an average of 10% and the rate of increase in life satisfaction from 2007 to 2014 was one of the fastest among emerging markets.
The study also shows that well-being in emerging markets now rivals that of advanced economies. Encouragingly, the happiness convergence isn’t because people in richer countries are less satisfied. Rather, personal well-being held steady in most wealthy nations from 2007 to 2014. Israel, the U.S., Germany and the U.K. top the happiness charts among advanced economies.
Middle Easterners were the least optimistic when asked about the next five years, with Egypt and Jordan showing the largest dip in satisfaction since 2007, which the report pins on social and political unrest.
Still, “the richer, the happier” correlation holds only up to a point: The perk of wealth tends to taper among richer nations, suggesting that climbing incomes move the needle less at the outer boundary.
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2014/10/31/asians-feel-rich-and-happ...
Some Pakistani readers of my blog argue that this Pew Survey does not represent them.
Such readers are part of the 49% in the Pew Satisfaction Survey in Pakistan who believe they are worse off now than they were in 2002 or 2007. Loss of personal safety is their biggest concern.
Yes, there are problems mainly due to increase in crime and terrorism but such things are not uncommon among developing and emerging nations. In fact, Pakistan is better than many other similar countries in terms of violence.
Just look at Iraq, Nigeria, Venezuela, South Africa, Mexico, Honduras, Chad, Dominican Republic, Central African Republic and Sudan which rank as the the world's 10 most dangerous countries in terms of Progress Index 2014 personal safety component.
http://www.therichest.com/rich-list/poorest-list/the-10-most-danger...
http://www.socialprogressimperative.org/data/spi/components/com4
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