To determine the nation’s happiest states, analysts compared states across three dimensions — emotional and physical well-being; work environment; and community and environment — using 31 metrics. Metrics ranged from the suicide rate to income growth and the unemployment rate.
The 10 unhappiest states, in descending order:
1. West Virginia
2. Louisiana
3. Arkansas
4. Kentucky
5. Alabama
6. Mississippi
7. Oklahoma
8. Tennessee
9. New Mexico
10. Missouri