Abstract
This study explores whether different religions experience different levels of happiness and life satisfaction and in case this is affected by country economic and cultural environment. Using World Value Survey (from 1981 to 2014), this study found that individual religiosity and country level of development play a significant role in shaping people’s subjective well-being (SWB). Protestants, Buddhists and Roman Catholic were happier and most satisfied with their lives compared to other religious groups. Orthodox has the lowest SWB. Health status, household’s financial satisfaction and freedom of choice are means by which religious groups and governments across the globe can improve the SWB of their citizens.
Highlights
Maximizing citizens’ happiness and life satisfaction has been the preferred indicator of social progress (Greve 2010; Stiglitz et al 2009; Veenhoven 2008), and researchers have suggested many factors that influence subjective well-being (SWB) including religion (Inglehart et al 2008; Tovar-Murray 2011; Fleche et al 2011)
This study explores whether different religions experience different levels of happiness and life satisfaction and in case this is affected by country economic and cultural environment
This study explored the variability in happiness and life satisfaction across main religious groups: Buddhist, Hindu, Jew, Muslim, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Other religions and Nonreligious
Summary
Maximizing citizens’ happiness and life satisfaction (i.e. subjective well-being) has been the preferred indicator of social progress (Greve 2010; Stiglitz et al 2009; Veenhoven 2008), and researchers have suggested many factors that influence subjective well-being (SWB) including religion (Inglehart et al 2008; Tovar-Murray 2011; Fleche et al 2011). To date, the association between religion and SWB has appeared in a fragmented literature beset with methodological and conceptual difficulties. J Relig Health (2018) 57:2118–2139 levels of happiness and life satisfaction and whether this is affected by country-specific/contextual factors such as cultural and economic environment. Happiness is most closely associated with emotions, feelings or moods (Gustafsson et al 2009), and life satisfaction is concerned with people’s cognitive evaluations and judgements about their life, which might include evaluations of their work and/or personal relationships (Brickman and Campbell 1971; Coburn 2004; Diener et al 1999)
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