German youth among 'least happy' Europeans

Young people in the major European economic powerhouse of Germany are relatively unhappy in spite of their wealth, according to a study by the United Nations Children's Fund.

The ranking puts young Germans second from last among European nations for happiness and well-being, with only Bulgaria below them.

The poll involved people aged 16 to 24 ranking their happiness on a scale of 1 to 10. The European average came in at 7.5, with Germany scoring 6.6.

British newspaper The Telegraph reported that the unhappiness measured among young Germans is one of the things that has fueled the rise of far-right political parties, including Alternative for Germany, or AfD.

The party, founded in 2013 on a wave of anti-European Union and anti-immigrant sentiment, has seen its support skyrocket in national polls recently and now shares second rank in the size of its support, with 17 to 19 percent of the vote — a similar amount to that enjoyed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats.

Thomas Kliche, a political psychologist at the Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, told The Telegraph that disaffected young people are turning to the far right out of disillusionment with the status quo.

"The current politics in Germany clearly isn't capable of solving the problems of the future," he said. "It's sluggish, contradictory and divisive. With digitization, younger people are experiencing the unworldliness of the current government. Young people see that and don't feel well represented."

While the AfD party is "clearly not a youth movement" and with it drawing support from all age groups, it will likely benefit from the increasing unhappiness among young people and could continue to expand its support, he said.

At the other end of Europe's happiness rankings, children and young people in Nordic countries again scored well, with the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway claiming the top three spots.

Children from the Netherlands consistently score well in such rankings, with the United Kingdom's Child Poverty Action Group and the World Economic Forum both having recently ranked the nation top in listings.