Domain-specific Life Satisfaction Research Articles

Are changes in sleep problems associated with changes in life satisfaction during the retirement transition?

Retirement reduces sleep problems, but changes in life satisfaction during the retirement transition are multifactorial and partly unknown. The aim of this prospective cohort study was to examine whether changes in sleep problems are associated with changes in total and domain-specific life satisfaction during the retirement transition (on average 0.5 years before and 0.5 years after retirement). The study population consisted of Finnish public sector employees (n = 3518) from the Finnish Retirement and Aging (FIREA) study who responded to annual surveys before and after transition to statutory retirement. Sleep problems were measured with Jenkins Sleep Problem Scale questionnaire and participants were grouped into four sleep problem groups depending on the state of their sleep problems during the retirement transition: ‘Never,’ ‘Decreasing,’ ‘Increasing,’ and ‘Constant’ sleep problems. Life satisfaction was measured with the Life Satisfaction Scale questionnaire including four domains (interestingness, happiness, easiness, togetherness). We found that the improvement in total life satisfaction was greatest for participants in the ‘Decreasing’ (0.17, 95% CI 0.11–0.23, SMD 0.27) and ‘Constant’ (0.12, 95% CI 0.07–0.18, SMD 0.19) sleep problem groups. Of the specific life satisfaction domains, similar findings were observed only for the easiness domain. It seems that decreasing or constant sleep problems are associated with improved life satisfaction during the retirement transition, especially in the feeling of easiness of life. This may be due to the fact that as the demands of working life are removed, sleep problems are alleviated or it becomes easier to live with them, which improves life satisfaction.

DISSECTING RACIAL DIFFERENCES IN THE PERCEPTION OF DOMAIN-SPECIFIC LIFE SATISFACTION

Abstract This study examines factors contributing to racial differences in domain-specific life satisfaction. Our study offers a major contribution to prior research that has tended to pay greater attention to psychological well-being outcomes such as life satisfaction which do not directly pertain to material circumstances of older adults. Those studies generally report better life satisfaction and fewer depressive symptoms among Black older adults than their White counterparts. Our study is based on 409 randomly selected older adults from Cleveland (mean age 79 and 25% African American). We considered socioeconomic status, stressors such as recent negative life events and coping resources such as religiosity to understand their impact on domain specific life- satisfaction (e.g., satisfaction with neighborhood, housing, and standard of living). Our ordinary least squares regression estimates suggest that, on average, Black older adults reported lower levels of domain-specific life satisfaction (b=-0.81, p< 0.01) compared to their White counterparts, despite having stronger social support and being more religious. Even though social support and religiosity did not contribute to racial differences in domain specific life satisfaction, the inclusion of education, income, and recent negative life events fully explain such differences. Findings indicate that interrelated factors such as socioeconomic disadvantage and greater life adversities such as negative life events contribute to lower domain life satisfaction among Black older adults. This finding highlights the need for further exploration of factors shaping material-related well-being outcomes for Black older adults. Our study informs future policies addressing racial well-being inequities.

The effects of a personality intervention on satisfaction in 10 domains of life: Evidence for increases and correlated change with personality traits.

The desire to change one's personality traits has been shown to be stronger if people are dissatisfied with associated aspects of their life. While evidence for the effects of interventions on personality trait change is increasing, it is unclear whether these lead to subsequent improvements in the satisfaction with various domains of life. In this study, we examined the effects of a 3-month digital-coaching personality change intervention study on 10 domains of satisfaction. We focused on the three largest intervention groups of the study (N = 418), which included participants who wanted to increase their Emotional Stability, Conscientiousness, or Extraversion. Bivariate latent change score models were used to examine correlated change between the targeted personality traits and satisfaction domains. We found that global life satisfaction and satisfaction with oneself as a person increased in all three intervention groups. In addition, increases in specific satisfaction domains were reported for the Conscientiousness (e.g., work/school, health, friendships) and Emotional Stability (e.g., family, sexual relationships, emotions) group. Increases were stable up to the 3-month follow-up. In contrast, the waitlist control group did not report any changes in global or domain-specific life satisfaction. Changes in the satisfaction domains were positively correlated with self-reported personality trait change to a similar degree as the cross-sectional associations, but not to observer-reported personality trait change. The personality intervention thus seemed to have a positive effect on satisfaction with various domains of life, which was associated with the degree of self-reported personality trait change. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Life satisfaction and positive youth development in Serbia

