The “Danish effect”: well-being in US vs DK

Today in my Positive Psychology class we talked about the differences between Denmark and the US in regards to levels of happiness and well-being. I found this topic to be super interesting, so I thought I’d share some the class’s thoughts with all of you.

*Disclosure: These are generalizations and do NOT apply to every American or Dane in the world. These are just observations made by myself, or that different studies have found. Therefore, I hope no one is offended by the following statements.

 

Statistics from the OECD (a VERY interesting organization that aims to “promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world”):

Rankings of:

Life satisfaction

Denmark: 1

United States: 8

Work-life balance

Denmark: 1

United States: 12

Sense of Community:

Denmark: 2

United States: 10

As I think I mentioned before, one reason my class thought Denmark was one of the happiest countries in the world is because of their low expectations. From what I’ve observed, Danes are also very level-headed when it comes to life circumstances. By that I mean they are well-equipped to handle death and illness for example because they understand that it is just a part of life that is out of our control. In my own life,  I have found that it is easy to forget that we are not able to control everything.  Once you realize some things just happen, your expectations are lowered and your reaction to those circumstances is more positive.

 The OECD also found that Americans discriminate less between emotional responses than Danes do. For example, this means that Americans are likely to associate smiling, being proud, and feelings of happiness, whereas Danes can feel either pride or happiness without eliciting a smile. Or one could be smiling, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that he/she is feeling positive emotions. I’ve noticed this with my host family, because even if my host parents have had a bad day, they still are smiling and carrying on as if they did have a good day. Or, if something really great happened that day, their demeanor is the same as if nothing really special had happened that day. I often feel as if I am being interpreted as “fake” because I am enthusiastic if I really like a meal or if I’ve had a good day. This leads to the next point we talked about in class, that generally Americans are more emotional than Danes. An interesting point is that perhaps it’s not that American’s are more emotional per say, but they are more likely to express whichever emotions they are feeling. In the United States, showing emotion and being passionate about something is very much related, so we are positively reinforced when we show our emotions. However, in Denmark, it isn’t necessary to show every emotion you are feeling.

We also watched a video on the Neuroscience of Meditation, which fascinated me since I am a Neuroscience major. Multiple studies have shown that the brain structure is actually different in people that meditate compared to people that do not meditate. The activation of the left side of the brain is associated with feelings of happiness and enthusiasm, and that is the part of the brain that is strengthened when a person meditates. So, I am going to once again promote meditation and yoga to all of you! You can start out with 5 minutes a day, and eventually get up to 30 minutes a day. In case you need some motivation, here is a website to get you started: http://zenhabits.net/meditation-for-beginners-20-practical-tips-for-quieting-the-mind/.

The key thing to remember when you meditate is to recognize your thoughts, both positive and negative, and learn to let them pass you by. This allows you to become more content and less judgmental of your thoughts and actions. One quote from the movie we watched was “meditation is not just a hobby, it changes how you experience every moment of your life.”

In relation to meditation, my Religion and Politics class is going to Sahaj Marg for our class tonight to learn more about the process of meditation as a form of religion. This is another reason why I love DIS- they get you out into the real world and show how things you are learning in class actually relate to every day life. Click on the link to learn more about it! It looks intriguing.

On Wednesday I am going to a “field study” about trans-international adoption. I have always thought adoption as such a positive thing, however this talk will be about the more negative sides of adoption. Some people think that it is a form of exploitation against people in poverty. To prepare for the speaker, we watched a video called Thai to Thy (click here to access part of the video) that is about Thai women being brought over and marrying Danish men.. think “mail-order bride.” We discussed whether or not this was a form of exploitation or if it was fair since both people receive something out of the deal and the woman is fully aware of the decision she’s making. It was an interesting discussion and I learned a lot from listening to other people’s opinion.

Well, I should probably stop procrastinating and start writing my paper that’s due this week. Hope ya’ll have a wonderful week 🙂