Taipei, Taiwan – Growing up, Huang Wen-Chun remembers listening to friends and family to complain about life in Taiwan. Then, when he saw news reports to declare Taiwan as the happiest place in Asia, he could not help feeling a sense of pride.
“When I was young, everyone believed that the moon was more round abroad,” said the 25 -year -old independent worker in Taipei. “As I grew up, I realized that there are many ways in which Taiwan exceeds anywhere else.”
According to the annual report of world happiness, the island's democracy has surpassed Singapore as the happiest place in Asia. Taiwan World ranked 27, while the first three places were for Finland, Denmark and Iceland.
The report, which is based on the data of the Gallup World survey, is compiled by asking more than 100,000 participants in more than 140 countries to classify their lives on a scale of 1, the worst as possible, to 10, better possible. Taiwan averaged a response of 6,669 in the last three years.
The World Happyiness report also cited factors such as having someone to count, economic development, healthy life expectancy, generosity and freedom of choice and freedom of corruption as reasons for a feeling of satisfaction. He also attributed high levels of happiness to activities such as volunteering and sharing meals with others.
One thing that Huang appreciates about Taiwan is the feeling of security. When he was a high school, Oakland visited during a trip to California, where the thieves broke into his family's car. They were then attacked by scammers, who said they were sent to tow the car. When his father asked about a replacement vehicle, they moved away.
“In Taiwan, I never had to worry about this kind of thing,” he said.
Office workers pray for business prosperity as their company reopens after the Chinese New Year holidays in Taipei, Taiwan, in February 2020.
(David Chang/EPA-EFE/REX/David Chang/EPA-EFE/REX)
In interviews, the Taiwanese pointed out universal medical attention, an open and friendly society, freedom of expression and convenience in daily life as other possible taxpayers to local happiness. But some residents were not convinced that Taiwan should classify the highest in happiness throughout Asia.
“At this time, I do not feel particularly happy, due to the pressures of inflation,” said Shen Shi-Hung, 55, who runs a food post in Taipei. “But in general, Taiwanese people are very friendly and the quality of life is very good.”
Yu Ruoh-Rong, a professor at the Taipei headquarters Research Research Academy, said that although Covid-19 pandemic was associated with loneliness, his research indicated that most of the Taiwanese had reversed their previous social lives. “Even single or living people seem to meet easily with friends and find people to share meals,” he added.
Yu, who has helped the Taiwanese government to conduct happiness surveys, said such reports often obtain surprise reactions from the general public. She said that although younger generations have some frustrations with economic stagnation, their sense of higher well -being rates compared to previous generations.
Staging salary growth and high housing prices are common complaints among Taiwanese. “When I saw the news, I was a little confused,” said Shen Wan-Ju, a 37-year-old accountant in Taipei. “I feel that salary growth does not keep up with the increase in our cost of living,” he continued, adding that the cost of raising children exerts a lot of pressure on parents. Although Shen has no children, he has seen his brother work hard to send his two children to good schools.
“Honestly, it seems really difficult to be parents. The cost of providing a good education for your child is to increase,” he said.
The Taiwan birth rate has fallen so low that it is considered a great crisis, which leads to the Government to provide more financial support and pairing services for single. Last year, the island's fertility rate, or the number of children that will carry the average woman in her life, was 0.885, among the lowest in the world.
The title of “Happy Place in Asia” also coincides with the increase in China's military threats, which claims the self -governor island as part of its territory. In 2021, the economist labeled Taiwan “the most dangerous place on earth.”
But Tony Yang, a professor of health policy at the Nursing School of the George Washington University, said that the ability of the Taiwanese to adapt to adversity, such as continuous tensions with China and see happiness as a fluctuating condition that contributes to the quality of life.
“Despite persistent threats, everyday life comes with a remarkable normality and optimism,” he wrote in an opinion article for Taipei Times. “This is not a denial, but an ability to maintain contradictory realities simultaneously, recognizing threats while refusing to let our collective conscience dominate.”
