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Are you tired of clickbait and the current state of journalism? This community is meant to remind you that excellent journalism still happens. While not sticking to a specific topic, the focus will be on high-quality articles and discussion around their topics.

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In-depth Study Across 152 Nations Reveals Societal Keys to Happiness. (www.theinnovativehorizon.com)

submitted 1 year ago by Joleee to c/longreads

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A groundbreaking study from The University of Hong Kong analyzed societal factors influencing happiness across 152 countries. Key findings indicate that beyond a certain economic threshold, wealth doesn't boost happiness; instead, generosity, strong social support, personal freedom, and support systems for aging populations play crucial roles in fostering well-being.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

2.The Power of Generosity: Generosity stands out as a potent ingredient for happiness, especially in wealthier countries. Once basic economic needs are covered, the act of giving seems to play a more vital role in elevating life satisfaction.

This surprised me, but then I thought back to the anthropology class I had that covered societies that had a "big man" structure.

Basically, the social status of the ones on top depended on how able they were to give generously to people in their community and redistribute wealth. So high social status came from not having a lot but being able to GIVE a lot.

My memory is foggy, but if I recall some Native American cultures from the pacific northwest operated this way or had elements of it, as well as some pacific islander communities.

Edit:

The Moka is a highly ritualized system of exchange in the Mount Hagen area, Papua New Guinea, that has become emblematic of the anthropological concepts of "gift economy" and of "Big man" political system. Moka are reciprocal gifts of pigs through which social status is achieved. Moka refers specifically to the increment in the size of the gift; giving more brings greater prestige to the giver.