Major Study Finds World To Be Sadder And Angrier Than Ever Before, Top 10 ‘Most Negative’ Countries Revealed
A major study analyzing global well-being has found that humans worldwide are sadder, angrier, and more fearful than ever, CNN reports. The analysis was included in Gallup’s Global State of Emotions report, which examines survey data of respondents to identify trends in people’s emotional states. The latest data represents interpretation of the 2018 poll and the overriding feelings of sadness, anger, and fear are the same that topped the previous year’s study of 2017 data.
Gallup calculates their emotional snapshots of humanity throughout interviews conducted around the world, which have taken place since 2006. The 2018 study was based on 151,000 interviews in total across more than 140 counties around the world
The most recent survey found that approximately four-in-10 individuals reported that they had experienced substantial feelings of worry the day preceding the interview. Another 25 percent of respondents reported feelings of sadness, and 22 percent said they had felt anger.
Although the data demonstrates that the world overall has tied its previous record for general negativity, according to the survey responses, it has also shown record levels of positive feelings as well, which Gallup characterizes as indicative of rising inequality across the globe in which the happy consistently become happier and the unhappy reliably feel worse year after year.
People across the earth are sadder, angrier and more fearful than ever before, according to a major new study of global well-being https://t.co/7cYnIh2wxJ pic.twitter.com/xl2SqvrPEM
— CNN (@CNN) April 25, 2019
In addition to making broad conclusions about humanity as a whole, the study also examines regional responses to inform characterizations about different parts of the world. Chad, for example, held the unenviable position of being ranked as the “most negative” country included in the study.
“The country’s overall score at least partly reflects the violence, displacement and the collapse of basic services in parts of Chad that have affected thousands of families,” Gallup wrote in their analysis. They also pointed out that approximately 72 percent of respondents from Chad indicated that they had struggled to afford food at some point in the last year.
The complete list of the top 20 most negative countries according to the report is as follows:
- Chad
- Niger
- Sierra Leone
- Iraq
- Iran
- Benin
- Liberia
- Guinea
- Palestinian Territories
- Congo
As for the happiest places in the world, most surveys tend to rank Scandinavian counties the highest. For example, it is Finland, Denmark, Norway, and Iceland who topped this year’s World Happiness Report, which is produced by the United Nations. Gallup, however, drew different conclusions, finding the highest levels of happiness and fulfillment in Latin America.
Those countries’ high scores “at least partly reflect the cultural tendency in the region to focus on life’s positives,” according to the report.
