How happy the Europeans are (if they’re religious)

A study conducted by the University of Navarra in 24 European countries shows the link between religious faith and “level” of happiness
Marco Tosatti
12/23/2011

Excerpt:
On average, happiness in 24 European countries has an average value of 7.26, but with great variances - from 5.54 in Ukraine to 8.32 in Denmark. Scholars have found different meanings in religious variables. The countries with the lowest proportion of individuals belonging to a particular religion are Estonia and the Czech Republic, while those with the highest number are Greece, Portugal, Poland, and Ireland. And there is also evidence of differences between “religious faith” and “religious practice.” For example, the proportion of people in Spain who belong to a religion is 74%, 12 points above the standard average, even though the number of individuals who participate in services and prayer is actually below the European average.

But given this, when scholars looked for a correlation between religion and happiness in Europe, they found some very interesting results. First of all, belonging to a religion has a significant effect on happiness. Those who belong to a religion indicate levels of happiness greater than those who say they are non-religious.

Furthermore, the choice of religion or religious denomination has an important effect on happiness. Protestants, Catholics, and other Christian denominations indicate higher levels of happiness, while Orthodox and Eastern religions show the lowest.

It seems that there is a positive relationship between a person’s religiosity and their happiness. The more religious a person is, the happier they feel. However, those who consider themselves “not religious at all” (0) have levels of happiness comparable to those who give themselves a 5 on the scale of religiosity. the rest