Happiness Depends On Feeling Better Than Earning More, Says New Study

First Posted: Dec 14, 2016 03:10 AM EST

A new study found out failed relationships, physical illness and mental disorders cause miserable lives more than poverty and money concerns.

The Telegraph reported that a study conducted by researchers at London School of Economics revealed that people's misery can be reduced by 25 percent if they have been treated for anxiety and depression, compared to only 5 percent if the government focused on abolishing poverty.

Results show that there would be a great impact on citizens and the country's economy if the authorities would care more about people's physical, emotional and mental well-being than their financial needs.

People's happiness generally means higher employment, a rise in tax receipts, as well as reduced NHS cost resulting from fewer GP visits and hospital admissions.

Tony Blair's and Gordon Brown's former adviser and economist, Lord Richard Layard, who led the study titled Origins of Happiness, explained that people are not as happy for the last 50 years even if incomes have been twice as high according to the data that they have gathered from four developed countries including Germany and the U.S.

"This evidence demands a new role for the state - not 'wealth creation' but 'wellbeing creation'," Lord Layard said in a statement. "In the past, the state has successively taken on poverty, unemployment, education and physical health. But equally important now are domestic violence, alcoholism, depression and anxiety conditions, alienated youth, exam mania and much else. These should become centre stage."

According to the World Health Organization's (WHO) figures, an estimated 350 million people struggle with depression worldwide. This mental disorder disables people to work and be productive, which often results to unemployment.

Furthermore, WHO statistics also show that from 1990 to 2013, the number of people suffering from anxiety and/or depression increased by nearly 50 percent, from 416 million to 615 million. This gradual increase in figures indeed calls for more attention.