Humans are special creatures in many ways. One of the most important features of human beings is that, even without a defined genetic deter...
Humans are special creatures in many ways. One of the most important features of human beings is that, even without a defined genetic determination, people form cooperative communities on the basis of their own will. The purpose and advantage of community formation is obvious: cooperation expands the possibilities and abilities of the individual through participation in the community, which functions as a collective society.
The formation of human communities is beneficial in many ways. Community building has not only ensured the survival of the human race, but has actually enabled intelligent humans to become the dominant species of the biosphere.
Although the benefits of community formation for humanity are undeniable, for individuals, participation in community may have different levels of individual satisfaction. The social determination of individual satisfaction related to existence in a community obviously has complex origins and may have countless components. The complexity of the origin of individual satisfaction can be demonstrated by the fact that it is necessarily related to personal happiness. Personal happiness is obviously a complex phenomenon because it is strongly related to personal desires. Personal happiness is fundamentally based on the fulfillment of the individual's desires and the possibility of fulfilling those desires.
The social determination of individual satisfaction is an important feature of the functioning of society. It is obvious that, in general, it is better for an individual to live in a society in which individual satisfaction can be at a higher level when considering the society as a whole. It is also in the interest of society that individual satisfaction should be high at the societal level.
It is strikingly obvious, however, that different communities do not produce the same level of individual satisfaction. It is common to characterize the level of satisfaction of certain societies by the Social Happiness Index, which has well-defined characteristics for measurement.
For example, the most widely used World Happiness Report, compiled by the United Nations, takes into account the following key aspects:
- Income level, as material well-being plays a fundamental role in improving quality of life.
- Social support, i.e. the ability of people to count on each other and social networks.
- Health level, the state of physical and mental fitness.
- Level of freedom, the ability of people to make their own choices in life.
- Community solidarity, the level of giving and generosity, support for others.
- The level of corruption in government institutions and the business environment.
- The impact of cultural values and traditions on the individual.
It can be seen that the measure of individual happiness at the societal level is usually measured in a complex way, trying to link the subjective feeling of satisfaction to more or less objective characteristics. The ambiguous nature of the result is also seen in the use of alternative measurement methods covering other areas. Some alternative measures:
- Gross National Happiness: A model developed in Bhutan that prioritizes people's well-being over economic development. It includes four core principles: sustainable development, cultural preservation, environmental sustainability, and good governance.
- Happy Planet Index: This measure combines people's life satisfaction, life expectancy and ecological footprint. It aims to show how to live a happy life in a sustainable way.
- OECD Better Life Index: A methodology developed by the OECD that measures 11 key areas such as income, health, education, housing, and labor market conditions, and also allows people to weigh factors according to their own priorities.
- Subjective well-being surveys: Collects data on people's own emotional state and satisfaction.
- Some countries also develop their own local indicators that take into account social, economic and cultural specificities.
Methods of measurement differ and may produce different results for the same society. However, the Happiness Index is a fundamentally important characteristic of society because it establishes a link between societal-level processes and their impact on people's lives. In this way, it can help determine how the population of a community or country can be made happier, depending on the measurement criteria, and it can also guide policymakers on the development priorities needed in the areas of measurement.
The objective measurement of subjective personal happiness at the societal level is of fundamental importance for characterizing the quality of the functioning of society, but the diversity of measurement methods raises the problem that we do not really understand on which objectively existing fundamental characteristic of the functioning of society individual happiness at the societal level is based. Is it possible to link the level of subjectively existing social happiness to a definitely existing and precisely measurable characteristic, on the basis of which social satisfaction can be objectively measured and compared? This objective and clearly measurable characteristic that determines subjective individual happiness at the societal level can be the social equality.
The statement is that the degree of social equality is the determining origin of social satisfaction, i.e., the more egalitarian a society is, the happier its members can be at the societal level.
The objection may immediately arise that then societies based on communism, where equality is the basic social condition, could be the happiest societies, but this objection is false. The realized communist societies are not characterized by realized social equality at all. In these societies, a broad social stratum lives more or less on the basis of equality, but this equality is dictated and determined from outside; in fact, it is only an apparent equality of the whole society, which the average members of society cannot even influence. In the case of communism, social equality does not serve social well-being, but ensures the preservation of the power of the superior leadership.
Communism, as implemented, is not an egalitarian society in which rights and duties, and thus personal opportunities, are universal. It is striking, however, that in many cases the level of social happiness rises only briefly after the fall of what is in fact an oppressive leadership that is considered communist, and this can be attributed to the change in social equality that at least partially characterizes the change in social order after the change. A much better example of social equality and the resulting personal happiness at the social level is Finland or Switzerland, where the degree of social equality is clearly correlated with social satisfaction.
If we accept that social equality and personal happiness at the societal level are mutually dependent features of society, then it may be satisfactory to consider a single criterion for determining the level of personal happiness at the societal level. Social equality can be objectively measured and also provides clear guidance to social leaders about the direction of social satisfaction resulting from their activities.
Although social equality is a complex social structure and covers countless areas of community life, the development of social equality requires well-defined, clear procedures for objectively increasing social satisfaction, which can provide clear guidance to politicians working on behalf of society on the nature of social changes that leaders intend to bring about in terms of individual happiness.
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