Bridging life satisfaction data and neurobiological measures would elucidate human well-being

In 2011, the United Nations' (UN's) General Assembly unanimously approved a resolution that, for the first time, put happiness on the global agenda.The resolution recognized the pursuit of happiness as a human universal right and urged that a country's prosperity should not be measured only in economic terms, but also in terms of the contentment and well-being of its people.Consequently, there is a growing interest in systematic investigation of happiness.Since 2012, the UN has been publishing annual reports ranking the countries of the world in terms of happiness.The UN's World Happiness Report is based primarily on a three-year rolling average of responses to a single question on the Gallup World Poll: Respondents are instructed to imagine a ladder spanning from 0 to 10, with 0 representing their worst possible life and 10 their best.They are then asked to rate their current life on what has been termed the Cantril Ladder ( 1 ).Each year, Gallup surveys fresh cohorts of respondents ages 15 years and older in over 150 countries ( 2 ).Finland and other Nordic countries have consistently been at the top of the "happiness" rankings ( 2 , 4 ).The latest report, released in March, finds that within-country gaps in life satisfaction are increasing, even as worldwide rankings remain constant ( 4 ).Several justifications have been offered for relying so heavily on the Gallup questionnaires.Their large sample sizes de-emphasize individual differences, exposing national trends.Crucially, results strongly correlate with key socioeconomic indicators.The UN's inaugural report noted that nearly all of the interregional differences can be explained by per capita income, healthy life expectancy, having friends