Life satisfaction is closely related to emotional, behavioural, social, and environmental youth functioning. Starting from the hypothesis that positive youth development (PYD) qualities such as aspects of eudaimonic well-being lead to higher youth life satisfaction (the hedonic aspect of well-being), we explored predictions of Serbian youth life satisfaction based on the Five Cs on a sample of 215 Belgrade secondary school students (34.9% male students). The research results show that: the youth were mostly satisfied with their friends, their living environment, themselves, and their families, and least satisfied with their school; the Five Cs variables explain the highest percentage of variance in youth satisfaction with the family, and the lowest for satisfaction with the living environment; higher impacts on domain-specific life satisfaction were observed for connection (self-satisfaction, satisfaction with the family and school), confidence (satisfaction with the family and school), and caring (satisfaction with the living environment, school and friends), while competence only predicted self-safisfaction. Providing support for PYD promotion leads to greater satisfaction with different aspects of youth development ecology.

Linking travel behavior and tourism literature: Investigating the impacts of travel satisfaction on destination satisfaction and revisit intention

This study aims to link two closely related domains in literature – travel behavior and tourism. Travel behavior studies partly aim to improve travel satisfaction by exploring its relationships with overall and domain-specific life satisfaction. Tourism studies, on the other hand, focus on improving the attraction and sustainability of tourism destinations and often investigate the factors affecting destination satisfaction and revisit intention. The present study uncovers the interconnections between travel behavior and tourism by investigating the impacts of travel satisfaction on destination satisfaction and revisit intention. An online survey of 696 visitors to national parks in the US conducted in the Summer of 2022 was analyzed using a structural equation modeling approach. Analysis results show that travel satisfaction has a direct impact on destination satisfaction and both direct and indirect (through destination satisfaction) impacts on revisit intention. Also, interestingly, results reveal that travel satisfaction has a stronger impact on revisit intention than destination satisfaction. These results offer an important implication to the tourism destination managers that investing in destination attributes alone might not be sufficient to attain the desired level of tourism for the destination. Thus, an area to be focused on is improving the satisfaction and experiences of travelers on the way to their destination. This could be achieved by investing in transportation infrastructures, networks, facilities, and services connecting major tourism destinations and city centers.

Changes in life satisfaction during the transition to retirement: findings from the FIREA cohort study

Life satisfaction is an essential construct of well-being that is tied to behavioral, emotional, social and psychological outcomes. This study aimed to examine changes in total and domain-specific life satisfaction during the retirement transition and additionally examine whether those changes differ by gender, occupation, health and spousal working status. Aging public sector employees (n = 3543) from the Finnish Retirement and Aging Study cohort study were followed up annually before and after retirement. Total life satisfaction score (range 4–20) was computed by summing up the responses in four domains (interestingness, happiness, easiness and togetherness). The mean and mean change estimates and their 95% CI were calculated by using the linear regression models with generalized estimating equations, adjusted for age, gender, occupation, health and marital status. Total life satisfaction score improved among the entire study population during the retirement transition and remained stable thereafter. The improvement was greater among women versus men (gender * time interaction p = 0.004), among those with suboptimal health before retirement vs. those who had good (health * time p < 0.0001) and those who had no spouse vs. those who had a retired or working spouse (spousal-status * time p < 0.0001). In case of domain-specific life satisfaction scores, the greatest improvement was observed in the easiness domain. Life satisfaction improves during the retirement transition period, especially among women, those with suboptimal health and those living without a spouse. The improvement was considerably greater in the easiness domain than any other domains. Life satisfaction remained improved and stable during the post-retirement period.

Life satisfaction among alumni of youth villages in Israel: A life course perspective.

Empirical evidence on life satisfaction of care leavers is scant and often based on small and nonrepresentative samples. Based on the life course perspective, this study explored the role of objective and subjective factors in explaining life satisfaction among care leavers, both general and domain-specific (work-financial-housing, social relationships-emotional state). The sample was randomly drawn from the whole population of eight graduating birth cohorts of alumni of educational residential care in Israel and consists of 2, 295 alumni (24-31 years old). The study is based on an extensive set of longitudinal administrative records combined with structured phone interviews. Bivariate analysis and multiple regression models were used to assess associations between precare context, in-care and postcare experiences and achievements with general and domain-specific life satisfaction. Gender differences were found in both domain-specific life satisfactions with men having greater satisfaction. Family background indicators were generally more predictive of general and social relationships- emotional state satisfaction. In-care experiences of peer and staff support and postcare experience of material deprivation were strong predictors of general and domain-specific life satisfaction. Postcare contacts with care staff, surprisingly, were associated with lower general satisfaction and satisfaction with social relationships-emotional state. Higher educational attainment at the end of placement and integration into postsecondary education were associated with greater general and work-financial-housing satisfaction. The effects of in-care preparation for independent adult living, employment and parenthood are not consistent across different domains of life satisfaction. Implications for policy and practice during and after care are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

How is the way we spend our time related to psychological wellbeing? A cross-sectional analysis of time-use patterns in the general population and their associations with wellbeing and life satisfaction

BackgroundTime-use surveys can closely monitor daily activities, times of stress and relaxation, and examine predictors and trajectories with regard to health. However, previous studies have often neglected the complex interaction of daily activities when looking at health outcomes.MethodsUsing latent profile analysis, this study examined patterns of self-reported daily time use (0–12h hours) for nine types of behaviour (work, errands, housework, childcare, care of persons in need, education, repairs and gardening, physical activity, and hobbies/leisure-time activities) in the 2018 wave of the German Socio-Economic Panel (N = 30,152; 51.9% female; M = 46.87 years). Sociodemographic variables, affective wellbeing, general and domain-specific life satisfaction, and self-rated health were inspected as predictors via multinomial logistic regression models.ResultsSix latent profiles emerged: full-time work (47.2%), leisure (33.8%), childcare (8.9%), education (7.0%), part-time work & care (2.6%), and care (0.5%). Overall, the care and part-time work & care profiles showed the lowest wellbeing scores, lower subjective health, and life satisfaction. Women were more likely to be members of the care and childcare profiles. Men were more likely to belong to the full-time work profile, and they reported significantly higher wellbeing than women.ConclusionsThe analysis revealed distinct patterns of time use and a burden on women, given their investment in care and childcare. Part-time work, and care seemed particularly demanding, and thus, are important areas for prevention, for instance, regarding mental health problems. However, time use was assessed via self-reports, therefore future studies could implement objective measures like digital trackers to validate findings.

Domain-specific life satisfaction among older adults with and without children: The role of intergenerational contact.

BackgroundLife satisfaction is associated with many important health outcomes among older adults and is an indicator of successful ageing. The present study aims to replicate earlier findings regarding relationships between satisfaction with various life domains and life satisfaction in older adults. The study furthermore explores how parental status is associated with satisfaction with different life domains and how two types of intergenerational contact (contact with own children; post-retirement work in childcare) relate to life satisfaction.MethodsParticipants were 1978 older adults, aged 65–75 year (51.7% female), who live in Bremen and took part in the OUTDOOR ACTIVE study. 82.6% of the participants had one or more children. All participants completed a questionnaire, which among others comprised items assessing life satisfaction as well as satisfaction with six different life domains (satisfaction with living situation, financial situation, leisure time, health, family, neighbors and friends).ResultsLS is significantly related to all of the investigated life domains, independent of sex and age. For the participants with children, life satisfaction had the highest association with satisfaction with family (β: 0.202; 95%CI: 0.170–0.235), followed by satisfaction with neighbors and friends (β: 0.151; 95%CI: 0.111–0.191), and health satisfaction (β: 0.148; 95%CI: 0.120–0.176). In comparison to that, participants without children had the highest association between life satisfaction and satisfaction with health (β: 0.193; 95%CI: 0.135–0.252), followed by satisfaction with family (β: 0.175; 95%CI: 0.114–0.236) and satisfaction with neighbors and friends (β: 0.154; 95%CI: 0.077–0.232). In participants with children, there was a non-significant negative association between life satisfaction and work in childcare (β: -0.031; 95%CI: -0.178–0.116), while life satisfaction was statistically significantly positively associated to work in childcare in participants without own children (β: 0.681; 95%CI: 0.075–1.288).ConclusionsThe results suggest that the domain-specific approach to life satisfaction can elucidate differences in the correlates of life satisfaction and well-being between older adults with and without children. They further suggest that the benefits of working with children for life satisfaction may be more pronounced in older adults without children than older adults with children.

Gender Disparities in Life Satisfaction After Retirement: The Roles of Leisure, Family, and Finances.

