Determinants Of Subjective Well-being Research Articles

An Integrative Approach to Assess Subjective Well-Being. A Case Study on Romanian University Students

Subjective well-being (SWB) has presented long-lasting interest for researchers and the recent focus on the economic approach to SWB led to increased awareness of the topic. Despite the significant number of studies, conceptualizing and assessing SWB, along with finding predictors of SWB, need further empirical exploration. Following this rationale, using statistical and econometric methods (correlation analysis, Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Multinomial Logistic Regression (MLR)) applied on data collected via a survey on students from Bucharest University of Economic Studies (363 respondents), this study explores and provides insights that support a better understanding of defining and measuring SWB. Additionally, the study offers valuable information on the main determinants of SWB for a particular group, in this case, Romanian business students. According to findings, we argue that: (1) when assessing perception of life satisfaction and happiness, Romanian students tend to make slight distinctions between these two concepts; (2) question order effect is not significant, whereas negative sentiments (such as pessimism) impact self-assessment of happiness, but not of life satisfaction; (3) the main predictors for SWB are satisfaction with current activities, level of optimism/pessimism, health, and safety of the neighborhood. This paper proposes a new approach to modeling SWB by MLR, which features expressing the dependent variable with respect to the principal factors obtained by PCA.

Explaining Individual Subjective Well-Being of Urban China Based on the Four-Capital Model

A growing body of literature explains subjective well-being (SWB) from different perspectives. The statement of “built, human, social, and natural capital are necessary determinants of SWB” is named the four-capital model. Based on a cross-sectional dataset in 2013, which included 3293 individuals and covered the urban areas of most provinces in China, this paper employs the four-capital model to explain individual SWB of urban China. We select individual income and household income per capita as proxies of built capital; physical health and education as proxies of human capital; social connection and social trust as proxies of social capital; and air quality as a proxy of natural capital. In the four-capital model, household income per capita and physical health have almost the same and larger positive impacts on individual SWB of urban China; social connection, social trust, and air quality have smaller and diminishing positive impacts on individual SWB of urban China; and individual income and education are statistically insignificant. The empirical results offer guidance on how to achieve human-centered urbanization for China. This paper provides insights into how to further improve human well-being of urban residents in China and the applicability of the four-capital model in explaining SWB at the individual level.

Social determinants of subjective well-being among young adults living in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

We investigated the relationships between certain social determinants (age, gender, marital status, education, income, and employment) and subjective well-being (SWB) in a young adult population in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. The participants consisted of 977 persons aged 18 to 40 years living in the historically deprived Eastern Cape, South Africa (females = 48%; age range = 18 to 40; rural dwellers = 15%). We measured their SWB utilising the World Health Organization (Ten) Well-Being Scale. Results following analysis of variance showed that age, education, and income were predictors of SWB. Higher SWB was associated with being older, having a higher level of formal education, and having a higher level of income. However, employment status did not have a significant relationship with SWB, suggesting the relative importance of other social indicators of social functioning in this population.

Psychometric properties of the Temporal Satisfaction with Life Scale among Turkish people

OBJECTIVES: The determinants of subjective well-being have been largely investigated in recent years. According to Pavot and Diener who have developed TSWL (Temporal Satisfaction with Life Scale), to assess the life satisfaction level of an individual according to temporal factors, subjective well-being is composed of two constructs: an emotional or affective component (i.e. positive and negative affects) and a conceptual or cognitive component (i.e. satisfaction with life, marriage, work, and leisure). The aim of this study was to adapt the Temporal Satisfaction with Life Scale into Turkish (TSWLS-T) and examine the reliability and validity of this new Turkish version.METHODS: The study was conducted in four phases with randomly chosen 236 participants (113 females, 123 males) and the mean age of sample was 38.6 ± 12.5 years. Cultural adaptation was implemented according to the internationally suggested method and a pre-test was administered to examine the language equivalence. Since the scale had high levels of language equivalence, validity and reliability studies were conducted. For construct validity, confirmatory factor analysis was employed. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) was used in order to evaluate the validity of TSWLS-T, since internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha and intra-class coefficients) and test–retest analysis were employed to estimate instrument reliability.RESULTS: The TSWLS-T demonstrated acceptable internal consistency, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.87 for the total scale and ranging between 0.76 and 0.88 for the subscales. The test–retest reliability was also satisfactory, with intra-class correlation coefficients of 0.81 for the total scale and ranging between 0.61 and 0.74 for the subscales (p < 0.01). Fit indices of the model supported the factor structure. However, the 1st, 5th, and 11th items in scale (past, present, and future) showed a series of problems. With these items excluded, the 12-item model provided a better fit to the data than the 15-item model while the factor structure remained almost unchanged. The author recommends that the 12-item TSWLS be used to measure temporal life satisfaction.CONCLUSIONS: The TSWLS-T is a valid and reliable measure to assess life satisfaction in Turkish.

