Growing Measures of Happiness

Happiness cannot be measured in a single way. Most people are happy in their own ways. People increasingly have their own reasons to be happy.

KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO

Scavengers penetrate the rain on Pondok Ungu Permai Street, Happy Village, Babelan District, Bekasi Regency, West Java, Tuesday (14/3/2023). For some ordinary people, life has been able to eat a day, it has made them feel happy.

Countries in the world compete with each other to pursue economic growth in order to improve the welfare of their citizens. However, large incomes, good education and high-quality health services do not necessarily lead to the happiness of the people. People’s happiness is influenced by many factors, not just the economy.

The relation between economic development and happiness is not a simple one, especially when the meaning of happiness differs for everyone. Moreover, everyone has different values and philosophies in life. Those who are at an economic disadvantage may be happier than those with an advantage (Kompas, 20/3/2023).

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Bhutan is an example of a country that created its own measure of happiness. They maintain at least 70 percent of their forest area and limit the number of tourists that can visit. Bhutan is a carbon-negative country and even helps other countries to absorb their carbon emissions. Bhutan chose to use indicators of gross national happiness instead of using macroeconomic measures that are commonly used to measure a country’s growth.

On a community scale, we see there are groups who choose to live with minimal consumption of resources, use recyclable products, adhere to organic practices and so on. They did not adopt this lifestyle because they have to but because they are happy with that choice, especially amid a market of product choices that may be cheaper and more easily accessible to the public but are damaging to the environment.

ADRYAN YOGA PARAMADWYA

Mall visitors carry shopping bags at Grand Indonesia, Jakarta, Saturday (18/3/2023). Some people can afford to spend their money on luxury shopping to make them happy and flaunt it on social media.

We also see individuals who choose to be happy in their own way. Some people prefer to move to a small town rather than settle in a big city. Some prefer to work freelance rather than work formally. Some prefer to use public transportation, even though it is not easy, rather than use private vehicles. Some feel happy when they help the elderly, donate their fortunes, work as volunteers and so on.

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> Baduy, Peaceful in Nature’s Embrace

Measuring happiness through economic means is an outdated practice. Measures of physical and mental health, social skills, the ability to gain knowledge, be useful to others and so on can be seen as indicators of happiness. Measures of happiness are growing. People are increasingly creating their own happiness in unique ways.

When it comes to the behavior of officials and their families, who tend to flaunt their wealth, we can assume some people still adhere to the old paradigm of happiness. They may feel happy when they own an item and showcase it on social media. The times have changed, but they have not. We are lucky to have netizens who call attention to and scrutinize those behaviors.

This article was translated by Kesya Adhalia.