European Quality Of Life Survey Research Articles

Better for Everyone? Egalitarian Culture and Social Wellbeing in Europe

The goal of this study is to explore the relationship between culture and social well-being, focusing on inferiority feelings. While being respected is widely seen as a key ingredient of a good life, inferiority feelings signal a lack of esteem from others. Previous research has mainly looked at income inequality as the key contextual condition for inferiority feelings and other status concerns, often inspired by the income inequality thesis/Spirit Level paradigm (Wilkinson and Pickett 2010). We contribute to this discussion by extending this paradigm into the cultural realm. Our main assumption is that an inegalitarian culture breeds inferiority feelings, whereas an egalitarian culture dampens them and in this sense is “better”. Within a multi-level framework we combine information on culture, operationalized as collective values and beliefs, retrieved from the European Value Study for 30 European countries, and survey data on inferiority feelings for over 37,000 individuals from the most recent European Quality of Life Survey (2011–12). Our evidence suggests that widespread self-expression values and social trust (as expressions of an egalitarian culture) are indeed better as they dampen individuals’ inferiority feelings while widespread individual blame for poverty (an expression of an inegalitarian culture) heightens them. In further analyses of each income quintile separately, we find evidence that culture matters—for good or worse—for all income groups, except the poorest quintiles. Our results should prompt scholars of social status and social well-being to pay more attention to the impact of culture.

Current and Expected Economic Hardship and Satisfaction With Family Life in Europe.

This study investigated how people’s satisfaction with their family life is influenced by economic circumstances. Expectations were formulated that people who experienced or expected economic hardship would be less satisfied with their family life. Additionally, it was hypothesized that current and expected economic hardship would amplify each other’s consequences on satisfaction, and that current and expected economic hardship was more harmful for people with children and when the rise of unemployment in a country was larger. Multilevel analyses were conducted using a sample from the European Quality of Life Survey 2012 (N = 13,013 in 30 countries). Results indeed indicated that people who experienced or expected economic hardship were less satisfied with their family life. Expecting a financial decline was (slightly) more harmful for people in larger families. Generally, current and expected economic problems were not more harmful for parents or when a country’s rise of unemployment was larger.

Examining gender health inequalities in Europe using a Synthetic Health Indicator: the role of family policies.

Family policies have been shown to affect men's and women's health throughout the European Union, though particularly in the case of women. This paper seeks to analyze this effect by creating two Synthetic Health Indicators (SHIs) differentiated by gender applying the P2 distance method. We also aim to compare the results obtained by means of our SHI and the Self-rated health (SRH) indicator, as it is the most common indicator used to approach individuals' health. The 2012 European Quality of Life Survey was used to construct the SHI. Dimensions such as physical health, mental health, psychosocial resources, the capacity of health services and community health status were included in our SHI. All proved to be relevant when measuring individuals' health. Gender health inequalities differed depending on the indicator used in each European country. When considering family policy, we found significant gender health gaps that favoured men in traditional countries, regardless of the indicator used (SHI or SRH). Moreover, with our SHI we found significant gender health inequalities in market-oriented and dual-earner countries that were not revealed by the SRH indicator, highlighting the fact that current equality policies are necessary but insufficient to overcome the gender health gap. The SHI was more sensitive to gender differences and evidenced certain advantages compared to the SRH. The SHI includes a wide range of variables that incorporated large amounts of fresh information, allowing men and women to have a personalized design of their own health.

Societal Gender Inequality as Moderator of the Relationship Between Work–Life Fit and Subjective Well-Being: A Multilevel Analysis Across European Countries

This study investigates the relationship between perceived work–life fit and subjective well-being in a large and cross-national sample (N = 15,835) of male and female employees taken from the 2012 European Quality of Life Survey. Subjective well-being is conceptualized and operationalized through a multiple-item construct, measuring flourishing and mental health, experience of positive and negative affect, and cognitive evaluations of satisfaction with life and specific life domains. Adopting a multilevel framework, we also examine whether societal gender inequality, measured with the Gender Equality Index, moderates the relationship differently for men and women. The analyses provide robust empirical evidence that, after controlling for a broad set of confounding variables at the micro and macro levels, for both men and women: (1) perceived work–life fit is associated with greater subjective well-being; (2) higher levels of gender inequality at country level result in a weaker relationship between perceived work–life fit and subjective well-being. Based on the capability and agency framework, a plausible explanation for these findings is that when gender inequality is acute perceived work–life fit may not be a key determinant of subjective well-being; for both men and women the control over material resources may matter more for subjective well-being than the possibility of combining work with engagement in other life domains. Implications for both theory and practice are discussed.

