If you live in Illinois, Connecticut or Rhode Island, the chances are you know someone who is not happy. Not happy at all.
Around a quarter of the population living in these regions have described them each as the ‘worst possible state to live in’, according to a Gallup survey.
The map data doesn’t explain the nature of the residents’ grievances.
Around a quarter of Illinois, Connecticut and Rhode Island residents described their state as the worst possible one to live in, according to a Gallup survey
However, classic socio-economic indicators would clearly be relevant – including work-life balance, healthcare, crime levels, education, housing, income and the environment.
While 21-25 per cent of people ranked these three states as the ‘worst’, Louisiana and Mississippi also featured prominently – with 17-20 per cent describing the two southern states as the worst.
Socio-economic factors would have played a part in residents’ evaluation of their states. Illinois (pictured, Chicago) ranked among the worst
On a positive note, ten states had only 1-2 per cent of their population who weren’t happy: Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Texas, North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Maine.
Posters took to Reddit to discuss the findings, including one who said of Connecticut and Rhode Island: ‘Poor economy I guess, though everyone in the area has a bit of an inferiority complex from the rest of the country picking on their size.’
Another said: ‘Connecticut is low because of the overwhelming tax burden.’
No data was available for Washington D.C. – or Montana, prompting a commenter to post on the forum: ‘Sorry, we were too busy running from bears to answer any questions up here in Montana.’
Posters took to Reddit to discuss the findings, including one who said of Connecticut (above) and Rhode Island: ‘Poor economy I guess, though everyone in the area has a bit of an inferiority complex from the rest of the country picking on their size’
For real happiness, go to Boulder, Colorado…
If you want to lead a happy life, Boulder, Colorado, it seems, is the place to be – because it was named as the happiest city in the U.S. last October.
It topped a list of 25 of America’s happiest cities, revealed in the book The Blue Zones of Happiness, by National Geographic Explorer Dan Buettner.
Along with National Geographic and Gallup, he developed an index to measure a population’s happiness based on 15 metrics including civic engagement, walkability and healthful food options.
Boulder tops the list with walkability, access to nature and sense of community being contributing factors to its residents’ happiness.
The metro area of Santa Cruz-Watsonville California came second in the list, followed by Charlottesville, Virginia, Fort Collins, Colorado, and San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande in California.
California is clearly a dreamy place to live, as eight of its cities, including the metro areas of San Diego-Carlsbad and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, make the happiness list.