2021 John F. Helliwell, Richard Layard, Jeffrey D. Sachs, Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Lara B. Aknin, and Shun Wang The World Happiness Report was written by a group of independent experts acting in their personal capacities. Any views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization, agency or programme of the United Nations. Table of Contents World Happiness Report 2021 Foreword . 3 1 Overview: Life under COVID-19 . 5 Helliwell, Layard, Sachs, De Neve, Aknin, & Wang 2 Happiness, Trust and Deaths under COVID-19 . 13 Helliwell, Huang, Wang, & Norton 3 COVID-19 Prevalence and Well-being: Lessons from East Asia . 57 Ma, Wang, & Wu 4 Reasons for Asia-Pacific Success in Suppressing COVID-19 . 91 Sachs 5 Mental Health and the COVID-19 Pandemic . 107 Banks, Fancourt, & Xu 6 Social Connection and Well-Being during COVID-19 . 131 Okabe-Miyamoto & Lyubomirsky 7 Work and Well-being during COVID-19: Impact, Inequalities, Resilience, and the Future of Work . 153 Cotofan, De Neve, Golin, Kaats, & Ward 8 Living Long and Living Well: The WELLBY Approach . 191 Layard & Oparina Photo by Radoslav on Unsplash World Happiness Report 2021 Foreword their efforts to provide timely data for this Report. We were also grateful for the World Risk Poll data This is the ninth World Happiness Report. We use provided by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation as this Foreword to offer our thanks to all those who part of their risk supplement to the Gallup World have made the Report possible over the past nine Poll in 2019. We also greatly appreciate the life years and to thank our team of editors and partners satisfaction data collected during 2020 as part as we prepare for our decennial report in 2022. of the Covid Data Hub run in 2020 by Imperial The first eight reports were produced by the College London and the YouGov team. These data founding trio of co-editors assembled in Thimphu partnerships are all much appreciated. in July 2011 pursuant to the Bhutanese Resolution Although the World Happiness Reports are based passed by the General Assembly in June 2011 on a wide variety of data, the most important that invited national governments to “give source has always been the Gallup World Poll, more importance to happiness and well-being in which is unique in the range and comparability of determining how to achieve and measure social its global series of annual surveys. and economic development.” The Thimphu meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Jigme Y. The life evaluations from the Gallup World Poll Thinley and Jeffrey D. Sachs, was called to provide the basis for the annual happiness rankings plan for a United Nations High-Level Meeting that have always sparked widespread interest. on ‘Well-Being and Happiness: Defining a Readers may be drawn in by wanting to know New Economic Paradigm’ held at the UN on how their nation is faring but soon become April 2, 2012. The first World Happiness Report curious about the secrets of life in the happiest was prepared in support of that meeting and countries. The Gallup team has always been reviewing evidence from the emerging science extraordinarily helpful and efficient in getting of happiness. each year’s data available in time for our annual launches on International Day of Happiness, The preparation of the first World Happiness March 20th. Right from the outset, we received Report was based in the Earth Institute at very favourable terms from Gallup and the very Columbia University, with the Centre for Economic best of treatment. Gallup researchers have also Performance’s research support at the LSE and contributed to the content of several World the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Happiness Reports. The value of this partnership through their grants supporting research at the was recognized by two Betterment of the Human Vancouver School of Economics at UBC. The Conditions Awards from the International Society central base for the reports has since 2013 been for Quality of Life Studies. The first was in 2014 the Sustainable Development Solutions for the World Happiness Report, and the second, Network (SDSN) and The Center for Sustainable in 2017, went to the Gallup Organization for the Development at Columbia University, directed by Gallup World Poll. Jeffrey D. Sachs. Although the editors and authors are volunteers, there are administrative, and Since last year, Gallup has been a full data partner research support costs covered most recently in recognition of the Gallup World Poll’s importance through a series of grants from The Ernesto Illy to the contents and reach of the World Happiness Foundation, illycaffè, Davines Group, The Blue Report. We are proud to embody in this more Chip Foundation, The William, Jeff, and Jennifer formal way a history of co-operation stretching Gross Family Foundation, The Happier Way back