arbejde–work (Danish)
glæde–happiness (Danish)
arbejdsglæde–happiness at work (Danish)
In a comment to last week’s post Looney commented, “…it seems that we as a nation are selling the unborn into tax slavery so that we can indulge ourselves and avoid facing reality today.” I’m as horrified by the deficits as anyone, and I don’t like having to pay for the indulgences of others. (My husband and I have always lived reasonably simply and below our means.) But I think the concept of “tax slavery” is too strong.
In fact studies (also Google “happy danes”) have shown that the Scandinavian countries, especially Denmark, are the happiest people in Europe. And one of the characteristics of those countries is high taxation. It means that people don’t choose jobs based on salary and getting ahead of their neighbors, but for the satisfaction of working. They also are not so absorbed in getting ahead that they neglect their families and social connections. America has always been called The Land of Opportunity, but I imagine many an American would love to have the opportunities for a meaningful life that the citizens of those highly taxed nations offer.
As usual this post is presented as food for thought. What do you think?
Related post: What We Can Learn From the Danes
Related articles on Danes and Happiness: You can be as happy as a Dane, Why Danes are smug.
When taxes are high but used SENSIBLY by the concerned government, then facilities like public transport etc. must be very good. Moreover, as far as I am aware, Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark) there is very good maternity and paternity leave for parents, and more opportunities for facilities like job sharing and flexible hours etc. I am out of Ireland for the last fifteen years but I remember before I left there was one radio celebrity who was married to a Dane (or was it a Swede?). When the wife was expecting, she left the husband in Ireland and went back home for the duration of her pregnancy because according to her, the maternity benefits were just too good to miss. And believe me, Ireland is not bad at all in that area!
In Europe there is a general attitude about the different kinds of Christianity. The general assumption is that Catholics are tortured by the ‘guilt complex’ while Protestants are dominated by a strong work ethic. I don’t know if it is a true generalisation, but I only know it’s there. The Scandinavian countries are mostly Lutheran (Protestant) so I guess the work ethic is fairly strong there. So if people work hard, pay their taxes and keep their family values in view, it might very well be a good recipe for happiness and satisfaction. Of course, others might have different points of view!
.-= gaelikaa´s last blog ..Lost And Found =-.
gaelikaa,
I agree with you about the importance of the government, In fact the study quoted said:
“The Cambridge team has now begun to analyse what makes people in some countries happier than others. One of the most consistent trends is that those with the highest levels of happiness also reported the highest levels of trust in their governments, the police and the justice system, as well as those around them. Happier people also tended to have plenty of friends and acquaintances, as well as at least one very close friend, or a partner.”
I also agree that having a good work ethic and family values are important. Those are two values we tried to instill in our daughter.
I’m afraid higher taxes wouldn’t have the same results here in the U. S. Most people, including me, don’t trust Congress at all.
I think the ‘slavery’ refers to paying off the debts of the greedy and irresponsible (a.k.a investment bankers etc). Not taxes for public infrastructure (though there is a good deal of hostility to this in the US. The rest of the world I think views this with bemusement – the most expensive health system in the world for only very modest outcomes (to speak of an up-to-the-minute example).).
The US was willing to invest massively in the New Deal period and later to build the excellent highways that now criss cross the country. Why this doesn’t exist to other things is quite weird – from the perspective of someone half the world away.
.-= Evan´s last blog ..Boredom’s Cure, coming soon =-.
Hi there,
I was made aware of your page by the lovely gaelikaa.;)
This is an interesting subject to someone like me, who has lived in Denmark for almost a decade by now.
I grew up in Sweden, and although my roots lie in Eastern Europe and I spend a lot of time in the US. I think I might have a pretty good perception on whether Danes are happy or not.
Of course, I can only offer my own personal opinion.
I loved my time in the US and miss it dearly. I miss foremost the incredible people, but I miss also the idea of the ultimate freedom. This freedom though is best enjoyed when one is young. With age, we long for security.
This security is what can be found in Scandinavia. Although riddled with its own problems, the Nordic countries have governments that really take care of their people and the social benefits and networks are highly developed.
I love living in Denmark due to many reasons; the mentality of people here is a mix of the continent and the North, which personally appeals to me, as they have the best of both worlds. The nature here is stunning and pristine, as is the consciousness of the Danes to preserve it. The infrastructure is sturdy, unemployment low, economy very strong, even in times of global recession, illiteracy is non existent, crime low, level of education high and things just simply -work-. Of course, I am not saying there are not problems; turning on the news every day tells me that all the time.