Walking (and cycling) to well-being: Modal and other determinants of subjective well-being during the commute

Although transportation’s impacts on physical health are relatively well-established, the relationship between transportation and subjective well-being (SWB) has been the subject of recent focus. Policymakers attempt to improve the health and well-being of populations through interventions to improve transportation experiences and promote sustainable transport modes, while researchers studying these connections seek valid and reliable measures of SWB in the travel domain. Studies consistently find travel by walking and bicycling to be rated more positively than automobile travel, yet many use single measures of travel SWB, obscuring nuanced variations between modes.Using the results of a Portland, Oregon, survey of nearly 700 commuters, this study investigates modal differences and other potential determinants of detailed, multidimensional measures of travel SWB. Specifically, the Satisfaction with Travel Scale as well as new measurement models of travel affect (distress, fear, attentiveness, and enjoyment) and travel eudaimonia (security, autonomy, confidence, and health) are examined for variations between modes. Structural equation models predicting the latent variable constructs as a function of trip and traveler characteristics yield valuable behavioral and psychological insights. Walking and bicycling rated much higher on measures of physical and mental health, confidence, positive affect, and overall hedonic well-being, suggesting significant benefits of physically active commutes. However, cycling commuters scored higher on distress and fear and lower on security, highlighting the value of multidimensional measures of travel SWB. Enhancing the quality of the traveling experience by various modes—such as making bicycling feel safer through protected infrastructure—could significantly improve commuters’ well-being.

Do people exaggerate how happy they are? Using a promise to induce truth-telling

We investigate a novel approach to reduce measurement error in subjective well-being (SWB) data. Using a between-subject design, half of the subjects are asked to promise to answer the survey questions truthfully to make them commit to truth-telling. We find a statistically significant difference between mean stated well-being between the two samples (with and without a promise). People are consistently found to exaggerate their happiness and for several different aspects of life, without a promise. We then investigate to what extent the differences in stated well-being also affect the inference from regressions models on the determinants of SWB. The effect on the covariates are only weakly statistically significant and only for a few variables, if we compare the samples with and without the promise. Thus, this means that the policy implications based on an SWB study only marginally depends on whether we include a truth-telling question or not.

Transcultural adaptation and validation of a satisfaction with life scale for Chilean adolescents.

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in the determinants of subjecti ve well-being and happiness. In that context, life satisfaction is one of the measures used to assess subjective well-being, with emphasis in adult population. Adapt and validate (cultu rally and linguistically) the Canadian "Satisfaction with Life adapted for Children" (SWLS-C) in Chilean adolescents, in order to assess their global judgement about their own lives. Cross-sectional study, with adolescents between 10 to 18 years old, of both sexes and three socioeconomic levels in the Metropolitan region of Chile. After a process of translation and back translation, the scale SWLS-C was applied in 3 groups: cognitive interviews (n = 23) to evaluate se mantics, content, reliability and construct validity, a second group was used as pretest (n = 24) and a third for the validation of the test (n = 200). Factor analysis was performed and measurement of convergent and divergent validity. The internal consistency of the scale through Cronbach's alpha was 0.815, with item-total correlations between 0.51 and 0.7. The correlation between scale items varies between 0.390 and 0.607. In the main component analysis, all items met the require ment of a factor greater than 0.3. The inverse correlation between SWLS-C and CDI was significant, with a linear R2 of 0.465. The Chilean version of the SWLS-C shows adequate psycho metric properties, construct validity, confirming its unidimensional character and the need to keep each item of the Canadian version. SWLS-C, in its Chilean version, is suitable to be self-applied in adolescent population. Further studies are needed to provide further evidence.

What Makes Us Happy?: Socioeconomic Determinants of Subjective Well-Being in Turkey

What Makes Us Happy?: Socioeconomic Determinants of Subjective Well-Being in Turkey

Political Affiliation, Spirituality, and Religiosity: Links to Emerging Adults' Life Satisfaction and Optimism.

The goal of this study was to extend the existing literature regarding the intersection between belief systems shaping psychological processes and subjective well-being among emerging adults. A nationwide sample of 3966 college students reported on their political affiliation, spirituality, and religiosity in relation to their subjective well-being. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that politically conservative participants were significantly more optimistic and satisfied with life than their liberal counterparts and Republican emerging adults reported significantly higher life satisfaction than Democrats. Republican emerging adults also reported significantly higher rates of religiosity and spirituality than Democratic and Independent politically affiliated emerging adults. Our findings corroborate and expand upon existing literature regarding belief systems and political identity as determinants of subjective well-being in emerging adults.

