It’s World Happiness Day! A campaign program? Why not? Remember the US Declaration of Independence. It states “the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Every year, the United Nations assesses the level of happiness worldwide, country by country. France ranks 35th, far behind Finland and the Nordic countries, always at the top. In one year, we have dropped two places.
But it must be nuanced, delved into the detail.
Another report has just been published: the Wellbeing Observatory, under the direction of Mathieu Perona and Claudia Senik. For ten years, with INSEE, this observatory assesses the well-being of the French. It tries to grasp it by asking them questions. It measures its evolution.
It’s always difficult. How to define well-being? Not to mention happiness… What criteria to consider? Let’s start with one: the feeling that what we do in life has meaning, value. On a scale of 1 to 10, we are at 7. Not bad! But in at least one area, we are falling behind: work.
The Heart of Well-being
In France, the relationship with work is very degraded. This is not new. But according to this report, for the past few months, satisfaction related to work has collapsed. The well-being observatory conducted a survey by the Ipsos institute – 1500 people surveyed. One in two employees says they want to retrain, change direction. What do the surveys mention? Insufficient salary, a blocked career, but more broadly a lack of recognition, and a huge problem of work organization. Ultimately, deep dissatisfaction.
This issue, work, must be linked to another: retirement. Why are the French so reluctant to postpone the retirement age? Because they hope to be happier in retirement? Not necessarily. According to this report, it is more to get out of a difficult, painful situation. Not everyone, not all the time. No caricature! But here, we have a real political issue. In the upcoming presidential campaign, instead of focusing on the retirement age, could we debate about everything that happens, that is, work? That would be progress.
The Taste of the Future
And here too, a noticeable gap emerges. When asked if the next generation will live better, the French increasingly answer no. Their vision continues to deteriorate. It reaches a low point. Again, the issue is political: how to make the future desirable? How to persuade ourselves that we can still change things, improve them?
Ask men and women. You won’t necessarily get the same answer. This report confirms a trend: an “ideological divide” is widening. Young women appear increasingly progressive, young men increasingly conservative. But again, no caricature… Beyond the divides, they have common points: this generation – under 40 – has more confidence in institutions. And it gives more importance to mutual assistance.
Conclusion
Mutual aid? We are at the heart of the matter, at the heart of well-being, with the conviction that we have people around us to rely on, and who can rely on us – all those daily relationships, so important. At the end of last year, this feeling was at its highest in ten years. Good news! So let’s end on this positive note. This Friday is not just World Happiness Day, it’s the beginning of spring.
