NATIONAL HAPPINESS AND GENETIC DISTANCE A CAUTIOUS EXPLORATION

This article studies a famous unsolved puzzle in quantitative social science. Why do some nations report such high levels of mental well-being? Denmark, for instance, regularly tops the league table of rich countries’ happiness; Britain and the US enter further down; some nations do unexpectedly poo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Economic journal (London) Vol. 127; no. 604; pp. 2127 - 2152
Main Authors Proto, Eugenio, Oswald, Andrew J.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Oxford University Press 01.09.2017
Subjects
Economic theory
Happiness
Ratings & rankings
Socioeconomic factors
Well being
Denmark
United States > US
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Summary:This article studies a famous unsolved puzzle in quantitative social science. Why do some nations report such high levels of mental well-being? Denmark, for instance, regularly tops the league table of rich countries’ happiness; Britain and the US enter further down; some nations do unexpectedly poorly. The explanation for the long-observed ranking – one that holds after adjustment for GDP and other socioeconomic variables – is currently unknown. Using data on 131 countries, the article cautiously explores a new approach. It documents three forms of evidence consistent with the hypothesis that some nations may have a genetic advantage in well-being.
ISSN:0013-0133
1468-0297
DOI:10.1111/ecoj.12383