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NORWAY EXPLAINED

Why is Norway on a downward happiness trajectory?

The World Happiness Report (WHR) published Monday placed Norway in seventh place. Despite the high ranking, Norwegians' happiness has been on a downward trend in recent years.

Published: 20 March 2023 09:38 CET
Pictured is a Norwegian nd a gloomy backdrop.
Happiness has been on a downward trend in Norway for a few years now, but why? Pictured is a Norwegian nd a gloomy backdrop. Photo by Nick Scheerbart on Unsplash

The UN Sustainable Development Network has been publishing the World Happiness Report (WHR) every year since 2012.

Approximately 1,000 people from each country participate in this survey annually and are asked to evaluate various aspects of their quality of life.

This year’s report ranks the quality of life in 137 countries. And, almost traditionally (and unsurprisingly), Finland ended up in first place. Denmark followed in second place, with Iceland right behind it.

Norway, on the other hand, ranked lowest among the Nordic countries – in seventh place – the most recent in a series of somewhat underwhelming scores (eighth place in 2022, sixth place in 2021, fifth place in 2020, third place in 2019) for a country that prides itself in its welfare state, work-life balance, and overall quality of life.

The drivers behind Norway’s falling happiness scores

On a scale from 1 to 10, Norway scored 7.3. At the same time, Finland registered a score of 7.8.

Happiness researcher Ragnhild Bang Nes at the National Institute of Public Health (FHI) told the news bureau NTB that Norway is generally expected to be high on the happiness scale but that there has been a downward trajectory in recent years.

“Challenges in Norway include a declining quality of life, especially among the young, and increasing inequality,” Bang Nes explained.

“It is a bit worrying that Norway has had a downward trend. This can probably be explained by the fact that for many years we had stable times in Norway, but in recent years, citizens have faced more hardship than they are used to,” she noted.

The researcher added that the negative trend could partly be related to the declining quality of life among young people during and after the pandemic, more challenging economic times, greater work life uncertainty, and inequality within the population.

“In Norway, we have also had sustained positive development in many areas in recent decades, not least in terms of prosperity. We may be less equipped to face today’s challenges in this country than people elsewhere,” Bang Nes said.

The happiness expert told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) that probably the most important reason why a person experiences happiness is being part of a community.

“We need close ties, someone to lean on in crises. We need to be integrated,” Nes pointed out.

The top – and bottom – of the list

Countries plagued by war, such as Afghanistan and Lebanon, ended up at the bottom of the list, along with Sierra Leone.

On the other hand, eight of the top ten countries on the list are European, and the remaining two are Israel and New Zealand.

You can find the full report here.

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NORWAY EXPLAINED

The things you won’t see in Norway that are common elsewhere

When you move to (or visit) a new country, you almost inevitably encounter a bit of culture shock - or, at the very least, some surprising social norms and experiences.

Published: 22 April 2024 15:50 CEST
The things you won't see in Norway that are common elsewhere

Moving to Norway – or just visiting it as a tourist – offers no shortage of incredible sights and experiences that you’ll struggle to find anywhere else.

However, among these features lie several elements of European urban life that are conspicuously absent from life in Norway, drawing curious glances from visitors accustomed to their presence elsewhere.

With that in mind, The Local has compiled a list of things you might find noticeably – and somewhat oddly – missing from day-to-day life in Norway.

A (mostly) cashless society

In a world where cash is king, many newcomers to Norway remain baffled by the apparent absence of cash in everyday transactions.

In most Norwegian cities, it’s not uncommon for people to see entire months pass without a single physical coin or banknote changing hands.

Instead, most people use electronic payment methods such as the widespread Vipps e-payment app, mobile payments, and contactless cards, effectively rendering cash obsolete in many scenarios.

Ordering takeout? There’s Vipps.

Going shopping? You pay via card.

Paying the mortgage rate? Online banking.

Donating at church? Vipps again.

As Håkon Fyhn, an associate professor at NTNU who researches robotisation, digitisation, and automation, told The Local in a recent interview, Norwegian society is characterised by a high level of trust in government and banks, so people don’t use cash because they trust digital money.

EXPLAINED: The pros and cons of Norway going cashless

“The short answer is that for most people in Norway, there are now digital alternatives that are more convenient to use and readily available – notably credit cards (on plastic or phone) and Vipps (a Norwegian phone-based money transfer service) for small and medium exchanges,” he said.

Homeless people in Norway

Wandering the streets of most of Norway’s cities, you’ll likely notice the absence of a demographic that tends to be, unfortunately, quite present in urban landscapes in Europe – homeless people.

Homelessness has significantly declined in Norway since 2012, with numbers halving, according to recent data.

This reduction can be attributed to a concerted strategy that emphasises the development of housing and support services, alongside the cultivation of expertise in addressing homelessness, as reported in a 2022 article by Husbanken Norway.

Efforts have been particularly targeted at vulnerable groups within the housing market, with a specific focus on families with children and people grappling with substance abuse and mental health issues.

According to a national survey on homelessness in Norway conducted in 2020, the total number of homeless people was 3,325.

Considering the country’s population of approximately 5,400,000 inhabitants, this is a rate of 0.62 homeless persons per 1,000 inhabitants, which is considered relatively low.

No piles of trash on the street (for the most part)

While bustling tourist hubs – such as the Lofoten Islands in the north of Norway or the Trolltunga rock formation in Vestland Country – can become full of trash in peak tourism season, generally speaking, Norway’s streets tend to be very clean compared to some other European countries.

With a deeply ingrained culture of personal responsibility for waste management, many Norwegians maintain their urban environments to a very high standard, making ugly piles of trash a rare sight.

READ MORE: What you need to know about rubbish and recycling in Norway

The widespread adage is to leave every place cleaner than how you found it. Therefore, don’t be surprised when you see picking up others’ litter in the woods, on hikes, or on walks through their neighbourhoods.

That being said, there is a very intense debate on the over-tourism of Norway’s top attractions – and the negative impacts of this phenomenon – going on in the country at the moment. The Local has covered this issue in more detail in this article.

Few skyscrapers

Norway’s skyline starkly contrasts the towering cityscapes synonymous with many other Western countries.

Even in Oslo, the country’s capital, strict building limits curtail the construction of skyscrapers. Instead, the cityscape is usually dominated by low to mid-rise buildings.

The situation is more or less the same in other major Norwegian cities, such as Bergen, Stavanger, and Trondheim.

Furthermore, as Norway is spread across vast stretches of land, its population is thinly scattered across the expansive terrain.

Therefore, historically, the necessity for towering skyscrapers to make use of urban real estate hasn’t been pressing, given the abundance of space available (outside major urban centres).

READ MORE: Property prices in Norway to surge over the next few years

Factors such as population pressure, limited supply, and growing demand in the real estate market in the country’s major cities are raising questions about whether this should continue.

Where are the curtains?

Another curious absence that might go unnoticed until pointed out is the absence of curtains on the windows of Norwegian homes.

Unlike in many other countries, where curtains are a common decoration for privacy, Norway’s residents often forego this conventional window dressing, preferring unrestricted views of the surrounding landscapes and prioritising more natural light during the day.

Interestingly, the prevalence of curtains varies across different districts and neighbourhoods, with areas with higher populations of international residents at times featuring a higher concentration of curtain-clad windows.

This may stem from a desire to cater to the preferences of those accustomed to the conventional use of curtains for privacy.

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