Subjective Well-being Of Residents Research Articles

Perceived social fairness and trust in government serially mediate the effect of governance quality on subjective well-being

Governance quality refers to how well the processes and institutions of public governance function and is widely recognized as having an important influence on human well-being. We developed and tested a theoretical model that elucidates the relationship between governance quality and the subjective well-being of residents in China by revealing the serial mediation effects of perceived social fairness and trust in government. Using data from the nationally representative Chinese Social Survey conducted in 2021 (n = 5019), we performed structural equation modeling to empirically examine our hypotheses. The results indicated that governance quality exerted a significant positive fully indirect impact on subjective well-being through perceived social fairness, trust in government, and their serial mediation effects. This study contributes to the literature by providing valuable insights into the determinants of subjective well-being and highlighting the serial mediating roles of perceived social fairness and trust in government in the relationship between governance quality and subjective well-being. The findings also provide practical insights for policymakers, as they indicate that promoting perceived social fairness and fostering trust in government are essential to translate governance quality into subjective well-being.

Nursing Home Characteristics and Resident Quality of Care Outcomes: A Scoping Review

Nursing Home Characteristics and Resident Quality of Care Outcomes: A Scoping Review

Do social and ecological indicators have the same effect on the subjective well-being of residents?

The study of the association between the socioecological system and people's subjective well-being (SWB) is crucial to improve residents' lives and achieve balanced regional development. However, it is challenging to quantitatively identify the specific association path and the contributions of both social and ecological factors to residents' SWB. In this study, we construct a framework for research on associations with SWB from a socioecological perspective. A resource-based city in rapid transition, Wuhai, China, was chosen as the research area. The effects of social characteristics and ecosystem services on residents' SWB were analyzed using questionnaires and multilevel linear models under different matching conditions of ecosystem services supply and demand. The results show differences in residents' SWB among different ecosystem service supply and demand zones. The contribution rates of social characteristics and ecosystem services to SWB differences were 93.98% and 6.02%, respectively. Compared with the SWB of urban residents, that of residents in suburban and rural areas is more affected by ecosystem services. In addition, provisioning services have a more significant association with residents' SWB than regulating services, especially for elderly and low-income people. The results show that in resource-based cities undergoing rapid transformation, the government should protect essential ecosystem services and focus on improving the employment and education levels of rural residents to effectively enhance their SWB and ensure the stable development of the socioecological system.

The impact of built environment on physical activity and subjective well-being of urban residents: A study of core cities in the Yangtze River Delta survey.

In cities with high population density in China, the impact of built environment on human health is rather complicated. Physical activities are an important factor in promoting people's health. This study is aimed to explore ways of enhancing the residents' intensity of physical activities and psychological health in a limited built environment. For this purpose, this study conducted research on 1875 residents from cities in the Yangtze River Delta in China to clarify the complicated correlations among the residents' physical activities, the multi-dimensional geographic environment characteristics, and subjective well-being. First, Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale (NEWS-A), International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF), and Subjective Well-being Scale for Chinese Citizens (SWBS-CC) were used to measure built environment characteristics, intensity of physical activities, and subjective well-being. Second, the correlations among built environment, physical activities, and subjective well-being were analyzed, which reflected different effects of built environment characteristics on physical activities and subjective well-being. Third, physical activities were viewed as a mediating variable in SEM to analyze the influence mechanism of each built environment characteristic on the subjective well-being of residents. Residents with different individual characteristics may have different levels of perception and usage of built environment. The intensity of physical activities has significant positive correlations with proximity to supporting facilities, accessibility of destinations, and public security, while no significant correlation with overall environmental aesthetics and street connectivity. The residents' subjective well-being has significant positive correlations with accessibility of destinations, overall environmental aesthetics, and public security, while no significant correlation with proximity to supporting facilities and street connectivity. Physical activities not only have a direct effect on subjective well-being, but also a mediating effect on the correlations between subjective well-being and built environment characteristics. In the future, more research could be conducted on the optimization of correlations between residential built environment characteristics and physical activities as well as subjective well-being, so as to gain a deeper understanding about the impact of residential built environment on people's physical and mental health.

Income, Social Capital, and Subjective Well-Being of Residents in Western China

Many scholars focus on China’s booming economy and its social impacts, while there is little attention regarding subjective well-being, especially after considering income and social capital. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to examine the correlations between income, social capital and subjective well-being of western Chinese residents, basing on a representative comprehensive social survey. Several meaningful conclusions are shown below: (1) Western residents in China retain a relatively high degree of subjective well-being on average, and the mean value of subjective well-being for urban residents is slightly higher than that for rural residents; (2) there are regional and group differences in the influence of income and social capital on residents’ subjective well-being; and (3), although economic factors play a primary role in subjective well-being, the potential influence of non-economic factors cannot be ignored. This paper attempts to fill the gap in perspective regarding potential correlations between income, social capital, and subjective well-being.

