GfK NOP Identifies Most and Least Happy Countries Across the Globe; Australians Most Happy, Hungarians Least According to Happiness Study

NEW YORK, Feb. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- GfK NOP announced today results of its global Happiness Study finding that Australians have the happiest population with 46% saying they are 'very happy.' The United States is the second happiest country in the world at 40% followed by Egypt (36%), and India (34%). The UK and Canada share the fifth spot with 32% claiming to be very happy.

According to the study, Hungary is the least happy country, with 35% of its citizens saying they are either 'disappointed' or 'very unhappy', followed by Russia (30%), Turkey (28%), South Africa (25%) and Poland (24%).

Globally, 20% of people claim to be 'very happy' while 62% of individuals are 'satisfied.' Ten percent of the population claim to be 'disappointed' and 4% admit to being 'very unhappy.'

In terms of how happiness has changed over time, comparisons with the GfK NOP 'Happiness Barometer' carried out in 1999 reveal that Australia and the U.S. maintain their positions as the two countries with the greatest proportion of happy residents.

Elements of the "Good Life" ... What People Value

The study also identifies elements of the "good life" finding that the more intangible items such as stability and family life rank above money and possessions. In fact, globally 84% of consumers say good health is part of the good life. Financial security (64%), home ownership (60%), a happy marriage (55%) and children (48%) are also considered critical components of the good life.

Control over one's life, an interesting job (46%) and leisure time (36%) also rank high on the list, while material items such as luxury cars, nice clothes and gadgets rate comparatively low.

Does Money Buy Happiness?

While the research demonstrates that money doesn't buy happiness, it does reveal a link between lack of money and happiness. Fully 38% of global consumers who report being very unhappy live in low-income households, compared with just 15% of those who say they are very happy.

Higher incomes may help explain why very happy people claim they worry less about money and more about issues such as AIDS, terrorism and education. They also say they are more optimistic in their outlook -- with 33% believing now is a good time to buy the things they need, triple the 11% share of the very unhappy, and 37% state they are very confident they will be better off in a year, compared with 14% of the unhappy.

Personal appearance, getting enough sleep, faith, personal hygiene and taking vacations also characterize happy people; while alcohol and fast food consumption levels are high among those who are unhappy.

Happy Are Those Who Are Young at Heart

Age is also shown to have a bearing on happiness. On a global scale, the happiest group is the 13-19 year olds, with 25% of this group claiming to be 'very happy', followed by 20-29 year olds at 21%, and the over-60 crowd at 20%. The age group with the lowest levels of happiness is 50-59 year olds, with only 16% claiming to be very happy.

The research was carried out by GfK NOP as part of its annual study of consumer attitudes, values and behaviors -- Roper Reports Worldwide(TM) -- which conducts in-depth interviews with more than 30,000 people in 30 countries worldwide.

  FIGURE 1: TOP 10 'HAPPY' COUNTRIES

  Country                             Percentage claiming to be 'very happy'
  Australia                                   46
  USA                                         40
  Egypt                                       36
  India                                       34
  UK                                          32
  Canada                                      32
  Mexico                                      31
  Sweden                                      30
  Brazil                                      29
  Saudi Arabia                                28


  FIGURE 2: TOP 10 'UNHAPPY' COUNTRIES

  Country                               Percentage claiming to be
                                         'very unhappy' or 'disappointed'
  Hungary                                     35
  Russia                                      30
  Turkey                                      28
  South Africa                                25
  Poland                                      24
  Philippines                                 23
  Japan                                       21
  Taiwan                                      19
  France                                      18
  Hong Kong                                   17


  FIGURE 3: COMPONENTS OF THE GOOD LIFE

  Good Health                                 84
  Home that You Own                           60
  Children                                    48
  A Job that is Interesting                   46
  Free and Leisure Time                       36
  A Yard and Lawn/A Nice Garden               22
  A Luxury or Second Car                      19
  Having the Latest Electronics and
   Gadgets for My Home                        19

  About the 2005 Happiness Study ...

The Happiness Data is based on further analysis of the GfK NOP Roper Reports Worldwide survey, which includes in-depth personal interviews with more than 30,000 people age 13 and older in 30 countries between December 2004 and February 2005. For more information about the Happiness Study, please contact Francine Vassallo at 212-752-8338 or fvassallo@psbpr.com or Liz Nolley at 1-800-274-3577 ext 5597 or elizabeth.nolley@gfk.com.

About Roper Reports Worldwide(TM) ...

The annual GfK NOP Roper Reports Worldwide survey conducts in-depth personal interviews with at least 30,000 people age 13 and older, across major markets in five continents. The data are weighted to the sampled population in each country.

Carried out annually since 1997, GfK NOP's Roper Reports Worldwide is the most comprehensive and up to date study of global consumer trends, providing an unparalleled insight into the lifestyles, attitudes, values and behaviors of consumers on a global scale.

Roper Reports Worldwide helps business decision makers and marketers to understand and interpret the consumer climate on both a global and regional scale. The study uses representative sampling projectable to 1.55 billion consumers in 2005, and has questioned more than 260,000 consumers to date.

About GfK NOP ...

Headquartered in New York, GfK NOP is a company of GfK Custom Research, North America, part of The GfK Group. With home offices in Nuremberg, Germany, The GfK Group is among the top-five market research organizations in the world. Its activities cover five business divisions: Custom Research, Retail and Technology, Consumer Tracking, Media and Healthcare. In addition to 13 subsidiaries in Germany, The GfK Group has more than 130 subsidiaries and affiliates in 61 countries.