\u201cIn the mood for ageing\u201d: determinants of subjective well-being in older men and women of the population-based KORA-Age study

BackgroundTo investigate risk factors associated with low subjective well-being (SWB) in men and women (≥65 years) separately with a special focus on emotional distress.MethodsA cross-sectional analysis was conducted among 3602 participants (50.6% women) aged 65-90 years (mean age 72.8 years, SD ± 5.8) from the population-based KORA-Age study conducted in 2008/2009. SWB was assessed using the WHO-5 well-being index (score range: 0 to 100). SWB was dichotomized into “low” (score ≤ 50) and “high” (score > 50) SWB. The association between potential risk factors and SWB was assessed by logistic regressions analyses. Population-attributable risks (PARs) were calculated.ResultsLow SWB was significantly higher in women than in men (23.8% versus 18.2%; p < 0.0001). The logistic regressions analyses revealed low income, physical inactivity, multimorbidity, depression, anxiety and sleeping problems to be associated with low SWB in both sexes. Living alone increased the odds of having low SWB in women, but not in men. Depression and anxiety were the strongest risk factors of low SWB among men (depression: OR: 4.19, 95% CI: 1.33-13.17, p < 0.05; anxiety: 8.45, 5.14-13.87, p < 0.0001) and women (depression: 6.83, 2.49-18.75 p < 0.05; anxiety: 7.31, 5.14-10.39, p < 0.0001). In both sexes, anxiety had the highest population-attributable risk (men: 27%, women: 41%).ConclusionOur results call out for an increased focus on mental health interventions among older adults, especially for women living alone. Further research is needed to understand the paradoxical pattern of discrepant subjective well-being versus objective health in age.

Development of the Work-Related Well-Being Questionnaire Based on Seligman’s PERMA Model

Drawing on recent research on determinants of subjective well-being, we developed and conducted a pilot study of an employee well-being questionnaire using M. Seligman’s (2011) multidimensional PERMA model (Positive emotion, Engagement, positive Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishment) model. Employees (N = 397) from postgraduate courses at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME) completed a survey including 56 items which were theoretically relevant to the PERMA theory. Factor analyses recovered the expected five PERMA components and a negative emotion factor. Based on factor and reliability analyses, we reduced the 56 PERMA items to 35 items. Our results support the multidimensional approach to defining and measuring multidimensional well-being. A multidimensional well-being assessment may be useful for understanding employees’ well-being, which can then be applied when developing policy and practice to increase well-being for all employees at work.

Employment Guarantee and Other Determinants of Subjective Wellbeing in Rural India: A Case Study from Tamil Nadu

Large-scale socially oriented interventions that rely on monetary transfers have recently become something of a development mantra. These cash-based schemes are founded on the implicit assumption that extra income will translate into improvements in other domains of wellbeing. This paper examines this assumption by focusing on the effects of the Indian Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), a large social-security oriented and legally grounded public works intervention, on subjective wellbeing. It provides a case study from Tamil Nadu which draws on our own field research comprising 1,264 structured interviews in rural households. It was designed as a quasi-counterfactual study to compare the effects of MGNREGS in a region where it was widely implemented (in Sivaganga district) with a similar region (in Thanjavur district) with a population largely unaffected by MGNREGS at the time of our survey. The secondary objective of the paper is to examine the extent to which variables of subjective wellbeing, self-reported poverty, and income (and their predictors) overlap. The results suggest that wide implementation of MGNREGS is associated with higher global (absolute) life satisfaction but not with higher (relative) local life satisfaction. It is also associated with lower self-reported poverty and higher probability of escaping from poverty but not with lower probability of declining into poverty. In addition, the analysis confirms that income, global life satisfaction, local life satisfaction, and self-reported poverty are discrete, though correlated, concepts.

Determinants of subjective well-being in representative samples of nations.

