The effect of globalization of the state of people's happiness

Globalization is an unavoidable universal truth of our current existence. It has influenced each nation to some extent through business sectors twisted on large scale manufacturing, ordinary use of gadgets and softwares, and worldwide penetration of western products, for example, Hollywood films, drive-thru food, and the music business. Before the advent of globalization, people didn’t have much luxuries and the amenities of life that we are having or experiencing right now. But what did they have is a way of life that is even more sustainable and is much more joyous and satisfactory than ours. The inevitable impact of globalization is very evident or can be seen clearly from the current condition of every individuals and even in families. An author and a filmmaker, Helena Norberg-Hodge witnessed it first hand in the tiny himalayan region of Ladakh, a remote mountain community that is inhabited mostly by Indo Aruis people and Tibetan descents.

Helena Norberg-Hodge have seen the transition of living from being a sustainable community to a destitute and indigent neighborhood resulted from the infusion of Globalization to Ladakh. Several unfortunate events took place including the alarming rate of unemployment, pollution and poverty, the undermining of local economy and division of cultural fabric. In Helena Norberg’s movie called “ The Economics of Happiness”, she explained how global economy flourished at the expense of some social factors and our own state of happiness. Globalization has a major effect on every aspect of our lives, even on our sense of self. Studies shows that depression on an average household had increased tremendously for the past years. Jobs became much more demanding resulting to more travel and allocating more time for work at home instead of having quality time with our families, wasting a lot of time at the busy roads of the streets because of the inescapable traffic and most importantly, our exposure to images of certain levels of material success, standards of beauty and ideal level of lifestyle that we are estimating ourselves up to and seeing ourselves not on a par with.

Raising the standard even more to have bigger and to become better even if it already cost our own happiness and well being. Relevant to this is a poll that was conducted annually after the end of World War II which aims to measure the amount of happiness in the United States. According to Bill Mckibben, an expert who has been interviewed for the film, happiness is slowly deteriorating through time. But in the amidst of it, we’ve gotten immeasurably richer and we almost have more than enough. This only proves that having a luxurious and well endowed life doesn’t always lead to happiness. That same affluence that we are referring about is the same thing that tends to undermine communities. On the other hand, Vandana Shiva, one of the experts, observed that Globalization is creating a very lonely planet. Only people who are happy, are those people who know that they’re not alone in this world. People who can rely on others in times of hardships and self doubt. Therefore, lonely people have never been happy because there’s no one that could help them from their misery and melancholy.

Although Globalization has brought us more wealth and more privileges as compared before, does globalization really bring us happiness? Analysts have gone to many countries, rich and poor, and asked individuals how fulfilled they are with their lives. The irony is that, while poor countries appear to breed despondency, extremely rich countries don’t really breed satisfaction at all. This suggests the vibrant relationship between nation’s per capita domestic product (GDP) and the average happiness of its citizens. Making poor nations less poor seems to somehow increase the level of happiness. But in some cases, making rich nations more rich doesn’t worth contemplating with regards to globalization. On the other hand, do the things such as abundant supply of food, cleaner drinking water, better healthcare and other things that can be purchased by money are the only keys to happiness? According to a study that was published last year by William Easterly of the World Bank, richer nations, contrasted with poor ones, appears to be more democratic, have less cases of corruption, have implemented more efficient laws and higher bureaucratic quality attaining less mishandle of human rights. The linkage of wealth to human rights and democracy is indeed at utmost, statistically disentangling of these influences would not be possible. Economic development is not only measured by the things that could be attained through money but also goes hand in hand with more democracy and rights. Therefore, economic development would make poor nations happier.

Globalization won’t prompt happiness or misery, however the impacts of globalization can set up the potential for shifting levels of happiness for specific individuals. Happiness isn’t reliant on globalization or on its absence, however it is fairly construct more in light of identity, experience, and circumstances. One individual might be glad to have the capacity to talk and to communicate with a friend or a family member while abroad and another may feel lonelier in the wake of doing as such. One man may feel sad when he sees the venue of his youth shut down, while a teenager find that she prefers Pop music more than Rock Metal music. So basically speaking, Globalization is just a part of these changes that are occuring and happening today and merely not the origin of these things.