Are we living better? Research Review: Part I

We recently wrote about the results of this year's World Happiness Report, based on data collected in 2024. Poland took 26th place in the ranking, rising by as much as 9 positions compared to last year's ranking.

You can read more about it here: World Happiness Report 2025: How did Poland fare?

However, this is not the only report examining how living standards are changing — both in individual countries and cities, and globally. Studies such as: OECD Better Life Index, Happy Planet Index whether Happy City Index analyze the different aspects that affect well-being, measure it and present it in a comparative form, so that we can see in which areas positive changes are taking place and where there is still much to do. Factors affecting the improvement of the quality of life include health, economic income, social relations, work or climate, among others. Each of these areas is interrelated — a decline in one often translates into a deterioration in another. Although it is not always possible to give unambiguous, zero-one answers.

The OECD Better Life Index

As we well know, the measure of the quality of life in a country has long ceased to be exclusively GDP. Although this indicator still plays an important role, since it measures the level of economic development of the state, it does not take into account many other factors that affect the condition of society and the sense of well-being. In order to increase awareness of progress - both in individual countries and in cities - Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) developed The Better Life Index. It is an initiative that aims to capture different dimensions of social life and economic progress, going beyond traditional indicators.

Entering the OECD website, we can browse through various tabs, among which we will find, among others, answers over 100 000 gebruikers, who shared their opinions on the quality of life. There is also an interactive map with places surveyed by the OECD around the world and sections dedicated to specific areas of life, such as economics, education or life satisfaction. The user can also search for the country of interest and look at its situation in selected categories.

What is the OECD research methodology?

First, the OECD examines 11 key dimensions of well-being based on the areas indicated: housing, income, employment, community, education, environment, civic engagement, health, life satisfaction, safety and work-life balance.

Second, the respondents assess the weight of the category individually on a scale of 0 to 5, so as to create a personalized index reflecting their life priorities.

An important part of the methodology is the so-called. standardization of data. Each category consists of 1 to 4 indicators, which are converted to a common scale from 0 to 1. For negative indicators, such as unemployment, the level of unemployment is used inverse of valuein order to maintain interpretative consistency.

The score for each category is calculated as the average of its indicators and then weighted according to user preferences − this is how the results are calculated.

OECD Report How's life? analyzes trends, compares changes over time, collects quantitative and qualitative data, and juxtaposes statistical data with current social narratives, making it a multidimensional report.

Results of the study: Poland

Let's look at the data for our country and the capital. Let's start with work area at the state level - having a job is, after all, important because of the sources of income, a sense of belonging as well as personal development. In Poland, 69% of the working-age population aged 15 to 64 has a paid job. This figure is higher than the OECD employment average of 66%.

When it comes to unemployment (unemployed people are people who are not currently working, but are willing to work and actively seek it) it In Poland, the proportion of the labour force that has been unemployed for a year or more is currently 0.6%, which is lower than the OECD average of 1.3%. Remember that long-term lack of employment can have a serious impact on mental well-being and self-esteem, as well as lead to a loss of competence, which further hinders the return to the labor market.

When it comes to salary, average annual income Poles are 32 527 USD (OECD average: 49,165 USD). 

Nevertheless, an important factor in the work is, of course, its certainty and safety. Expected loss of earnings after job loss is 5% (OECD average: 5,1%). 

Importantly, people working at high risk of losing their jobs are particularly vulnerable to negative effects, especially in countries where social security systems are less developed.

Now that we are talking about security - after all, it is one of the key elements of a good life, well-being and also part of social trust. Personal Safety includes the risk of physical violence or other forms of crime. As we know, insecurity and increased crime can lead not only to material losses, but also to stress, anxiety and feelings of vulnerability.

According to an OECD study based on global data, the sense of security increases with income and education — people with higher social status are less likely to be victims of crime and feel safer in their environment.

The study asked the question “Do you feel safe walking alone at night?” In Poland, 71% of people say they feel safe walking alone at night, which is lower than the OECD average of 74%.

When it comes to homicide rate (number of murders per 100,000 inhabitants) it is a more reliable indicator of the level of security of the country, because unlike other crimes, murders are usually always reported to the police. According to the latest OECD data, the homicide rate in Poland is 0.5, which is lower than the OECD average of 2.6.

Do we care about wellbeing in Poland?

Work-life balance is, among other things, the amount of time spent at work. Research indicates that long working hours can have a negative impact on personal health, jeopardize safety and increase stress. 4% of workers in our country work for a very long time as part of paid work, much less than the OECD average of 10%.

Longer working hours naturally mean less time spent with loved ones and on activities that interest us, as well as sports activity, which often translates into our mental health.

In Poland, full-time workers spend an average of 61% of the day — or about 14.7 hours — on activities related to self-care (such as sleep and meals) and leisure, including meetings with loved ones, hobbies or use of the media. This is slightly less than the average for OECD countries, which is 15 hours.

summary

Poland is performing better and better in international quality of life rankings — promotion in World Happiness Report and good employment rates in OECD data are a good signal. However, challenges remain: lower wages, less sense of security at night or shorter rest times compared to OECD averages.

This is only the first part of our review; in the following episodes, we will look at health, education and social relations, as well as the results of other studies!

Sources

1. https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/topics/safety/
2. https://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/countries/poland/
3. https://www.gov.je/StatisticsPerformance/WellbeingStatistics/pages/betterlifeindexmethodology.aspx