Maximising the happiness and life satisfaction [i.e. subjective well-being (SWB)] of citizens is a fundamental goal of international governmental organizations' policies. In order to decide what policies should be pursued in order to improve SWB there is a need to identify what the key drivers of SWB are. However, to date most studies have been conducted in unrepresentative samples of largely 'developed' nations. Data from the latest World Value Survey (2010-14) and gathered 85 070 respondents from 59 countries (Age 1-99 years, Mean = 42, SD = 16.54; 52.29% females) were pooled for the analysis. A cross-sectional multilevel random effects model was performed where respondents were nested by country. The average levels of SWB varied across countries and geographical regions. Among the lowest 10 SWB countries are nations from: Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Union and Middle East and North Africa. Factors driving SWB include state of health, financial satisfaction, freedom of choice, GDP per capita, income scale, importance of friends, leisure, being females, weekly religious attendance, unemployment and income inequality. Nevertheless, according to Cohen's rules of thumb, most of these factors have 'small' effect sizes. Thus, the main factors that possibly will improve the SWB of people across the globe are: state of health, household's financial satisfaction and freedom of choice. To maximize the well-being of the population, policy makers may focus on health status, household's financial satisfaction and emancipative values. The levels of prosperity and political stability appear to positively improve the SWB of people.

Determinants of subjective well-being in people with psychosis referred for psychological therapy in South London.

Improving subjective well-being (SWB) for people with mental health problems is a United Kingdom national health priority and is increasingly important in justifying funding of mental health services. Aside from the economic advantages, maximizing SWB confers obvious individual and clinical benefits for people with severe mental illness, such as psychosis. Gaining a better understanding of well-being and its determinants will enable current evidence-based interventions to be targeted and refined appropriately. This study therefore sought to identify the cross-sectional correlates of SWB in an Improving Access to Psychological Therapies for people with Severe Mental Illness psychosis demonstration site, to inform a future longitudinal investigation. Participants with a psychosis or bipolar spectrum diagnosis referred to the demonstration site (n=410) rated SWB as part of their initial assessment before starting psychological therapy. Potential influencing factors including age, gender, ethnicity, employment status, illness duration, perceived social support, perceived coping, and psychotic symptoms (voices and beliefs) were also assessed. Regression analyses showed that unemployment (β=-.16, p<.001), lack of social support (β=-.20, p<.001), distressing beliefs (β=-.12, p=.004), and poorer coping (β=-.43, p<.001) were associated with reduced SWB, together accounting for 43% of the variance in well-being, F(5, 392)=58.42, p<.001; mean SWB=39.09, SD=11.61. This study provides preliminary insights into the determinants of SWB in a large sample of people with psychosis. Improving employability, social interactions, coping strategies, and psychotic symptoms may improve SWB. Further longitudinal investigation will determine the potential value of preferentially targeting these areas in therapy to meet national requirements to prioritize well-being outcomes. Average well-being in people with psychosis was lower than SWB previously reported for the general population. Unemployment, lack of social support, poorer coping, and distressing beliefs were all associated with lower levels of well-being in people with psychosis. Psychological interventions targeting the positive symptoms of psychosis may impact on well-being. Greater focus on promoting social contact and inclusion and facilitating a return to employment may further improve well-being outcomes following psychological intervention. The cross-sectional design of the study does not allow for firm conclusions about the causal relationship between well-being and associated factors in psychosis. The study was carried out within a particular service context, and the findings need replicating before they can be considered to be generalizable outside this setting.

Re-exploration of subjective well-being determinants: Full-model approach with extended cross-contextual analysis

Despite the numerous studies on the determinants of subjective wellbeing (SWB), there are still under-researched areas as follows: a full-model approach allowing un-confounded and robust estimations, extension of cross-contextual approaches, and an account of recent changes in Hofstede value dimensions. The present study aims to overcome those limitations with analyses of 59 countries from 1981 to 2013, rendering the following main findings. Individual education’s effect was methodologically affected by the reference category level of dummy variables. I found weak influence of GPRGE (governance, political rights, and gender equality) and individualism, which were associable with the ambivalent nature of intellectual autonomy. Regarding cross-contextual effects, I found that people from underdeveloped societies keep more to current pleasure, and that demand for welfare is higher in affluent and individualistic societies. A culture of uncertainty avoidance reduced the effect of national employment, because of its demotivating aspects in the workplace. Overall, variables related with hedonism, social relation, and wealth showed coherently strong effects, but social progress factors had weak relevance. Keywords: life satisfaction, happiness, robust effects, cross-contextual approach, Hofstede value dimensions, social quality

Review: Graciela Tonon (Ed.) (2015) Qualitative Studies in Quality of Life: Methodology and Practice Springer

