Happiness in the Year of the Wood Snake
Today, many people across the globe are celebrating Lunar New Year. As we enter the Year of the Wood Snake – traditionally associated with the traits of wisdom, adaptability, and growth – what better opportunity to take a closer look at the growth in happiness across East Asia?
Our latest figures, published in World Happiness Report 2024, paint a diverse picture of wellbeing in East Asia. China, Hong Kong, Japan, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, and Taiwan have made impressive economic strides, but their happiness rankings remain behind global leaders like Finland, Denmark, and Iceland.
Taiwan is the highest-ranked at 31st, followed by Japan in 51st and the Republic of Korea just one position behind. China – currently at 60th – has recorded one of the biggest increases in happiness of any country since 2012. Sparsely-populated Mongolia was ranked in 77th place in 2024, with Hong Kong the lowest of this grouping, ranked 86th.
Despite strong and continued economic performance, happiness levels in East Asia do not fully reflect the region’s economic achievements, highlighting the importance of non-economic factors in determining overall wellbeing.
Our analysis has identified six factors that explain most of the differences in happiness between countries: income, healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom to make life choices, generosity, and perceptions of corruption.
While many East Asian countries excel in the domains of income and health, they generally perform poorly in social support, freedom of life choices, and perceptions of corruption. And Japan, in particular, scores notably low for self-reported generosity. These gaps contribute to relatively low happiness levels despite material wealth.
Additional societal challenges also contribute to lower happiness scores. Mental health is a growing concern, further complicated by societal stigma that prevents many from seeking support. Work-life balance remains a critical issue for the region, with demanding work cultures leading to stress and burnout. Moreover, the relentless pressure of intense competition, especially in education and the workplace, may serve to diminish overall happiness scores.
Governments in East Asia are increasingly acknowledging the importance of non-economic factors in enhancing wellbeing. In his New Year message, Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasised that: “Of all the jobs in front of us, the most important is to ensure a happy life for our people […] We must bring more smiles to our people and greater warmth to their hearts.”
As East Asia continues its emphasis on economic growth, it must also focus on improving social support, freedom, and other non-economic factors that foster happiness. A holistic approach – one that nurtures both economic and social development – will be key to improving the happiness of East Asia’s populations, both in the Year of the Wood Snake, and beyond.
Prof Shun Wang
Editor, World Happiness Report
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