Everyone wants to be happy, and we all strive daily to attain this idea of ‘happiness’. However, each person defines and measures happiness differently. So what exactly is happiness, and why does being happy matter? Does the idea of happiness mean the same thing to every nation state or every individual person? By focusing in on a region of the world that has very mixed views on what happiness is and how it can be achieved, we may be able to see some ways in which certain countries measure and work to create an overall happier country.
Asian countries have a different view of happiness than Western countries do. Overall, Asian countries ranked relatively high on the Prosperity Poll (a poll that focuses on government, GDP, and general well-being, 2013) but did not get as high of ranking on the Gallup Poll (a poll that studies individual people living in a country and tests how positive they are, how often they smile, etc., 2014). According to Ed Diener, Daniel Kahneman, and John Helliwell’s book International Differences in Well-Being (2010), Asian countries tend to report less smiles and excitement, which are also known as high activation for positive emotions, but report the same amount of satisfaction as Americans and other Westerners. This lack of smiling could be what is causing their low ranking on the Gallup poll, since smiling is one of the ways the poll calculates happiness. International Differences in Well-Being also cites a 2004 study done by Lu and Gilmour which stated that many Chinese college students described happiness as “a calm, peaceful feeling,” which leads to a “sense of equilibrium”(p. 41). Another two studies done in 2007, proved that children’s books published in Asian countries depicted smaller smiles and Buddhist texts had less positive emotions of high-activation than texts from Western religions (p. 42).
Although many Asian countries seem to fall short when it comes to their country’s overall happiness, there is one country that seems to know exactly what they are doing when it comes to creating a happy and positive environment for its citizens. Bhutan is considered to be the happiest country in Asia. Bhutan is a small Buddhist nation located in the Himalayas, land-locked by India, Nepal, Tibet, and China. It was organized as an absolute monarchy until 2008, when it had its first democratic elections and selected Prime Minister Jigme Thinley. Their government is currently a Unitary Parliamentary Constitutional Monarchy, similar in structure to the governments of Belgium and Monaco. Jigme Thinley focused most of his campaign and government (2008-2013) on the happiness of Bhutan’s people. According to “The Honourable Jigme Yoser Thinley” in the Green Interview, both Thinley and Bhutan’s previous king (Jigme Singye Wangchuck) concurred that all government programs should function to increase the happiness of the citizens, rather than the gross national product. Thinley also developed a five year plan, which involved creating new jobs, founding a strong democracy, conserving the environment, and celebrating the culture, values, and religion of the nation, while saving 22% of the national budget to improve health and education. Thinley says, “The goal is to create an environment within which every citizen will have a reasonable chance of finding happiness” (The Honourable Jigme Yoser Thinley).
However, this interest in happiness is not a recent development. Bhutan has always been dedicated to the happiness of the nation and its people. According to Mat McDermott in “How Happy Is Bhutan, Really? Gross National Happiness Unpacked,” Bhutan has legal codes dating to the 18th century stating, “if the government cannot create happiness for its people, there is no purpose for the government to exist". In 2006, Bhutan launched the Gross National Happiness Index (GNH). GNH is described by GNHbhutan.org as being “a holistic and sustainable approach to development which balances material and non-material values with the conviction that humans want to search for happiness. The objective of GNH is to achieve a balanced development in all facets of life which is essential to our happiness. The goal of GNH is happiness”.
Bhutan seems to have figured out a way to insure that their country stays happy, but why does that matter in the larger picture? What implications does it have on global politics? In July of 2011, the United Nations (General Assembly), unanimously adopted a resolution titled, “Happiness: towards a holistic approach to development”. It was proposed to the Member States to begin taking steps to, “better capture the importance of the pursuit of happiness and well-being in development”. In January 2013, the resolution noted that the GDP “was not designed to and does not adequately reflect the happiness and well-being of people in a country,” and “unsustainable patterns of production and consumption can impede sustainable development.” The concept of the GNH is that it is more about human progress than economic growth. It immediately gained 68 co-sponsors, in which these nation states supported the resolution. During a conference in Bhutan in February of 2004, in the closing of the discussion of the concept of the GNH, King Jigme Khesar Namgyel reflected that:
“I believe that while Gross National Happiness is inherently Bhutanese, its ideas may have a positive relevance to any nation, peoples or communities – wherever they may be. There cannot be enduring peace, prosperity, equality and brotherhood in this world if our aims are so separate and divergent – if we do not accept that in the end we are people, all alike, sharing the earth among ourselves and also with other sentient beings, all of whom have an equal role and state of this planet and its players.” (Preface xi).
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A Bhutanese Buddhist Ceremony |
While Most countries focus on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to measure happiness in material wealth, Bhutan uses Gross National Happiness. This unique approach means that the government is conscious of how its decisions affect the overall well-being of its citizens. The reality of the world we live in is that money cannot buy happiness; people can have all the material things they want in the world but happiness is an intangible thing that everyone craves, regardless of age, sex, religion, or race. The Tourism Council of Bhutan illustrates the philosophy of GNH for any foreigners curious as to how it works. The four pillars within GNH in a sense relates to every country and the unhappiness its citizens experience. When someone has a complaint about their government or the way that their country is run, chances are their complaint relates to one of these four pillars. Bhutan has taken the time and the resources to pay attention to their citizens and it has obviously paid off in such a way that other countries are noticing. If the government of Bhutan has somehow cracked a sort of formula for happiness, or a true way to measure a person’s happiness regardless of circumstance, it has the potential to change the way that entire government operate.
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Good idea incorporating a video in the blog post. I like the use of rhetorical questions in the intro paragraph that hop the reader understand what the blog post will be discussing. however it would have been better if you specially said that you will be focusing on Asian countries, more specifically Bhutan. Overall good analysis on Bhutan's government and its happiness. Also your font is super tiny! It was hard to read the post.
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