Image: Professor Jan-Emmanuel De Neve and colleagues on stage at The World Happiness Summit
The Harris Manchester-based Wellbeing Research Centre, directed by Vice-Principal Professor Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, has published the latest edition of the World Happiness Report.
The focus of this year’s report, which was released on 19 March to coincide with the UN’s International Day of Happiness, is the role that social media plays in people’s wellbeing. It features several high-profile contributors, such as psychologist Jonathan Haidt, author of The Anxious Generation, and Nudge co-author Cass Sunstein.
Professor De Neve, who is also one of the editors of the report, said that a complex picture of the effects of social media emerged from the report: “The global evidence makes clear that the links between social media use and our wellbeing heavily depend on what platforms we’re using, who’s using them and how, as well as for how long.”
The report also features an annual ranking of the world’s happiest countries, with Finland coming out on top for a ninth consecutive year.
The Wellbeing Research Centre was established at Harris Manchester College in 2019. It is one of several research centres at the College, which also include the Commercial Law Centre and the newly established Centre for Unitarian and Dissenting Studies. Visit the World Happiness Report’s website for full details of this year’s publication.
