New research has revealed that the UK is the world’s second-most miserable country
According to a new report by Sapien Labs, us Brits are some of the unhappiest people on the planet.
The not-for-profit neuroscience research body published its annual Global Mind Project earlier this month. And it revealed that Britain is the second-most unhappy country in the world.
Never a people to be outdone, eh?
If you’re wondering how Sapien Labs measured, they asked people across 70 countries to complete an online questionnaire known as the Mental Health Quotient (MHQ), which assessed their overall happiness and resilience in six areas: mood and outlook, social self, drive and motivation, adaptability and resilience, cognition, and mind-body connection.
From that, people were placed on a scale from -100 to 200, with the upper end being ‘very satisfied’.
The UK’s respondents scored a measly average of 49. And we weren’t far off last place: we only scored one more point than Uzbekistan.
We did, however, come last in the ‘percentage of people struggling mentally’ category, with a whopping 35% of Brits describing themselves as ‘distressed’.
The good news
We may be a miserable bunch, but Action for Happiness is on a mission to turn things around.
In honour of International Day of Happiness, we’re shining a spotlight on the work they do.
Action for Happiness
Action for Happiness is a registered charity and global movement that aims to ’build a happier and more caring society’.
They’re doing it through a series of initiatives:
10 Days of Happiness is a free online coaching programme designed to boost wellbeing and happiness through a series of small daily actions.
Action for Happiness volunteers facilitate regular online groups to help people connect, learn, and spread happiness locally. The 90-minute sessions explore their evidence-based Ten Keys to Happier Living.
They host live talks online with leading thinkers on happiness, wellbeing, and mental health. Happiness Habits is a six-week course designed to help attendees craft the skills for a happy life. An independent randomised controlled trial of the course was carried out by academics from Oxford University, London School of Economics, and Imperial College and found that it enhanced well-being, reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression, and increased compassion and social trust.
Their Keys to Happier Living Toolkit is an engaging, accessible, and evidence-based programme to promote the emotional well-being and resilience of children aged 5-11
Workplace training: They provide businesses with expert insights to support individual well-being and build a culture of happiness.
The Action for Happiness app empowers users to improve their happiness and well-being. Each day they receive an action to take at the beginning of the day and an inspiring message at the end of the day. The messages are based on the themes of their popular monthly calendars. Users can also connect and share ideas with other users.
Final Word
If we all take inspiration from Action for Happiness, maybe we’ll have a more prominent position in Global Mind Project’s 2025 league table. Here’s hoping.
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