István Juhász

Department of Economy,

Eszterházy Károly Catholic University,

Eger, Hungary

E-mail: juhasz.istvan@uni-eszterhazy.hu

ORCID 0000-0002-2168-0709 

Culture and happiness in the European Union

Abstract. In a broader context, the pursuit of happiness has become one of the most important goals of a modern human. Despite substantial research on this topic, few studies have examined the links between happiness and cultural dimensions and none have looked at the Member States of the European Union in this context. This study was an attempt to fill this gap by examining the relationship between the rankings of the 26 EU Member States on the World Happiness Report and Hofstede’s six cultural dimensions. Pearson correlation coefficients and linear regression coefficients were calculated to examine the relationships via the use of the SPSS software. The results show a relatively strong positive relationship between happiness and Indulgence and Individualism, while the relationship between happiness and the co-integration of the cultural dimensions of Uncertainty Avoidance and Power Distance is relatively strong but negative. No correlation is found between happiness and the Masculinity and Long-term Orientation dimensions. Thus, a permissive and individualistic social environment is the main contributor to happiness in each nation, while excessive social uncertainty and power distance are the main detractors. Overall, these cultural dimensions must be given more attention if the European Union is to have happier Member States. 

Received: July, 2024

1st Revision: March, 2025

Accepted: June, 2025

DOI: 10.14254/2071-789X.2025/18-2/2

JEL Classification: A13, F50, I31

Keywords: culture, happiness, Hofstede, European Union