Effects of forests and forest-related activities on the subjective well-being of residents in a Japanese watershed: An econometric analysis through the capability approach

The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of natural capital on overall subjective well-being and forest-related subjective well-being. A questionnaire survey of 1698 urban and rural residents living in a watershed of Japan was conducted in February and March of 2016. Multiple regression and moderation effect analyses are conducted to statistically estimate the respective influences of natural capital, human-made capital, social capital, human capital, and other demographic factors on the above-mentioned two types of subjective well-being. Forest-related activities, human engagement with forests, are supposed to be of great societal and political importance for Japanese society, where past management practices have, at least quantitatively, restored forests from past deforestation. Our statistical analysis tests whether specific engagement with natural capital (forest-related activities) is positively related to subjective well-being. Following the capability approach developed by Amartya Sen, forest-related activities are interpreted as functionings, and the analysis highlights the importance of functionings as links between natural capital and subjective well-being. The results show several forest-related activities have statistically significant effects on overall and forest-related well-being. For respondents living in less forested areas and with less social capital, forest-related activities have stronger effects on their subjective well-being, suggesting that the individual subjective well-being of urban residents and those with less social capital can be enhanced through engagement with forests.

Subjective Well-Being of Chinese Sina Weibo Users in Residential Lockdown During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Machine Learning Analysis.

BackgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, residential lockdowns were implemented in numerous cities in China to contain the rapid spread of the disease. Although these stringent regulations effectively slowed the spread of COVID-19, they may have posed challenges to the well-being of residents.ObjectiveThis study aims to explore the effects of residential lockdown on the subjective well-being (SWB) of individuals in China during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsThe sample consisted of 1790 Sina Weibo users who were residents of cities that imposed residential lockdowns, of which 1310 users (73.18%) were female, and 3580 users who were residents of cities that were not locked down (gender-matched with the 1790 lockdown residents). In both the lockdown and nonlockdown groups, we calculated SWB indicators during the 2 weeks before and after the enforcement date of the residential lockdown using individuals’ original posts on Sina Weibo. SWB was calculated via online ecological recognition, which is based on established machine learning predictive models.ResultsThe interactions of time (before the residential lockdown or after the residential lockdown) × area (lockdown or nonlockdown) in the integral analysis (N=5370) showed that after the residential lockdown, compared with the nonlockdown group, the lockdown group scored lower in some negative SWB indicators, including somatization (F1,5368=13.593, P<.001) and paranoid ideation (F1,5368=14.333, P<.001). The interactions of time (before the residential lockdown or after the residential lockdown) × area (developed or underdeveloped) in the comparison of residential lockdown areas with different levels of economic development (N=1790) indicated that the SWB of residents in underdeveloped areas showed no significant change after the residential lockdown (P>.05), while that of residents in developed areas changed.ConclusionsThese findings increase our understanding of the psychological impact and cost of residential lockdown during an epidemic. The more negative changes in the SWB of residents in developed areas imply a greater need for psychological intervention under residential lockdown in such areas.

Crowdsensing for Characterizing Mobility and Its Impact on the Subjective Wellbeing in an Underdeveloped Region

Living in an underdeveloped region implies a higher cost of living: access to services, such as school, work, medical care, and groceries, becomes more costly than those who live in regions with better infrastructure. We are interested in studying how mobility affects the cost of living and the subjective wellbeing of residents in underdeveloped regions. We conducted a four-weeks sensing campaign with 14 users in Camino Verde (an underserved region in Tijuana, Mexico). All of the participants used a mobile system that we developed to track their daily mobility. The participants were indicated not to change their daily routine for the study as they carried the tracking device. We analyzed 537 individual routes from different city points and calculated their mobility divergences, while comparing the actual route chosen against the route that was suggested by Google Maps and using this not as the optimal route, but as the baseline. Our results allowed for us to quantify and observe how Camino Verde residents are affected in their mobility in four crucial aspects: geography, time, economy, and safety. A posteriori qualitative analysis, using semi-structured interviews, complemented the quantitative observations and provided insights into the mobility decisions that those people living in underserved regions have to take.

