The 2025 edition of the World Happiness Report, released on March 20 by the United States-based Gallup Research Center, put Indonesia in the rank of 83 out of 147 countries surveyed for the annual report.

For the report, the analytics company assessed how citizens of a country rate their lives on a  scale from 0 to 10, with 10 representing the best possible life and 0 the worst.

Compared to the 2024 report, Indonesia saw drops in four of six key life evaluation indicators, namely gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, healthy life expectancy, generosity and freedom from corruption. The country saw improvements on the remaining two indicators: Having someone to count on and life choices freedom.

The declines in rank and life indicators have reflected the country’s socio-economic and political conditions over the past few years, which is the accumulation of how things were going from previous years, according to sociologist Rakhmat Hidayat of Jakarta State University (UNJ).

“In Indonesia, where corruption is high, illegal levies and collusion are common. This reveals a social structure that hinders public welfare,” he said.

“For example, when people attempt to handle administrative matters at government offices, they face corrupt services and end up disappointed, angry and frustrated.”