Happiness and inequality in European countries: is it a matter of peer group comparisons?

This paper uses peer comparisons to analyze the impact of different types of inequalities (i.e., within-group, between-group and overall inequality) and reference income on subjective happiness. This study contributes to an emergent strand of research in which both relative levels of economic resources and the income distribution are regarded as determinants of individual happiness. The empirical findings show that overall and within-group inequality negatively affect individual happiness, inequality between reference groups does not affect happiness, and a higher average income of the reference group increases individual happiness. We examine whether people’s aversion to inequality is conditional on their income position within reference group and institutional differences across European countries. These tests indicate that an increase in inequality or a decrease in average income decreases the happiness of both the rich and the poor. Regarding the differences across countries, people who live in more mobile societies with better welfare systems (e.g. Social-Democratic countries) are less adversely affected by inequality than people living in countries with low social mobility and ineffective systems of social protection (e.g. the Mediterranean countries). The analysis is based on data from the European Quality of Life Survey.

Food Insecurity in Older Adults: Results From the Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases Cohort Study 3.

Introduction: The public health problem of food insecurity also affects the elderly population. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of household food insecurity and its associations with chronic disease and health-related quality of life characteristics in individuals ≥65 years of age living in the community in Portugal.Methods: The data were collected from the Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases Cohort Study 3 (EpiDoC3)—Promoting Food Security Study (2015–2016), which was the third evaluation wave of the EpiDoC and represented the Portuguese adult population. Food insecurity was assessed using a psychometric scale adapted from the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale. The data on sociodemographic variables, chronic disease, and management of chronic disease were self-reported. Health-related quality of life were assessed using the European Quality of Life Survey (version validated for the Portuguese population). Logistic regression models were used to determine crude and adjusted odds ratios (for age group, gender, region, and education). The dependent variable was the perceived level of food security.Results: Among older adults, 23% were living in a food-insecure household. The odds of living in a food-insecure household were higher for individuals in the 70–74 years age group (odds ratio (OR) = 1.405, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.392–1.417), females (OR = 1.545, 95% CI 1.534–1.556), those with less education (OR = 3.355, 95% CI 3.306–3.404), low income (OR = 4,150, 95% CI 4.091–4.210), and those reporting it was very difficult to live with the current income (OR = 16.665, 95% CI 16.482–16.851). The odds of having a chronic disease were also greater among individuals living in food-insecure households: diabetes mellitus (OR = 1.832, 95% CI 1.818–1.846), pulmonary diseases (OR = 1.628, 95% CI 1.606–1.651), cardiac disease (OR = 1.329, 95% CI 1.319–1.340), obesity (OR = 1.493, 95% CI 1.477–1.508), those who reduced their frequency of medical visits (OR = 4.381, 95% CI 4.334–4.428), and who stopped taking medication due to economic difficulties (OR = 5.477, 95% CI 5.422–5.532). Older adults in food-insecure households had lower health-related quality of life (OR = 0.212, 95% CI 0.210–0.214).Conclusions: Our findings indicated that food insecurity was significantly associated with economic factors, higher values for prevalence of chronic diseases, poor management of chronic diseases, and decreased health-related quality of life in older adults living in the community.

Employment patterns and family satisfaction in Europe

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between labour market integration and family satisfaction in a cross-country comparison perspective and takes important intervening factors into consideration such as the social policy and flexibility strategy as well as the cultural context of 27 European countries.Design/methodology/approachThe authors rely on data from the European Quality of Life Survey 2012 and conduct multi-level analyses using both the one-step random intercept Model with cross-level interactions as well as a two-step hierarchical model. The country-specific framework is addressed with indicators for the level of social security, for external flexibility labour market characteristics, and for the predominant family solidarity norm of a country.FindingsThe paper provides empirical support for the thesis of social disruption according to insecure labour market attachment. This link is weakened in countries where flexible labour market conditions are accompanied by strong efforts on state-provided social security. High family support norms can only partially compensate a lack of social protection covered by the state.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper reveals the increasing social vulnerability of people who are not or not completely integrated into the labour market. These risks cannot be convincingly weakened by social security measures. To know more about these mechanisms, the link between labour market integration and the quality of family life should be studied in more detail in a cross-country comparative perspective to develop ideas and give advice on reducing the potential insecurity of flexible employment.Originality/valueThe paper complements previous research by providing empirical findings about the link between insecure labour market attachment and the integration into family networks in a cross-country comparison perspective.

