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Why do the Nordic countries measure most happy?

Why do the Nordic countries measure most happy? - Available at University of Iceland
When 
Tue, 23/05/2023 - 15:00 to 16:30
Where 

Askja

N-132

Further information 
Free admission

Bo Rothstein, a former professor of political science at Oxford University and the University of Gothenburg and founder of the highly respected Quality of Government Institute, discusses the reasons why happiness is repeatedly measured among the highest in the Nordic countries, in a public lecture at the University of Iceland on Tuesday the 23rd of May at 15:00. In his lecture Mr. Rothstein will among other things discuss the importance of credible public institutions, of minimizing corruption, maximizing citizen participation and generating a sense of community, trust and social cohesion among citizens.

The open lecture is held by the Institute of Public Administration and Politics at the University of Iceland, in cooperation with the Icelandic associations of political scientists and sociologists. It will take place at Room 132 in Askja (next to the Nordic House). The meeting will take place in English. Moderator will be Gunnar Helgi Kristinsson, professor of political science at the university of Iceland.

On Bo Rothstein

Bo Rothstein is a world famous scholar in political science who has held professor chairs at Oxford University and the University of Gothenburg – a university to which he is still affiliated – and has been a visiting scholar at numerous universities including Cornell, Stanford and Harvard. In year 2004 he founded the highly respected Quality of Government Institute at the University of Gothenburg but his research has among other things been on the quality of public institutions, trust, corruption and participatory democracy. Further information on Bo Rothstein can be found here.

From its start in 2013 until today, every time the World Happiness Report (WHR) has published its annual ranking of countries, the five Nordic countries – Finland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Iceland – have all been in the top ten, with Nordic countries occupying the top three spots in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. When it comes to the level of average life evaluations the Nordic states are obviously doing something right. The question is what exactly makes Nordic citizens so exceptionally satisfied with their lives? This talk will critically review the existing explanations and present some new ones and also discuss possible threats to this situation and what other countries can learn from this.

Why do the Nordic countries measure most happy?