And we do not get this for free; yes taxes are high, but they are not unbearable.
I think I can find people all over Europe, that are most likely happier than the Danes are, in certain aspects. But I think that Danes have the capability of seeing the positive in life and have the correct attitude in realizing that money and wealth is not worth enjoying in a secluded solitude, and in a society, where your neighbor is suffering.
.-= Protege´s last blog ..‘Havhingsten’, The Sea Stallion. =-.
Jean, I hate to say this, but I am convinced that the oldest and the largest democracies have destroyed what could have been great societies by politics of a kind that is vastly different from that of the Scandinavian type. The latter’s politics is not driven by Capitalism. Period.
.-= Rummuser´s last blog ..Blogger With Two Blogs. =-.
I don’t think high taxes has much to do with it. It’s the society, the culture, and personal choices that empower people to be satisfied or dissatisfied, happy or unhappy.
.-= Mike´s last blog ..Rocky Mountain High! =-.
Jean, that is quite a challenge correlating increasing happiness with increasing taxes! Germans, however, have higher personal taxes than Scandinavians and I know from first hand experience working in there that they are not happier than Americans. My time in France taught me that the French are very happy and pleasant, except when they are angry, annoyed and on strike. I will need to ponder this correlation some more. 😉
Anyway, the high tax rate Scandinavians have much less public sector debt as a % of GDP than the US does, based on the 2008 reported numbers. I have a sense that they are much more responsible with how they spend public money than we are in the US.
.-= Looney´s last blog .. =-.
Evan,
It’s not just the investment bankers, our government actively encouraged the gambling, especially in houses. My husband and I decided years ago that we industrious savers are the ones that always pay the most.
Obama was talking about rebuilding infrastructure, which is sorely needed, but we’ll have to see if that was just a campaign promise.
Protege,
Thank you for sharing your experience. I’ve read articles that Denmark is having trouble with immigration threatening some traditional values. Have you noticed any of that?
Also one article says the Danes are happier because they don’t expect life to get any better. I thought that was fascinating. It’s the same line of thought as in articles explaining why old people (over 60 or so) in America are happier than younger ones. They’re no longer striving for a “better” life but focus on enjoying what they have. Does anyone have an opinion on that point of view?
Rummuser,
I personally think bad government doesn’t only occur under Capitalism. I thought India had a Socialist government for years and that it didn’t solve the problem of corruption and bureaucratic inefficiencies. I would love to hear your ideas about that. There are also plenty of horror stories about corruption in China as well as the old USSR.
Mike,
I agree with you. I mostly don’t waste emotional energy on things outside of my control, but I was uncharacteristically angry for a few days about the bailouts. That’s when I tried tapping. It worked just fine to get me back to a more productive state.
Looney,
We lived in France, about a half-hour from Paris, for about 13 months. We still remember the strikes. My guess is most of the French don’t trust their government very much.
I too imagine the Scandinavian governments spend their tax money more responsibly than ours does. But that’s not necessarily saying very much. There’s a reason Congress has such a low approval rating. 😉
There is a strong correlation between equality and health and happiness in societies. For the details see The Spirit Level. There is also a website with most of the data equalitytust.org.uk.
Hugely important I think.
.-= Evan´s last blog ..Boredom’s Cure, coming soon =-.
Okay Jean. I shall work on a thesis and post it in my blog soon. Thanks for the idea.
.-= Rummuser´s last blog ..Blogger With Two Blogs. =-.
Evan,
I’m not at all surprised. Have you ever heard of the Roseto Effect?
Thanks for the link.
Rummuser,
I’m looking forward to reading it.
Thanks for the link, very relevant. I hadn’t heard of this. I’ve bookmarked it and shall re-read it. Thanks.
.-= Evan´s last blog ..Boredom’s Cure, coming soon =-.
My daughter lives in Sweden. She said that Swedes were very reserved, but when they visited Denmark, they became like the Danes, warm & friendly. When they got back to Sweden they became cold & reserved again.
I notice Swedes are friendly NOW & they speak English when they didn’t 15 or so years ago. The inter-net & TV made that change.
Taxes are high but nobody complains. It’s their way of life.
I was impressed by the friendliness of the Danes too. I didn’t spend that much time in Sweden to notice. The Danes’ warmth and friendliness is no doubt one of the big reasons they’re so happy.
I don’t really know that Swedes are friendly NOW. The ones I see are Lydia’s friends.
Looks like the French were reading this blog. Sarkozy is going to include happiness as a component of the French GDP numbers.
.-= Looney´s last blog .. =-.
Looney,
Good for him! Thanks for telling me.