Conflict thinking: Exploring the social basis of perceiving the world through the lens of social conflict

Both human rights organisations and studies in political communication have noticed an increasing use of conflict frames in contemporary politics within Western societies. As such frames are only interesting for political actors if they find resonance among a substantial share of the population, these observations raise the question as to who supports conflict thinking and why? Whereas public opinion research has studied many attitudes that are based on conflict thinking (e.g., ethnic prejudice, populism, feelings of collective deprivation, and welfare chauvinism), this paper addresses the more fundamental question as to whether it is possible to measure people's general tendency to perceive the world through the lens of social conflict. Data from the European Quality of Life Survey (34,655 respondents; 34 countries) reveal strong correlations between the perceptions of the amount of tension between seven pairs of groups. These correlations are combined into a single scale reflecting the amount of perceived social conflict in society. Subsequent multilevel analyses support the claim that conflict thinking is embedded in different feelings of vulnerability. In the conclusion, we elaborate on the implications of our findings.

STUDENTS’ SOCIAL ACTIVITIES, VALUES, MEANINGFULNESS OF LIFE AND SELF-CONFIDENCE

The purpose of this study was to develop and test a model that describes the relations between participation of students in social activities oriented toward helping others, their values, namely, discrepancy between importance and attainability of values, meaningfulness of life and self-confidence. The sample consisted of 103 students aged from 18 to 41, 28.2% were males and 71.8% were females. In this research the M.Rokeach technique as modified by E.B. Fantalova, the Meaning-in-Life Orientations test (MOL) developed by D.A. Leontiev, the Self-confidence scale of the “Research of self-attitude” questionnaire (RS) developed by V.V.Stolin and S.R. Pantelejew, and questions from the third European Quality of Life Survey, which measure participation in social activities oriented towards helping others, were used. The first three instruments were translated into Latvian by S. Jirgena (now Mihailova). Validity and reliability of the Latvian versions of the MOL and the RS Self-confidence scale were evaluated, and the Latvian versions of both scales were modified. Correlation analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used in order to test a theoretically developed model of students’ participation in social activities oriented towards helping others/ discrepancy between importance and attainability of values and meaningfulness of life outcome, and meaningfulness of life and self-confidence outcome. Firstly, it was found that discrepancy between importance and attainability of students’ values is not related to meaningfulness of life. In its turn, it was revealed that participation in such social activity as doing unpaid voluntary work in education, cultural and professional associations has a positive impact on meaningfulness of life and, in its turn, meaningfulness of life has a positive impact on self-confidence.

Quality of Life in the European Union: An Econometric Analysis from a Gender Perspective

This paper provides an approach to measure the quality of life in the European Union from a multiple perspective: individual, socioeconomic and territorial by creating a subjective synthetic quality of life indicator, adopting an econometric approach. Amongst other objectives, the works seeks to obtain a robust synthetic measure of quality of life levels using the P2 distance method in addition to conducting an econometric analysis using the European quality of life survey at the individual level. The index comprises information on different social indicators from various life domains and provides a classification of European Union countries. Other objectives the paper pursues include exploring the determinants of the quality of life and ascertaining whether gender differences exist in the levels of quality of life in the European Union. Conclusions may thus be drawn concerning which aspects emerge as the most relevant when explaining disparities in quality of life in the European context from a spatial and gender perspective. The presence of significant gender gaps in many EU countries should lead us to rethink the design of policies aimed at achieving equality for EU citizens. The article also studies the suitability of certain indicators and the estimation problems that arise at the inferential level in a specific context such as the EU.