beyond the first World Happiness Report to Foundation, Indeed, and Unilever’s largest ice the start of the Gallup World Poll itself. COVID-19 cream brand Wall’s. has posed unique problems for data collection, and the team at Gallup has been extremely As noted within the report, this year has been one helpful in building the largest possible sample of like no other. The Gallup World Poll team has faced data in time for inclusion in this report. They have significant challenges in collecting responses this gone the extra mile, and we thank them for it. year due to COVID-19, and we much appreciate Photo by Radoslav on Unsplash Radoslav by Photo 3 World Happiness Report 2021 We have had a remarkable range of expert The team at the Center for Sustainable Develop- contributing authors over the years and are ment at Columbia University, Sybil Fares, Juliana deeply grateful for their willingness to share their Bartels, Meredith Harris, and Savannah Pearson, and knowledge with our readers. Their expertise Jesse Thorson, have provided an essential addition assures the quality of the reports, and their to our editorial and proof-reading capacities. All generosity is what makes it possible. Thank you. have worked on very tight timetables with great care and friendly courtesy. Our editorial team has evolved over the years. In 2017, we added Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Haifang Our data partner is Gallup, and institutional Huang, and Shun Wang as Associate Editors, joined sponsors include the Sustainable Development in 2019 by Lara Aknin. In 2020, Jan-Emmanuel Solutions Network (SDSN), the Center for De Neve became a co-editor, and the Oxford Sustainable Development at Columbia University, Wellbeing Research Centre thereby became a the Centre for Economic Performance at the LSE, fourth research pole for the Report. In 2021, the Vancouver School of Economics at UBC, and Haifang Huang stepped down as an Associate the Wellbeing Research Centre at Oxford. Editor, following four years of much-appreciated Whether in terms of research, data, or grants, service. He has kindly agreed to continue as we are enormously grateful for all of these co-author of Chapter 2, where his contributions contributions. have been crucial since 2015. Sharon Paculor has continued her excellent work as the Production Editor. For many years, Kyu Lee of the Earth Institute handled media management with great skill, and we are very grateful for all he does to make the reports widely accessible. Ryan Swaney has been our web designer since 2013, and Stislow Design has done our graphic design work over the same period. John Helliwell, Richard Layard, Jeffrey D. Sachs, Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Lara Aknin, Shun Wang; and Sharon Paculor, Production Editor 4 Chapter 1 Overview: Life under COVID-19 John F. Helliwell Richard Layard Jeffrey D. Sachs Jan-Emmanuel De Neve Lara B. Aknin Shun Wang World Happiness Report 2021 2020 has been a year like no other. This whole • T rust and the ability to count on others are report focuses on the effects of COVID-19 major supports to life evaluations, especially and how people all over the world have fared. in the face of crises. To feel that your lost Our aim was two-fold, first to focus on the wallet would be returned if found by a effects of COVID-19 on the structure and quality police officer, by a neighbour, or a stranger, of people’s lives, and second to describe and is estimated to be more important for evaluate how governments all over the world have happiness than income, unemployment, dealt with the pandemic. In particular, we try to and major health risks (see Figure 2.4 in explain why some countries have done so much chapter 2). better than others. • Trust is even more important in explaining • The pandemic’s worst effect has been the the very large international differences in 2 million deaths from COVID-19 in 2020. COVID-19 death rates, which were substan- A rise of nearly 4% in the annual number tially higher in the Americas and Europe of deaths worldwide represents a serious than in East Asia, Australasia, and Africa, social welfare loss. as shown here (see Figure 2.5 of chapter 2). These differences were almost half due • For the living there has been greater to differences in the age structure of economic insecurity, anxiety, disruption populations (COVID-19 much more deadly of every aspect of life, and, for many for the old), whether the country is an people, stress and challenges to mental island, and how exposed each country was, and physical health. early in the pandemic, to large numbers of infections in nearby countries. Whatever Happiness, trust and deaths under the initial circumstances, the most effective strategy for controlling COVID-19 was to COVID-19 (Chapter 2) drive community transmission to zero and There has been surprising resilience in how to keep it there.