Prosperity Index: What Don’t America and Britain Understand?

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A new ranking of the prosperity of nations found that the U.S. barely made the top 10, while Britain was off it completely. So what are they doing wrong? 

The study, from the Legatum Institute, goes beyond just measuring economic strength–though that was included–and takes into account factors such as education, health, personal freedom and governance. The top ranking countries were all found to have the highest overall levels of life satisfaction.

(See TIME’s video on why cities are important for America’s economic success.)

The number one ranking country was Norway, with Denmark and Finland filling the number two and three slots. The U.S. squeaked in at number 10 and the U.K. fell at number 13.

The Top 10 Ranking:

1. Norway
2. Denmark
3. Finland
4. Australia
5. New Zealand
6. Sweden
7. Canada
8. Switzerland
9. Netherlands
10. United States

What’s interesting to note is that 2009’s list saw both the U.S. and the U.K. with a slightly higher ranking–U.S. was at 9, while the U.K. was at 12. The last year has been fraught with political turmoil for both America and Britain and both are still dealing with the aftermath of the recession–which could partially account for the slip.  (via Sky News)