Don’t Worry Be Happy

Understanding the influences of happiness allows countries to focus resources on the best happiness contributors. This paper studies the effect of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and social spending, in terms of education and healthcare, on a population’s happiness. Data analysis through linear regression shows that as GDP increases, happiness increases; however this only seems to apply to countries that are developing. Once the GDP hits a threshold, around USD 10,000, it has little effect on the country’s happiness. The paper builds upon past research on public happiness in relation to GDP and social expenditure and informing public policies