Recent research on life satisfaction in retirement explores gender differences but yields inconsistent patterns and does not consider gendered sources of satisfaction. We use a gender relations framework to examine whether women and men experience different changes in life satisfaction with retirement, and whether observed differences are a consequence of different assessments of the leisure, family, and financial situations that characterize their post-retirement lives. We use longitudinal data drawn from men and women in the Health and Retirement Study who transitioned into retirement between ages 62 and 72 for the first time between 2008 and 2016 (N = 593). We employ ordinary least squares regression and mediation tests to assess gender differences in overall and domain-specific life satisfaction (i.e., leisure, family, finances). Men reported increased life satisfaction following retirement, but women did not. No gender differences related to leisure or family life post-retirement emerged. Gender was associated with post-retirement satisfaction with finances (p < .001), with men reporting higher financial satisfaction. Mediation models confirmed a gender disparity in overall life satisfaction mediated by satisfaction with finances post-retirement (p < .01), explaining approximately one-third of the disparity. This study shows men derive greater improvements in life satisfaction in association with retirement than do women, and some of this disparity relates to women's lower satisfaction with their finances. These findings should caution policy-makers from assuming how women's increased labor force participation influences financial security in retirement, and encourage scholars to consider how gender influences subjective assessments of later life.

Well-Being Before and After Pregnancy Termination: The Consequences of Abortion and Miscarriage on Satisfaction With Various Domains of Life

The consequences of pregnancy outcomes other than live birth on subjective well-being have rarely been analysed in research to date. This study examines pre-event determinants as well as the temporary and long-term effects of induced abortion and miscarriage (spontaneous abortion) on satisfaction with various domains of life. The data were derived from the German Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics (pairfam). The longitudinal sample consists of 5331 women of reproductive age, of whom 214 women had an induced abortion, 331 women had a miscarriage, and 1156 women had a live birth during the observation period. First, pre-event measures of women who had an induced abortion and women who had a miscarriage were compared with the pre-event measures of those women who gave birth. Second, fixed effects models were used to examine whether overall or domain-specific life satisfaction changed following a pregnancy termination. The results show that pregnancies resulting in abortion or miscarriage were less frequently preceded by pregnancy intentions compared to those resulting in live birth, and that induced abortion—but not miscarriage—was furthermore accompanied by lower pre-event satisfaction than live birth. Following both miscarriage and induced abortion, women experienced temporary declines in overall life satisfaction and showed persistently lower satisfaction in several domains of life. With regard to induced abortion, pre-event measures were a better predictor of overall well-being than the consequences of the event itself. Low life satisfaction might therefore be a risk factor for having an abortion rather than a result.

Double Consciousness: Explaining Racial Paradox in Later Life Psychological Well-Being

A substantial number of studies have documented paradoxical findings when examining race differences in later life psychological well-being. Despite experiencing significant structural disadvantages, Black older adults have been found to report significantly higher overall life satisfaction and lower depressive symptoms than White adults. This study relies on double consciousness framework which allows us to understand why satisfaction with material conditions (e.g., domain-specific life satisfaction) among Black older adults could differ from their evaluation of overall well-being (e.g., overall life satisfaction). Based on a survey of successful aging (n=409 aged 60 years or older) conducted by the Elderly Care Research Center (ECRC) in Cleveland, Ohio, we examined race differences in coping resources, and their role in shaping overall life satisfaction, domain-specific life satisfaction, and depressive symptoms. Findings show that Blacks on average have a higher likelihood of experiencing recent negative life events than their White counterparts. Despite adverse life circumstances, Blacks older adults expressed significantly higher overall life satisfaction than Whites. They, however, reported significantly lower domain-specific life satisfaction than their White counterparts. The differences in depressive symptoms between Black and White older adults was not statistically significant. The race differences in overall life satisfaction was explained by religiosity, religious coping, and social support. Education, income, and adverse life events were found to contribute to such differences in domain-specific life satisfaction. Our findings underscore the need to consider the unique role of racialized life course circumstances and coping resources in shaping disparities in later life psychological well-being.

The impact of having children on domain-specific life satisfaction: A quasi-experimental longitudinal investigation using the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) data.

