life - Chinese most optimistic in the world

A study of a leading research institute in the USA says that the Chinese are the most satisfied people in the world, writes the International Herald Tribune. The Pew Center noted that 50 percent of the Chinese respondents saw an improved personal situation, the highest in the world. 31 Percent said they had "lost ground".

Many Chinese people feel they have made substantial progress in the past five years, think they will be much better off in another five years and are satisfied with the state of the nation, according to the survey, released Tuesday. In the survey, conducted over the last 10 days of May in major mainland Chinese cities, 76 percent of respondents were found to be optimistic about improving their quality of life within five years. This ranked the Chinese at the top of 17 countries in which the global attitudes survey was conducted.

There might be a bit of a cultural bias, as asking about your hapiness seems a rather American approach. Many of my Chinese friends have often struck me as rather pessimistic, perhaps induced by their past. When you expectation start at a low level, it might be easier to become happy. But this is a very unscientific, personal observation.
The conclusions of the Pew Center might concur also with my observations earlier: no reason to expect a revolution in China soon.