Generally, when we think of Quality of Life research, we think of standardised measures that provide comparative indices that can be compared across time and space. This dominant approach to measuring and monitoring quality of life has utilised selfreporting mechanisms using quantitative, or a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods. In adopting a particular kind of approach to what is scientific, these studies represent a certain kind of approach that has become influential, characterised by a particular view of the scientific enterprise, with an associated epistemology and ontology. Yet this oeuvre of work, which has contributed significantly to understanding the determinants of subjective well-being, is not entirely reflexive about its own tools. As a whole, important steps have been taken towards positivity and universality in understanding quality of life. Nevertheless, progress has been slower in terms of quality of life research that seeks to involve participants as reflexive and critical agents. While much debate centres on the robustness of standard measures, there is very little by way of quality of life research where questions of ontology, epistemology and axiology are central and through which a critical reflection on the choice of methods most appropriate for the research task at hand is undertaken. Rather, the more dominant approach to Quality of Life studies disembeds and decontextualises the practice of research from its research subject. This is perhaps odd, given that ‘quality of life’, as both an experience and a conceptual category, is always context bound and normative. We cannot measure quality of life unless we have a clear idea, whether acknowledged or not, of what the ‘good life’ is, or of the related concept, ‘subjective well-being’ ,w hich is central to the Quality of Life approach. In social science research, the term ‘subjectivity’ refers to an individual’s ‘inner’ world of experience. Generally in research on subjectivities, researchers focus on the

Happier together. Social cohesion and subjective well-being in Europe.

Despite mushrooming research on "social" determinants of subjective well-being (SWB), little is known as to whether social cohesion as a collective property is among the key societal conditions for human happiness. This article fills this gap in investigating the importance of living in a cohesive society for citizens' SWB. For 27 European Union countries, it combines the newly developed Bertelsmann Foundation's Cohesion Index with individual well-being data on life evaluation and psychological functioning as surveyed in the recent European Quality of Life Survey. The main results from multi-level analyses are as follows. First, Europeans are indeed happier and psychologically healthier in more cohesive societies. Second, all three core domains of cohesion increase individuals' SWB. Third, citizens in the more affluent part of Europe feel the positivity of social cohesion more consistently than those in the less affluent part. Finally, within countries, cohesion is good for the SWB of resource-rich and resource-poor groups alike. Our findings also shed new light on the ongoing debate on economic progress and quality of life: what makes citizenries of affluent societies happier is, in the first place, their capacity to create togetherness and solidarity among their members-in other words, cohesion.

子どもの有無と主観的幸福感――中年期における規定因を中心として――

子どもの有無と主観的幸福感――中年期における規定因を中心として――

Happinomics among Factors of Production using a Principal Component Analysis Approach: A Case Study of Labour and Entrepreneurs’ Subjective Happiness in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Amidst the recent global financial crisis, there is a surge of interest in happiness. All of us want to have satisfying lives. Yet, not everybody is happy, even among the wealthy. Believing that happiness lies through the satisfaction of physical desires and material possessions, many individuals work hard to earn income, often at the expense of leisure and good social relationships. This paper examines the determinants of subjective well-being of entrepreneurs and workers as a group in a South African province, using the principal component approach. Various components emerged as happiness--influencing factors, jointly explaining about 70 per cent of the variation in self-reported well-being. These sets are related to asset ownership, family togetherness and personal attributes, household characteristics, human and social capital, future financial security (pension), work relationships, and community involvement. Religion and creativity account for almost a tenth of the variation in subjective well-being. Income is relevant but not found to be the main determinant of a satisfying life. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n4p99

Work characteristics and personal social support as determinants of subjective well-being.

BackgroundWell-being is an important health outcome and a potential national indicator of policy success. There is a need for longitudinal epidemiological surveys to understand determinants of well-being. This study examines the role of personal social support and psychosocial work environment as predictors of well-being in an occupational cohort study.MethodsSocial support and work characteristics were measured by questionnaire in 5182 United Kingdom civil servants from phase 1 of the Whitehall II study and were used to predict subjective well-being assessed using the Affect Balance Scale (range -15 to 15, SD = 4.2) at phase 2. External assessments of job control and demands were provided by personnel managers.ResultsHigher levels of well-being were predicted by high levels of confiding/emotional support (difference in mean from the reference group with low levels of confiding/emotional support = 0.63, 95%CI 0.38–0.89, ptrend<0.001), high control at work (0.57, 95%CI 0.31–0.83, ptrend<0.001; reference low control) and low levels of job strain (0.60, 95%CI 0.31–0.88; reference high job strain), after adjusting for a range of confounding factors and affect balance score at baseline. Higher externally assessed work pace was also associated with greater well-being.ConclusionsOur results suggest that the psychosocial work environment and personal relationships have independent effects on subjective well-being. Policies designed to increase national well-being should take account of the quality of working conditions and factors that facilitate positive personal relationships. Policies designed to improve workplaces should focus not only on minimising negative aspects of work but also on increasing the positive aspects of work.