Women living in Queensland are the happiest people in Australia – survey
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Version 0 of 1. Women who live in Queensland appear to be the happiest people in the nation, according to a new survey. And Australians who live in towns with fewer than 1,000 people are significantly happier than those in big cities. The survey also confirmed that men continue to be more satisfied with their partners than women, even more so if the partner does not go out to work. Conducted by the University of Melbourne, the annual household, income and labour dynamics in Australia (Hilda) survey involves interviews with about 17,000 people on topics from housework and income to health and happiness. The report’s author, Associate Professor Roger Wilkins, said women in Queensland were more satisfied with life than other Australians. “I don’t know why we find that, but I guess you could speculate that the Queensland lifestyle and the weather are conducive to happiness,” he said. “But for reasons that are unclear, it’s not for men. “Women – when all things are equal and you are not in poor health etc – are responding to the Queensland way of life.” Traditional factors affecting happiness include health, relationships and unemployment, but Wilkins says the latest survey also takes into account where people live. It found living in small towns increased life satisfaction the most, and major cities had the opposite effect. “This probably reflects the negative things that go with big cities, like traffic congestion, long commute times and higher rates of crime,” he said. One surprising finding was that the health of people who have up to 42 alcoholic drinks a week did not appear to be adversely affected. But Wilkins stressed that long-term adverse effects were not considered because the survey related only to whether drinking behaviour one year ago had implications for current health. An Australian snapshot: |