Surveying transitional experience and subjective well-being: Income, work, family

Abstract

This paper reviews subjective well-being studies on income, work and family life with particular attention to transition countries. The main differences in conclusions for two types of economic systems seem to be the result of uncertainty and fast changing conditions and their effect on the perception of subjective economic conditions and on expectations formation. The terms ‘happiness’ and ‘life satisfaction’ should be distinguished when evaluating the success of socio-economic policies or of a transformation period as well as when predicting the reaction of economic systems to shocks/crisis. A short summary for more than 70 studies involving subjective well-being and attitudes indicators on data from the economies in transition is included.