Cross-cultural Study on Students' Life Satisfaction: A Pilot Study on the Sense of 'Happiness' in Finland, Bhutan, and Japan

Abstract

The volume of happiness studies has been increasing over the last decade. This overlaps with human-centered development policy starting in the 1990s. However, most studies have focused on either college students and beyond or adults, and only a limited number of studies have explored younger cohorts, especially in cross-cultural perspectives. Since 'happiness', and 'well-being' are generally considered to be subjective, it is essential to highlight children's and adolescent's perspectives on happiness, especially with regard to school. This study examined Finland, Bhutan, and Japan for the following reasons. Finland was chosen because the students in the country achieved the highest scores in the 2006 PISA, and the educational system in this country has received wide attention. Bhutan was selected because it is famous for its Gross Happiness Index, invented by the Fourth King. Finally, Japan was selected for comparison because of the wellknown academic pressure and competition that has led to Ijime. The results from this study indicated that while the friend facet posits more universality across the three countries, the self and family facets posited some cultural variation.