More Is Still Not Enough—What Is Necessary and Sufficient for Happiness?

Joanna A. Kamińska (), Andreia Dionísio, Paulo Infante and Rita Carrilho
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Joanna A. Kamińska: Department of Applied Mathematics, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, 53 Grunwaldzka St., 50-357 Wocław, Poland
Andreia Dionísio: Departamento de Gestão, Escola de Ciências Sociais, CEFAGE, Universidade de Évora, Largo dos Colegiais 2, 7000 Évora, Portugal
Paulo Infante: Departamento de Matemática, Escola de Ciências e Tecnologia, CIMA, Universidade de Évora, Rua Romão Ramalho, 7000 Évora, Portugal
Rita Carrilho: Universidade de Évora, Largos dos Colegiais 2, 7000 Évora, Portugal

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-25

Abstract: Happiness is defined as well-being and contentment with life. The growing imperative to evaluate well-being beyond economic growth alone has led to the formulation of holistic indices that better reflect quality of life and sustainable development goals. This has resulted in the emergence of the Happiness Score (HS), which adopts a more holistic and human-centred perspective on development and well-being. The present study takes the Happiness Score as a basis for the identification of some of the main determinants of happiness in an empirical and data-driven perspective. To this end, data from 145 countries was analysed, using statistical methodologies such as Generalised Linear Models (GLM), Principal Component Analysis (PCA), fuzzy set Qualitative Comparison Analysis (fsQCA) and the decision tree machine learning approach. A range of indices were considered to translate the reality of countries in different socio-economic dimensions, the level of development of each country, and the continent to which it belongs. The African continent demonstrates substantial disparities across virtually all variables and is frequently associated with the most unfavourable values for each index. The indicators that exerted the most profound influence on happiness were identified as the freedom to make life choices, literacy rate, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. These results inform policy strategies aligned with sustainable development, emphasising that enhancing happiness requires multidimensional action beyond economic indicators—particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

Keywords: happiness; socioeconomic indicators; sustainable development; generalised linear models; fsQCA; machine learning decision tree approaches (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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