Ottawa belonged to the 10 happiest metropolitan areas all over Canada. There were 33 locations included in the study.
The Statistics Canada surveyed 340,000 people in Canada. They asked them to rate their respective life satisfaction following a scale of one thru 10. Ottawa residents, on an average, rated life satisfaction in the area at 8.1. According to a report from the Ottawa Citizen, the figure was high enough, pulling Ottawa up to the 10th overall. The rank is reportedly the highest in metropolitan areas that house over one million residents.
A life satisfaction researcher John Helliwel of University of British Columbia revealed in Tuesday that it is tough for big and fast moving cities to offer humane social contact, which is a vital key towards happy life.
Ottawa, for years, continue to provide the same economic benefits that people living in big cities experience with a pace that is not quite as quick as most of the country's metropolitan areas. While Ottawa is not as tiny as Saguenay, Que., which ranked No. 1, it has the ability to make people experience a more personal living a city life. According to a report from The Sun, most of Canada's major cities followed Ottawa in the list with Vancouver and Toronto as the least happy of them all.
The happiness report evaluates life satisfaction both on local and global scale. The report has considered six primary variables, which explain life satisfaction differences.
Money was one variable. On global perspective, the report had evaluated that that richer nations allow better degree of life satisfaction. Generally, people who earn a decent pay show that they are satisfied than most other around them.
Health was another important variable. A person's life expectancy tells a lot about the country. In Canada, a study by the StatsCan found out that that people who perceive themselves as healthy are those that proclaim that they are happy.
Happiness Report also considered support which is characterized by having someone to depend on during hard times. Other factors include trust that basically points out to having commercial establishments and government offices manned by trustworthy citizens; generosity and helping others; as well as the freedom to make vital life decisions like personal expression, employment, and lifestyle.
