Japan – Well-being

 Japan performs well in some measures of the OECD Better Life Index Ranking. They rank top at personal security. The ranks for income and wealth, education and skills, jobs and earning, housing, personal security and environmental quality are above the OECD average, however, they are below the average in rankings in regards to civic engagement, subjective well-being, social connections, work-life balance and health status. Japan is in the 56th place for the Happiness Index Ranking, an improvement from their 2020 ranking of 62nd. 

In terms of eco-friendliness, Japan has a score of 28.3 in the Happy Planet Index, ranking 58th out of 140 countries. They are in the lower quartile in terms of scores. Although their life expectancy (83.2 years old) and well-being (6/10) is alright, their ecological footprint is high, at 5 global hectares per person. The inequality in Japan is quite low, at 9%.

Japan, financially as a country, does well. Japan has one of the highest GDP per capita in the world, as they score high on traditional factors of life quality (income, wealth, education, jobs, earnings, housing and personal security – which all positively correlate with each other.) However, there seems to be a lack of connection between society with one another. They are lower in civic engagement, subjective well-being, social connections, work-life balance and health status. They could focus on this to improve overall life quality for citizens in Japan.