A new study has revealed the ten happiest and unhappiest states in America - with Massachusetts leading the way as the cheeriest place to live.
The Schoolaroo Study analysed 54 metrics that were divided into seven key categories to determine happiness levels in all 50 states.
Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 being the max, and looked at conditions such as work, safety and how often people spend on their hobbies, according to Schoolaroo.
In addition, it also looked at people's overall mental and physical health.
Massachusetts landed top spot as the happiest state, Illinois came second, Connecticut third, New Jersey, fourth, and New York featured in the top 5.
Schoolaro said those living in the Northeast are the happiest, "as all of the states in the region were ranked among the top 20 happiest in the country."
In the least happy states, South Carolina came first, Missouri second, Tennessee third, Oklahoma fourth and Alabama in fifth place.
However, most of the southern states have the lowest levels of happiness, according to Schoolaro, as they ranked the highest in metrics like depression rate, number of hours worked per week and obesity rate.
The study then determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank them.
“The influences of our daily lives, such as working conditions, safety, the frequency with which we pursue hobbies, as well as our overall mental and physical health, directly influence our happiness,” said Schoolaroo. “These factors differ from state to state.”
What the study looked at
- Personal finance
- Leisure activities
- Mental Health
- Physical Health
- Employment
- Personal relationships
- Social policies
The top 10 happiest states
- Massachusetts
- Illinois
- Connecticut
- New Jersey
- New York
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- California
- Hawaii
- Vermont
The ten least happy states
- South Carolina
- Missouri
- Tennessee
- Oklahoma
- Alabama
- Louisiana
- Kentucky
- Mississippi
- Arkansas
- West Virginia
In a different study last year by WalletHub, Hawaii was the happiest state with Maryland, Minnesota, Utah and New Jersey in the top five.
Hawaii was first last year people that have an overall happier quality of life compared to everyone else, according to the study.
And the least happiest states were West Virginia, Louisiana, Arkansas, Kentucky and Alabama.
Maryam Kia-Keating, a clinical psychologist and founder of Power of Drishti Meditations, told WalletHub: "Community environments have an important influence on happiness and health.
"In addition to your daily activities and choices, living in a community that offers access to resources and opportunities, and engenders a sense of safety, belonging, connection, and support helps people to thrive
"Schools, neighbourhoods, and community and faith-based organizations can play a big role in helping support well-being and cultivating collective happiness."