Number of children and social contacts among older people: the moderating role of filial norms and social policies

Social contacts offer opportunities for provision of emotional and instrumental support that enhances well-being throughout the life course, and the importance of these contacts is especially evident at advanced ages. In this paper, we take a cross-country comparative perspective to examine the association between the number of children and the frequency of social contacts among older people. Using data from the European Quality of Life Survey, we employ multilevel models with cross-level interactions between the number of children and macro-level indicators of filial norms and social policies supporting older people. Our results suggest that older adults with children are more likely than older adults without children to have frequent social interactions, but that the number of children does not affect social contact frequency. The magnitude of the association between having children and social contact frequency varies across European societies. The social contact frequency gap between older adults with children and older adults without children is larger in more familialistic countries with strong filial norms. Our results do not confirm that having children affects social contact frequency less in countries where the state provides more support for older people.

Computation of Equivalent Incomes and Social Welfare for EU and Non-EU Countries

Individual well-being depends not only on monetary income but is affected by various non-income dimensions of human life. While this is now broadly acknowledged, a unanimous way to measure such multidimensional well-being does not exist. In this article we examine the various approaches that have been proposed in this vein in welfare economics, by highlighting their strengths and weaknesses, and devote particular attention to the equivalent income. We use this indicator to compute individual well-being and social welfare for all the European Union (EU) and some non-EU countries with the data from the 3rd wave of the European Quality of Life Survey referred to the period 2011–2012. Our analysis shows that, whether we adopt a utilitarian or rank-dependent representation of social preferences, the ranking of countries based on their equivalent incomes is substantially different from that based on monetary incomes.

How Much Does Others' Protection Matter? Employment Protection, Future Labour Market Prospects and Well-Being

Employment protection legislation (EPL) is an important determinant of workers’ perceived future labour market prospects as well as their subjective well-being. Recent studies indicate that it is not only a worker’s own level of protection, but also the employment protection of other workers that matters for individual prospects and well-being. We contribute to this literature by examining how such cross-effects on well-being are mediated by a workers’ perceived risk of job loss and future employability. We apply a structural model to data from the Third Wave of the European Quality of Life Survey, combined with summary indices from the OECD Employment Protection Database. Our results are indicative of cross-effects. Stricter protection for permanent workers (stricter regulation on the length and number of renewals of fixed-term contracts) is associated with lower (higher) perceived employability for both permanent workers and fixed-term workers. In addition, stricter protection for permanent workers is positively related to fixed-term workers’ perceived risk of job loss. We do find some evidence that EPL has significant indirect (cross-)effects on life satisfaction via the mediators. There are no indications for direct, non-mediated effects.

Accessing healthcare in times of economic growth and economic downturn: Evidence from Ireland

This article examines the accessibility of healthcare in Ireland between 2003 and 2011 in the context of strong economic growth (2003–2007) and the subsequent financial crisis, which began in 2008. It investigates, in particular, changes in self-reported difficulties in accessing healthcare with regard to distance to health services, waiting times for appointments and the costs of seeing a doctor, and identifies particular risk factors that increase the likelihood of facing barriers in accessing health services. We conduct logistic regression analyses of cross-sectional data from the three rounds (2003, 2007, 2011) of the European Quality of Life Survey of 2682 individuals living in private households in Ireland. The study finds that the number of individuals reporting difficulties in accessing healthcare increased over time. Of particular concern are difficulties with the financial costs of covering doctor’s appointments, which started to increase dramatically prior to the economic crisis and continued to rise during the crisis, in particular for higher income groups. Difficulties with distance and waiting time declined gradually over time and appear unaffected by the financial crisis, at least until 2011. Subgroups that face significantly more difficulties are women, younger individuals, the full-/part-time employed and individuals with poor health status. Our findings contribute to the recent discussion on the effects of institutional barriers on accessing health services in the context of significant economic change.

Rising Income Inequality During the Great Recession Had No Impact on Subjective Wellbeing in Europe, 2003–2012

The Great Recession increased income inequality by an average of 6%. We assesses the impact of that on subjective wellbeing (happiness, life satisfaction). Data: European Quality of Life survey, 25 representative national samples at three time points, over 70,000 respondents. Analysis: variance-components multi-level models controlling for GDP per capita (an essential point) and individual-level predictors. Findings: income inequality has no statistically significant impact before, during, or after the Great Recession. Instead (contrary to much previous research) a straightforward individualistic utilitarian–materialist understanding is supported: money does increase wellbeing but inequality itself—the gap between rich and poor—is irrelevant.

