More than three quarters of people in the developed world say they are happy, but a clear majority wish their life was simpler, according to a study of adults in 20 of the world's leading powers.
Confounding theories about the rising tide of depression and the withering effect of economic rout, the Ipsos Mori survey of more than 16,000 people worldwide found that 77% were happy, a rate that rose to 88% in Sweden, 85% in Australia and 83% in the US.
Happiness levels were lower in Europe, with Spain the bottom of the pile. Only 59% of Spaniards said they were happy. Britain was close to the average at 76%.
Weighed against surprising levels of self-declared happiness, the report found large measures of gloom about the future, about the growing pace of globalisation and the effects of inequality. But when people were asked about their personal lives, families and their local communities there was a more sanguine response.
"Against a pessimistic backdrop, this report shows the global public's tendency towards nostalgia, allied to a strong sense that traditions are important, and a desire for a slower pace of life and simplification," said Ben Page, Ipsos Mori's chief executive.
The research company's study questioned people across 10 broad areas, probing attitudes towards the digital revolution, healthcare, generational antagonism and immigration.
Although 77% said the world was changing too fast and more than half said they wished they could slow down the pace of their lives, a clear majority (61%) said technology was part of the solution, not part of the problem. That approval rating rose to 80% in China. France was the most techno-sceptic country.
There was a more nuanced view of globalisation, which has been blamed for everything from destroying jobs in Europe to emasculating national governments and playing into the hands of amoral multinational companies. People in emerging economic powers overwhelmingly agreed that globalisation was good for them (China 81%, India 71%, Brazil 68%). But in the richest nations there was a very different view: in France, only 24% of people approved of globalisation, a rate that inched up to 37% in the US and 41% in Britain.
Conversely, people in emerging economies feel under far greater pressure to make money and make a show of their success. When asked whether they felt under pressure to be successful and make money, 68% of Chinese agreed. Only 25% of Italians did.
Respondents complained about the intensity of their digital lives and the amount of screen time they subjected themselves to every day. In all, 78% of Chinese, 71% of Britons, 71% of Australians and 67% of Americans agreed with the statement, "I am constantly looking at screens these days".
Curiously, people are far more optimistic about the prospects for their families and local communities than they are for the world. A total of 59% expressed an upbeat outlook when asked about how their families would fare over the next year. But only 22% of people said they were optimistic about prospects for the world as a whole, a proportion that fell to 20% in the US, 15% in Britain and 6% in France.
The researchers questioned 16,000 adults in the autumn of 2013: 1,000 in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Spain, Britain and the US, and approximately 500 in Argentina, Belgium, Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden and Turkey.