Longitudinal studies have documented improvements in parents' life satisfaction due to childbearing, followed by postpartum adaptation back to baseline. However, the details underlying this process remain largely unexplored. Based on past literature, set-point theory, and results from an exploratory sample, we investigated empirically how first childbirth affected satisfaction with specific domains of life. In a preregistered study, we compared parents with matched childless respondents in their trajectories of life satisfaction, and also satisfaction with family life, health, sleep, work, housework, leisure, dwelling, household income, and personal income. First-time parents and childless respondents were matched in a procedure combining exact and propensity score matching. Using the population-representative German SOEP data (N = 3,370), longitudinal multilevel models revealed heterogeneous effects of childbirth on different domains of satisfaction: Both mothers' and fathers' satisfaction with family life increased temporarily in a similar fashion to life satisfaction before going back to baseline within five years after childbirth. However, only mothers experienced drastic losses to satisfaction with sleep and satisfaction with personal income. For the remaining domains, parents' satisfaction largely resembled that of the matched childless respondents. These divergent domain trajectories underscore the need for multivariate analyses in life satisfaction research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

An interaction model for the role of self-evaluations and antagonistic pursuits in subjective well-being.

Popular theorizing about happiness pursuit emphasizes universal paths to happiness, but other theorizing acknowledges different people achieve happiness in different ways (i.e., subjective well-being, SWB). The present work extended this latter perspective by examining how antagonistic pursuit of a grandiose identity ('narcissistic antagonism') - generally thought to reduce narcissistic people's SWB - may relate to increased cognitive well-being (i.e., a component of SWB) for narcissistic people with lower self-esteem. In Study 1, participants (N=417) reported their narcissism, self-esteem, narcissistic antagonism, and general life satisfaction (to index cognitive well-being). In Study 2 (pre-registered), participants (N=450) reported their narcissism, self-esteem, narcissistic antagonism, general and domain-specific life satisfaction, and general affect (to index affective well-being, which is a different component of SWB). Both studies revealed narcissistic antagonism related to increased life satisfaction only for more (vs. less) narcissistic people with lower (vs. higher) self-esteem. Study 2 not only replicated this interactive pattern on satisfaction across various life domains but also revealed the interaction may be related to increased negative affect. Broadly, results highlight how different people may enhance features of SWB in different, even 'dark', ways.

The role of neuroticism and subjective social status in the relationship between perceived social support and life satisfaction

The present study examined the relationship between perceived social support (PSS) and life satisfaction by testing a moderated mediation model that focused on how neuroticism mediates the relationship between perceived social support and life satisfaction and how subjective social status (SSS) moderates this mediated relationship. A total of 1161 female and 765 male Chinese participants aged 18–80 years volunteered to complete questionnaires comprising a demographic details form, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Zimet et al., 1988), the Chinese version of the Big Five Inventory Personality Scale (Carciofo et al., 2016), the MacArthur Scale (Adler et al., 2000), and a Chinese version of the domain-specific life satisfaction scale (Hu et al., 2017). Regression analysis revealed that perceived social support positively influences life satisfaction through neuroticism. In addition, a moderated regression analysis indicated that low subjective social status strengthens not only the effect of neuroticism on life satisfaction but also the indirect effect of perceived social support on life satisfaction. Our findings contribute to understanding the relationship between perceived social support and life satisfaction, and provide empirical evidence for the combined effects of personality factors and subjective social factors on life satisfaction.

Vocational rehabilitation in northern Sweden. III. Aspects of life satisfaction

Levels of global (1 item) and domain-specific (8 items) life satisfaction were explored at the commencement of vocational rehabilitation and two years later in a consecutive series of subjects who were partly or completely vocationally disabled with a diagnosis of bodily impairment. At the onset of vocational rehabilitation, global life satisfaction (satisfaction with life as a whole) and satisfaction derived from performance- and provider-related (instrumental) domains of life were significantly lower than satisfaction derived from socio-emotional (expressive) facets of life. The eight domain-specific items of life satisfaction described a characteristic three-factor pattern (76% of variance) which resembled quite closely that of non-impaired subjects, one factor being expressive. The other two factors were instrumental and separated recreative from vocational domains of satisfaction. Successful vocational rehabilitation resulted in increases in vocational satisfaction. For those subjects who were successfully rehabilitated, satisfaction with other instrumental aspects of life and with life as a whole also increased. The results indicate that successful vocational rehabilitation leads to increased social well-being.