부산지역주민의 재난안전인식이 주관적 웰빙에 미치는 영향 -스트레스의 조절효과-

재난의 위험이 증가함에 따라 안전이 지역주민의 웰빙에 중요한 요인으로 부각되고 있다. 본 연구는 부산지역주민을 대상으로 재난안전인식이 주관적 웰빙에 미치는 영향을 살펴보고, 이 과정에서 스트레스의 조절효과를 검증하는데 목적이 있다. 본 연구를 위해 2018년도 『부산사회조사』 자료를 분석에 활용하였으며, 최종적으로 33,497케이스가 분석에 포함되었다. 분석결과는 다음과 같다. 첫째, 재난안전인식이 높을수록 주관적 웰빙수준도 높은 것으로 나타났다. 둘째, 스트레스수준이 높을수록 주관적 웰빙수준은 낮아지는 것으로 나타났다. 셋째, 재난안전인식과 주관적 웰빙과의 관계에서 스트레스가 조절효과를 가지는 것으로 나타났다. 이와 같은 결과를 토대로 부산지역주민의 주관적 웰빙을 향상시키기 위해서는 스트레스 요인을 최소화하고 재난안전인식을 고양시키기 위한 교육 및 정책마련이 필요하다. 또한 스트레스에 대한 취약성이 높은 집단을 대상으로 집중적 프로그램 개발 및 지원이 필요하다.

Early delivery of equitable and healthy transport options in new suburbs: Policy, place and people

IntroductionPlanning policies support the development of healthy, liveable cities. Yet, recent research suggests they may not offer enough detail to provide on-the-ground delivery of social and transport infrastructure that supports and impacts healthy, active behaviours and the subjective wellbeing of residents in new developments and growth areas. MethodsThree analyses were conducted. First, planning policies were reviewed using a content analysis to identify environmental features known to support healthy and active behaviours. Then, for two growth area estates located in Melbourne, Australia (Allura and Selandra Rise), the on-the-ground delivery of these planning policies were evaluated using spatial data of key destinations (e.g., shops, schools, and transport) and geographic information systems analysis. Finally, the health and subjective wellbeing of adult residents from these two estates combined (n = 352) was assessed using survey methodology. This included asking residents about the importance and satisfaction with access to transport and key destinations. ResultsWe found that many built environment features were mentioned in the policy documents; however policy standards for dwelling density remain low at 15 dph and distances for accessing activity centres too long at 1 km to adequately support the walkability of new growth areas. We found generally, that average distances to key destinations were longer and more variable in growth areas in comparison to inner city areas and Greater Melbourne overall. For residents, satisfaction with access to destinations differed between the two case study areas. Residents in Allura, where destination and transport access was generally poorer were less satisfied, whilst those in the more walkable and established Selandra Rise area were more satisfied. ConclusionsAlthough planning policies support the development of active transport and healthy, liveable cities they are insufficient for influencing healthy behaviours when not well implemented. Early delivery of social and transport infrastructure and services must occur early in the development cycle of new growth areas to support healthier and more sustainable behaviours.

Psychological peculiarities of subjective well-being of residents in geriatric homes

The article is dedicated to the theme of subjective well-being of elderly people living in geriatric homes. Social and psychological peculiarities of life satisfaction of senior people were analysed in the works of Ukrainian and foreign authors. The research found life sat-isfaction of people who have alack of social contacts is connected with the value orienta-tions of hedonism and spirituality, hardiness, mental health and low sense of pain. These physiological, social and psychological components were generalized into the structure of subjective well-being

An evaluation and monetary assessment of the impact of flooding on subjective well-being across genders in Vietnam

ABSTRACTThe intangible impacts of floods on welfare are not well investigated, even though they are important aspects of welfare. Moreover, flooding has gender based impacts on welfare. These differing impacts create a gender based flood risk resilience gap. We study the intangible impacts of flood risk on the subjective well-being of residents in central Vietnam. The measurement of intangible impacts through subjective well-being is a growing field within flood risk research. We find an initial drop in welfare through subjective well-being across genders when a flood is experienced. Male respondents tended to recover their welfare losses by around 80% within 5 years while female respondents were associated with a welfare recovery of around 70%. A monetization of the impacts floods have on an individual’s subjective well-being shows that for the average female respondent, between 41% to 86% of annual income would be required to compensate subjective well-being losses after 5 years of experiencing a flood. The corresponding value for males is 30% to 57% of annual income. This shows that the intangible impacts of flood risk are important (across genders) and need to be integrated into flood (or climate) risk assessments to develop more socially appropriate risk management strategies.

