Scandinavia Worst In World For Friendship And Happiness

Scandinavians in general seem to have a reputation for coolness towards expat arrivals, but Denmark is the worst.

Results of a recent survey placed Denmark as the third-worst state in the world for friendliness towards incoming expats. The ease of making friends in a new country is an important factor in the decision whether or not to leave home for a new career pathway, especially if you’re bringing the family along for the ride, as being friendless in a strange land is a scary option. Denmark’s rating as the third-worst country as regards friendliness can impact on the settling in process and even cause work-related issues.

Over a third of the survey’s respondents admitted difficulties in forming friendships with work colleagues and locals, with some 20 per cent saying their problems were acute and just under 20 per cent stating making friends couldn’t be any harder anywhere else in the world. It seems it’s not just the Danes who’re standoffish to a degree, as expat respondents working in Finland have the same issues, and for those in Sweden it’s far worse. However, it’s no surprise that Kuwait’s friendliness rating was the worst of all, and the other countries in the bottom ten included Saudi Arabia, Norway, Finland and Estonia.

Being friendless as a newly-arrived expat impacts on the happiness quotient necessary for success both at work and at home, with 18 per cent of respondents in Denmark confirming they weren’t at all pleased with their lives in general. In the happiness sector, Sweden came off worst, with a quarter of expats agreeing with others living and working in Scandinavia that friendship with locals isn’t on offer. Combining the long, cold winter nights with the coolness of local people towards incomers, the region seems to be doing its best to keep its expatriates miserable. Perhaps the old saying ‘colder climes, colder hearts’ says it all.