VOA慢速英语：挪威成为全球最幸福国家

Norway First on List of Happiest Countries

挪威成为全球最幸福国家

People in Norway are the happiest in the world.

挪威人民是全世界最幸福的。

That finding comes from a report released this week. It shows Norwegians are happier, on average, than people in over 150 countries.

该发现来自于本周发表的报告。报告显示，平均150个国家中，挪威人民的幸福感更强。

Over 1,000 individuals were asked to rate their own happiness levels on a scale of 1-to-10. Norwegians had an average happiness rating of 7.537. That is just a little higher than people in Denmark. Danes had a rating of 7.522 in the survey.

超1000人被要求评价其幸福度，分数从1~10。挪威人幸福感平均值为7.537。丹麦仅次于挪威。在调查中，丹麦人的幸福感为7.522。

The 2017 World Happiness Report shows the six happiest countries are all in northern Europe. Norway had been the fourth-happiest country last year, while Denmark was rated number one.

2017年世界幸福指数报道显示前六个国家均分布在北欧。去年挪威排名第四，丹麦排名第一。

This year, Canada is the seventh happiest, while New Zealand and Australia are in eighth and ninth place.

今年，加拿大第七名，新西兰和澳大利亚位列第八和第九名。

A group of social scientists carried out the survey. Their findings were based on a simple question. They asked the subjects to imagine a ladder with 10 steps. The top of the ladder was “the best possible life,” and the bottom was the worst.

一群社会科学家完成的该调查。他们的结果是基于一项简单的调查。他们询问的是：“想象一下，一个十步的梯子”。最高的是“最期待的生活”，最底部的是“最差的生活”。

Then, the people were asked: “On which step would you say you personally stand at this time?”

随后，被询问的人会被问道：“就你个人而言，你现在站在那个阶梯上呢?”

The new report said the least happy country was the Central African Republic, one of the poorest areas in the world.

该报告也显示最不幸福的国家为世界上最贫穷之一的国家：中非共和国。

Syria was 152nd on the list. The Syrian civil war began over five years ago, and the fighting continues.

叙利亚为第152名。叙利亚战争发生在5年前，并且一直在战争。

While the study’s question is simple, the social scientists worked hard to understand why some people feel happy, and others do not. They decided six factors were partly responsible for one’s happiness. The six were: national wealth, life expectancy, honesty in government, freedom to make life choices, generosity and having a strong social network.

尽管研究的问题很简单，但是社会科学家很努力的去研究为什么一些人感到快乐，而一些人并没有。他们认为其中的六个因素在很大程度上决定了幸福感。该因素为：国家财富、平均寿命、政府诚信、生活自由选择权利、慷慨和拥有强大的社交网络。

Based on those factors, people in Latin America appeared to be about half a point happier than they should be. But the opposite is true in Asia.

基于这些事实，拉丁美洲的人们显示出半数以上的人比他们认为的应该更幸福。而亚洲则是相反的。

Meik Wiking directs the Happiness Research Institute in Denmark. He did not mind that Denmark lost its top ranking.

Meik Wiking指导丹麦的幸福指数研究。他并不在意丹麦丢了冠军之位。

“I don't think Denmark has a monopoly on happiness,” he said. “What works in the Nordic countries is a sense of community and understanding in the common good.”

我不认为丹麦会一直垄断幸福感国家冠军之位。他表示：使北欧国家成为幸福指数最多的地区的原因就是社区意识和共同利益的正确理解。

The United States came in 14th place, with a happiness rating of 6.993. That is one step lower than last year.

美国位列14。幸福指数为6.993。比去年下降一名。

Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University helped write the report. He said there are a number of reasons why Americans are not as happy as before.

哥伦比亚大学的Jeffrey Sachs帮助撰写报告。他表示为什么美国没有之前那么幸福了是有原因的。

Sachs said the country is becoming meaner. He also thinks the government is becoming more corrupt, and there is less equality among U.S. residents than in the past.

Sachs 表示国家变得越来越谨慎。他也认为政府变得更加的腐败并且和过去相比美国居民之间越来越不平等。

“It's a long-term trend, and conditions are getting worse," Sachs said.

Sachs 表示：这是一个长期的转变，并且情况变得越来越糟糕。

I’m Anne Ball.

安妮·贝尔报道。