Bhutan's History of Measuring Happiness
In 1972, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, King of the ancient landlocked Himalayan country, Bhutan , made the bold decision to measure the Gross National Happiness (GNH) of his country alongside more traditional measures of growth such as Gross National Product. The decision to measure well-being and happiness was motivated by the belief that such measures were of even greater importance than materialism and economic growth.
This week Bhutan held it's very first elections. With the introduction of a constitutional monarchy there are likely to be many changes in the country. There is one issue, however, that all parties involved in the election agree upon , that Gross National Happiness should remain on the political agenda.
What, thirty six years ago, may have been seen by many as an eccentric policy of an absolute monarchy is now widely accepted as an important global policy issue. There is growing international interest in measuring well-being and happiness and many governments, including Canada and the UK now employ similar alternative indicators of economic progress.
During a BBC interview in 2006, David Cameron, Leader of the Conservative party, stated “It’s time we admitted that there’s more to life than money, and it’s time we focused not just on GDP, but on GWB – general well-being".
Psychological research in support of measuring GNH
Psychological research provides valuable evidence to support serious consideration of the happiness and well-being of a nation.
Leading researcher in the field of well-being, Ed Diener, has researched the subject for over two decades. Diener has studied the happiness (referred to by psychologists as subjective well-being) of extremely rich Americans and found that they are only slightly happier than average Americans.
Comparing subjective well-being (SWB) across nations Diener found that the Pennsylvania Amish and Inuit of Greenland posess a level of happiness equal to that of Americans listed in the Forbes Top 100 (a ranking of the world's top 100 richest people).
Diener's research has also revealed that whilst income has increased significantly over the last few decades in the United States, subjective well-being has steadily declined.
Clearly, income provides us with only a partial indication of an individual's level of happiness.
Psychologists, as well as influential economists such as Richard Layard (author of Happiness: Lessons from a New Science), are now beginning to understand that the well-being of nations is an essential area of study which is underpinned by a number of complex factors and which cannot only be accounted for by measures such as Gross National Product.
It does seem that the the kingdom of Bhutan has been something of a world leader on the measurement of happiness.
For more information you might like to take a look at:
The Bhutanese Formula for Happiness, BBC programme, 2007.
Ed Diener's Web page, includes downloadable publications and links to other well-being related websites.
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