Global Life Satisfaction and General Antisocial Behavior in Young Individuals: The Mediating Role of Perceived Loneliness in Regard to Social Sustainability—A Preliminary Investigation

Edgar Demeter,Dana Rad

doi:10.3390/su12104081

Abstract

Healthy development can be viewed as an important dimension of the general wellbeing index and can be based upon lifelong sustainable satisfaction. Young individuals can represent an important component for society and its development. The literature shows that increased levels of global life satisfaction (LS) can be associated with minimal levels of problematic behaviors and elevated levels of pro-social behaviors. However, low levels of LS can be associated with high levels of perceived loneliness (PL), which, in turn, can be associated with antisocial behavior (AS). In light of this, the current investigation aims to study the mediating effect of PL and the link between LS and AS. This study is a preliminary investigation referring to aggressive behaviors and cognition in relation to subjective wellbeing. The sample consisted of 81 young individuals (M = 27.57, Standard Deviation = 9.25) from Aurel Vlaicu University of Arad, Romania. AS was evaluated with the How I Think Questionnaire (HIT), PL was measured with a single item inquiry and LS was evaluated with the satisfaction with life scale (SWLS). The results display that there is a powerful association between LS and AS, between LS and PL and between PL and AS. After the inclusion of the mediator (PL) to the model, the influence of the independent variable (LS) increased and the effect of LS on AS significantly decreased. In light of this, the relationship between LS and AS can be explained by the mediating role of the PL variable. The results indicate the importance of perceived loneliness in regard to one’s life satisfaction and antisocial behaviors. In light of this, interventions that focus on the social aspect could prove useful for the improvement of sustainable life satisfaction, therefore decreasing the chance of the emergence of AS.

Highlights

Optimal aging [1] can be recognized as a key component of the general wellbeing index and can be represented by a lifelong sustainable overall personal and professional satisfaction, a journey that starts in youth and dynamically evolves as the individual develops.The least described and the least understood approaches of addressing sustainability and sustainable development can be through social sustainability
Suppression focuses on the adjustment of the relationship between the independent and dependent variables, but in the unusual case where the size of the effect increases when the suppressor variable is added [77], in a two-factor model, a suppressor variable leads to a previously undetected type of suppression, which occurs when predictors with positive zero order validities are negatively correlated with one another [78], such as in the results from our current research
The preliminary results of the study can suggest that persons who possess increased levels of life satisfaction are less likely to feel alone, minimizing the chance for the emergence of antisocial behavior

Summary

Introduction

Optimal aging [1] can be recognized as a key component of the general wellbeing index and can be represented by a lifelong sustainable overall personal and professional satisfaction, a journey that starts in youth and dynamically evolves as the individual develops.The least described and the least understood approaches of addressing sustainability and sustainable development can be through social sustainability. Optimal aging [1] can be recognized as a key component of the general wellbeing index and can be represented by a lifelong sustainable overall personal and professional satisfaction, a journey that starts in youth and dynamically evolves as the individual develops. Young individuals can represent an important component of society as a whole and its development [3,4,5]. The improvement of life satisfaction or wellbeing among young individuals can serve as an important factor in their contribution to society and a healthy self-development [6,7]. There is powerful information and evidence in the literature that an increased level of life satisfaction (LS) can be associated with positive individual (i.e., educational and professional success), psychological, behavioral and social results [8,9,10]. Individuals with high levels of LS (or subjective wellbeing) can have a high levels of job satisfaction and performance and can experience lower levels of negative psychological outcomes (i.e., anxiety or depression) [11,12]

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion