Unemployment causes as much unhappiness as bereavement or separation. But not for the oh-so-obvious reason of money. At work, job security and good relationships do more for job satisfaction than high pay and convenient hours.

Mental health is the biggest single factor affecting happiness in any country. Yet only a quarter of mentally ill people get treatment for their condition in advanced countries and even fewer do in poorer countries.

And married people are happier than their single counterparts. A stable family life and lifelong relationships make us feel content.

Oh, and by the way, America isn't doing so well on the happiness scale. The happiest nations, according to the report, are Denmark, Norway, Finland and the Netherlands, where the average life evaluation score is 7.6 on a 0-to-10 scale.

The report tells us, "The world's economic superpower, the United States, has achieved striking economic and technological progress over the past half century without gains in the self-reported happiness of the citizenry. Instead, uncertainties and anxieties are high, social and economic inequalities have widened considerably, social trust is in decline, and confidence in government is at an all-time low."

Even though our economic state continues to rise, our satisfaction stays flat.

As the report author notes, "the conditions of affluence have created their own set of traps." Those traps include addictions and afflictions such as obesity, adult-onset diabetes, tobacco-related illnesses, eating disorders, psychosocial disorders, and addictions to shopping, TV and gambling.

Then there's America's "loss of community, the decline of social trust, and the rising anxiety levels associated with the vagaries of the modern globalized economy, including the threats of unemployment or episodes of illness not covered by health insurance."

Is it just me, or does this not sound too good? Apparently, we're overworked and under pressure in the workplace, we compete with our peers instead of working with them—and then we mask those problems with overeating or smoking (I refuse to believe too much shopping is really an affliction). And then we have to figure out how to pay the medical bills for those problems. Lose-lose-lose.

And (I know I've mentioned this before) the one thing we can and should do about all of this—protect our mental state so we can be a happier group of people—is rarely mentioned by employers or brokers in health and wellness conversations. And that's a problem.

In related news, I consistently write about all the factors that make us depressed—unemployment, political strife, health care, disease and insurance. To improve my own dire state, I should start looking for a new job. Anyone know of any openings in the Netherlands?