A global study, you know, like totally explored what makes people most likely to flourish in different countries. Like, how cool is that? (Image credit: Luciano Lozano via Getty Images)
So, what exactly does it mean to live a good life, you know? Well, for centuries, philosophers, scientists, and people from different cultures have been trying to figure that out. And guess what? They all kind of agree that it’s more than just feeling good — it’s about becoming whole. Recently, some researchers have been all about this idea of flourishing, you know, not just happiness or success, but a whole bunch of stuff like positive emotions, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment. It’s like Aristotle’s concept of “eudaimonia” but with a modern twist, you know?
Flourishing isn’t just about how you feel on the inside, it’s about your whole life being awesome, including your peeps and where you live. Your home, your hood, your school or job, and your squad all play a role. So, this group of smarty-pants — psychological scientists, social scientists, and epidemiologists — are part of this big international party called the Global Flourishing Study. They’re all about finding out how people are thriving across different cultures, which is pretty rad, if you ask me.
The Global Flourishing Study is like this huge five-year annual survey with over 200,000 peeps from 22 countries, you know, trying to understand health and well-being. They’ve got over 40 researchers from all over, asking folks about their lives, their happiness, their health, their childhood, and how they’re feeling about their money situation. It’s a whole shebang, I tell you.
They’re looking at six dimensions of a flourishing life:
– Happiness and life satisfaction: how content and fulfilled peeps feel.
– Physical and mental health: how healthy they are, inside and out.
– Meaning and purpose: whether they feel like their lives have a point.
– Character and virtue: how they act when things get tough.
– Close social relationships: how happy they are with their peeps.
– Financial and material stability: if they feel safe about their basic needs.
They’re using a scale from 0 to 10 to measure how well peeps are doing in each of these areas. And they’re even throwing in some extra questions to dig deeper into what makes someone flourish. For example, they’re looking into stuff like optimism, peace, and balance in life, as well as pain, depression, and exercise, trust, loneliness, and support. It’s like they’re trying to get the full scoop on what makes people tick, you know?
The first batch of results is in, and it turns out that some countries and groups of peeps are doing better than others. Surprisingly, young peeps in many countries aren’t doing as well as older folks. It’s kind of throwing off this whole idea of well-being following a U-shaped curve over a lifetime. Marriage seems to be a good thing, with married peeps reporting more support, better relationships, and more meaning in life. And having a job, whether it’s working for yourself or someone else, seems to make peeps feel more secure and happy compared to those looking for work.
And get this, peeps who go to religious services often report higher scores in all areas of flourishing, especially happiness, meaning, and relationships. It’s like religious communities are offering that social support, spiritual connection, character building, and hope that peeps need to thrive. But there’s a twist — some religious service goers also report more pain or suffering, maybe because they’re more tuned in to those feelings.
Your early years, they say, shape how you do later in life. But even if you had a rough start, it doesn’t mean you’re doomed. Some peeps who went through tough times in childhood still managed to find meaning and purpose later on. And hey, men and women globally seem to report similar levels of flourishing, but there are some big differences in certain countries. Women in Japan are doing better than men, while in Brazil, it’s the opposite.
When it comes to countries, Indonesia, Mexico, and the Philippines are rocking it in the flourishing department. They might not have all the money in the world, but they’ve got strong family ties, spiritual lives, and community support. On the flip side, Japan and Turkey are struggling a bit. Japan might have a booming economy, but peeps there are feeling less happy and connected, maybe because of long work hours and stress. In Turkey, political and financial issues might be messing with peeps’ sense of trust and security.
And here’s a kicker, richer countries like the U.S. and Sweden aren’t flourishing as well as some others. They’re doing okay in the money department but falling short in meaning and relationships. It’s like having more cash doesn’t always equal a better life. In fact, countries with higher incomes often report lower levels of meaning and purpose. And countries with more babies tend to have peeps feeling more fulfilled. It’s like there’s a trade-off happening, you know?
So, what’s the big takeaway from this study? Well, it seems like peeps all over the globe want the same basic stuff — to be happy, healthy, connected, and safe. But how they reach those goals varies from country to country. There’s no one-size-fits-all formula for flourishing. And while this study is a good start, it’s just the beginning. We need more studies that dive deeper into the local vibes and meanings of flourishing. Researchers can build on these findings to get a better grip on what makes peeps thrive worldwide. It’s like we’re on a quest to unlock the secrets of human flourishing, you know?
Victor Counted, this super smart dude, is all about psychology and human flourishing. He’s got all these fancy degrees, over 80 publications, and this cool Christian Flourishing Science Lab at Regent University. He’s all about making peeps feel good and spreading good vibes across different communities. So, yeah, human flourishing is kind of a big deal, and we’re just scratching the surface. Maybe one day, we’ll have it all figured out. Or maybe not. Who knows?