Austerity plan announcements and the impact on the employees’ wellbeing

This study investigates the impact of austerity plan announcements on employees’ wellbeing. We exploit the unexpected announcement of a drastic wage cut (25%) related to public sector employees in Romania. Using data from the Eurobarometer Surveys and the European Quality of Life Survey, we employ a difference-in-difference research design combined with matching, based on entropy balancing, to identify the causal effects. Our results reveal that the mere announcement of austerity measures leads to an overall drop in life satisfaction among those working in the public sector. We also show that men, and especially married individuals, are most affected by the substantial wage cut announcement. Contrary to previous research, we find that public sector employees with higher levels of education are more likely to be affected by this policy communication compared to those with only secondary or primary levels of education. Our results also suggest that the negative effect of the announcement is not persisting over time.

Health, Well-Being and Energy Poverty in Europe: A Comparative Study of 32 European Countries.

Despite growing pan-European interest in and awareness of the wide-ranging health and well-being impacts of energy poverty—which is characterised by an inability to secure adequate levels of energy services in the home—the knowledge base is largely British-centric and dominated by single-country studies. In response, this paper investigates the relationship between energy poverty, health and well-being across 32 European countries, using 2012 data from the European Quality of Life Survey. We find an uneven concentration of energy poverty, poor health, and poor well-being across Europe, with Eastern and Central Europe worst affected. At the intersection of energy poverty and health, there is a higher incidence of poor health (both physical and mental) amongst the energy poor populations of most countries, compared to non-energy poor households. Interestingly, we find the largest disparities in health and well-being levels between energy poor and non-energy poor households occur within relatively equal societies, such as Sweden and Slovenia. As well as the unique challenges brought about by rapidly changing energy landscapes in these countries, we also suggest the relative deprivation theory and processes of social comparison hold some value in explaining these findings.

Rewarding Work: Cross-National Differences in Benefits, Volunteering During Unemployment, Well-Being and Mental Health

Owing to increasing labour market flexibilization, a growing number of people are likely to experience unemployment and, as a consequence, lower mental health and well-being. This article examines cross-national differences in well-being and mental health between unemployed people who engage in voluntary work and those who do not, using multilevel data from the European Quality of Life Survey on unemployed individuals in 29 European countries and other external sources. This article finds that, regardless of their voluntary activity, unemployed people have higher levels of well-being and mental health in countries with more generous unemployment benefits. Unexpectedly, the results also suggest that regular volunteering can actually be detrimental for mental health in countries with less generous unemployment benefits. This article concludes that individual agency exercised through voluntary work can partially improve well-being but the generosity of unemployment benefits is vital for alleviating the negative mental health effects of unemployment.

Perceived access to recreational/green areas as an effect modifier of the relationship between health and neighbourhood noise/air quality: Results from the 3rd European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS, 2011–2012)

The present study tests the hypothesis that better access to recreational/green areas modifies the adverse effects of neighbourhood noise and air quality on health. We re-analysed the cross-national representative sample of the 3rd European Quality of Life Survey (EQLS) (2011–2012). Data were available on self-rated health, neighbourhood noise, air quality, access to recreational/green areas, and other sociodemographic and neighbourhood covariates. The substantive analyses were based on weighted logistic regression with clustered standard errors. Overall, reporting major neighbourhood problems with noise and air quality was associated with higher risk for poor self-rated health, and this risk was higher among participants not using recreational/green areas in their neighbourhood or reporting a difficult access to those areas. There was a statistically significant effect modification across some exposure − access scenarios, but it was clearer for air quality than it was for noise. Thus, this exploratory study sets the basis for future research on the subject matter.

Austerity Plan Announcements and the Impact on the Employees' Wellbeing

This study investigates the impact of austerity plan announcements on employees’ wellbeing. We exploit the unexpected announcement of a drastic wage cut (25%) related to public sector employees in Romania. Using data from the Eurobarometer Surveys and the European Quality of Life Survey, we employ a difference-in-difference research design combined with matching, based on entropy balancing, to identify the causal effects. Our results reveal that the mere announcement of austerity measures leads to an overall drop in life satisfaction among those working in the public sector. We also show that men, and especially married individuals, are most affected by the substantial wage cut announcement. Contrary to previous research, we find that public sector employees with higher levels of education are more likely to be affected by this policy communication compared to those with only secondary or primary levels of education.