Wounds that time can’t heal: Life satisfaction and exposure to traumatic events

In this study, by employing large-scale survey data from four waves of the US Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we explore the (potentially long-lasting) effects of individuals’ exposure to psychologically traumatic life experiences on their subjective well-being. To this aim, we exploit the richness of our dataset, that contains information about occurrence and timing of a set of extreme events out of individuals’ control that may leave a “scar” extending to their current levels of life satisfaction in general as well as with regard to specific life domains. Our findings indicate that having a close relative hit by a life-threatening illness or accident and, especially, having been victim of a serious physical attack or assault are negatively related to both general and domain-specific life satisfaction, even after controlling for personality traits. Next, life satisfaction is significantly lowered by being physically abused by a parent. Overall, we provide evidence that the effects of some traumatic events are persistent over time and mostly related to women. Surprisingly, the effects of child death are negligible also in the short term.

Global and domain-specific life satisfaction among older adults with long-term spinal cord injury

Objective Although life expectancy after spinal cord injury (SCI) has increased, knowledge of life satisfaction and associated factors among older adults with long-term SCI is still very limited. The objective of this study was, therefore, to assess global and domain-specific life satisfaction among older adults with long-term SCI and investigate the association with sociodemographics, injury characteristics and secondary health conditions. Design Cross-sectional cohort study. Data from the Swedish Aging with Spinal Cord Injury Study (SASCIS). Setting Community settings in southern Sweden. Participants Seventy-eight individuals (32% women, injury levels C1-L3, American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) A-D) mean age 68 years, mean time since injury 31 years. Interventions Not applicable. Outcome measures The Life Satisfaction Questionnaire (LiSat-11). Results The participants were at least rather satisfied with most of the 11 life domains. They rated the lowest satisfaction with sexual life, activities of daily living and somatic health. Having a partner and being vocationally active was associated with greater satisfaction with life as a whole and with several other life domains. Participants with AIS D injuries were less satisfied with their somatic health than those with tetraplegia AIS A-C and paraplegia AIS A-C injuries. More secondary health conditions were negatively associated with satisfaction in five life domains. Conclusion Life satisfaction can be affected many years after SCI. The social context, participation in meaningful activities and minimizing secondary health conditions seem to be important for maintaining life satisfaction in older adults with a long-term injury.

Domain Specific Life Satisfaction in the Dual Careers of Junior Elite Football Players: The Impact of Role Strain

Using a holistic perspective on athlete talent development, this study examines the impact of role strain on the life satisfaction in various life domains of junior elite Australian Rules Football players. One hundred and twelve talent-identified male Australian Rules Football players (Mage = 16.8; SD = .71) completed measures of role strain and multidimensional life satisfaction. The results indicated that role strain explained twelve to twenty-four percent of the variance in life satisfaction in the players’ life domains. Experiences of role strain related to the players’ dual careers were associated with decreased life satisfaction in sport, friendships, family, yourself, and global life satisfaction domains. Situations in which the players perceived that their abilities were underutilized were also negatively associated with life satisfaction across various life domains. This study thus evidences the importance of a domain specific, holistic approach to investigate the life satisfaction in junior athletes’ dual careers.

Evaluation of Domain Satisfaction Measure in Cross-National Perspective: Evidence from Austria and Four Countries of the Former Yugoslavia

Previous studies have rarely examined the cross-national equivalence of instruments aimed at assessing domain-specific life satisfaction. The present study evaluated the cross-national measurement invariance of the Personal Wellbeing Index-Adult (PWI-A), an instrument designed to measure levels of satisfaction with seven domains of life: standard of living, health, achieving in life, relationships, safety, community-connectedness, and future security. In addition, we investigated (a) the mean country differences in both global and domain-specific satisfaction; (b) the contribution of domain satisfactions to global life satisfaction across countries; (c) the associations between both individual domains and the total PWI-A score with measures of global life satisfaction. A total sample consisted of 1153 undergraduate students (age range 18–35 years) from five European countries: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, and Serbia. The results provided support for the full scalar invariance of the PWI-A across countries. Satisfactions with standard of living, achieving in life, and personal relationships were significant predictors of global life satisfaction in each country. Significant differences in global life satisfaction, and satisfactions with standard of living, safety, community, and future security were found between the countries. Strong correlations between the total PWI-A score and measures of global life satisfaction (r range from .58 to .83) obtained across all five countries support the use of the total PWI-A score as an indicator of overall life satisfaction. In sum, our findings support the use of the PWI-A as a measure of domain-specific life satisfaction in a cross-national perspective.