The Happiness Cost of Air Pollution

This paper chooses the air quality index (AQI) as the main measure of air pollution, using the relevant data of CGSS (2013) to analyze the impact of air pollution and subjective well-being of residents. In the end, the paper is based on the above research in order to analysis the willingness to pay for air quality improvement, and help the government put forward the corresponding policy suggestions.

Subjective well-being in China: how much does commuting matter?

With rapidly increasing urbanization and motorization in China, the effect of commuting on residents’ subjective well-being (SWB) is likely growing. We used 13,261 individual, 124 city, and 401 neighbourhood samples from the 2014 China Labour-Force Dynamics Survey (CLDS 2014) and applied multilevel mixed-effects ordered probit regressions to investigate the relationship between commuting and SWB. We found huge differences between urban and rural areas in relation to commuting. Urban respondents’ daily average commuting time was 0.56 h while rural respondents’ daily average commuting time was 0.41 h. Further, the daily average commute time for residents living in cities with high urbanization rates (> 70%) was longer than for those living in cities with low urbanization rates (< 70%). The subjective well-being of residents who commute by walking or cycling was significantly lower than that of those who commute by other transportation modes. The regression results indicated that the longer the commute time, the lower the subjective well-being. Among residents who live in rural areas or cities with low urbanization, subjective well-being was more easily affected by commuting time. Commuting time was also found to influence residents’ job satisfaction and family life satisfaction, which in turn influence SWB. China’s current development mode ignores the traffic needs of vulnerable groups. Therefore, future traffic construction should increase its prioritization of these vulnerable transportation groups.

Sustainable City: Assessing the Community Happiness of Residents in Putrajaya Municipality Malaysia

With the recent establishment of linkages between characteristics of the community and subjective well-being of residents by a sociologist, the ability to design and monitor urban development that enables human and environmental well-being becomes necessary. Developing communities sustainably require resilient economic, environmental, social and governance systems. This study assesses community happiness based on perceived satisfaction of sustainable development interventions in urban areas. A sample of 400 residents was selected to complete the self-reported survey on specific items on a 10-point response scale (1 means “very dissatisfied” and 10 means “very satisfied”). The sample comprised of residents between 18 years of age and above who lived and works in the town, outside and identified with the communities in the city. The results show that the environmental well-being (M=7.69, SD=1.59), social well-being (M=6.96, SD=1.73), and urban governance (M=6.69, SD=1.61), and economic well-being (M=6.19, SD=2.01) respectively were positively perceived to contribute to the overall community happiness (M=6.88). The findings suggest that investments unto the dimensions could lead to a more optimistic outlook for sustainable community future. The study contributed to the literature on the connection between subjective well-being and sustainable development, and also the measure of community happiness in local context using subjective approach, particularly in Malaysia.

What is Good for Tourists Should Be Good for Residents Too: The Relationship Between the Quality of the Touristic Offer and Subjective Well-Being of Residents

The aim of this article is to examine the relationship between the quality of tourist destinations and the subjective well-being of people living in the destination. Two data sets were used for the analysis: one related to the subjective well-being of Croatian citizens and the other related to the quality of tourist destinations in the country. Subjective well-being measures included: overall happiness, life satisfaction and satisfaction with the standard of living, health, achievements in life, relationships, safety, community connectedness, and future security, using a scale from 0 to 10. The final data set included 2,171 residents (aged 15–64) from 41 destinations with varying touristic quality. The destinations were grouped into three categories according to the touristic quality. Results of the ANCOVAs for quality of tourist destination as independent variable, subjective well-being of residents as dependent variables, and sociodemographics as covariates (age, gender, education, monthly income, level of urbanization) showed that the quality of tourist destination was related to residents' life satisfaction and happiness, as well as the satisfaction with personal life domains. The residents of destinations with the higher evaluated quality of tourist offer were more happy, more satisfied with their lives in general, with their material status, personal health, achievements in life, relationships with family and friends, feelings of physical safety, acceptance by the community, and future security than the residents from the destinations with medium and lower quality of tourist offer.

Social Environment Contexts of Trait Emotional Intelligence

Two studies set out to provide information regarding social environment contexts of trait emotional intelligence. In an initial exploratory study, participants with higher emotional intelligence were associated with close others of high emotional intelligence. A second longitudinal study examined the effect of social environments comprising higher or lower emotional intelligence on changes in emotional intelligence of residents in these environments. This study assessed the emotional intelligence and subjective well-being of residents of colleges at the start of a semester and again three months later. A higher composite college residence emotional intelligence index predicted an increase in participants' emotional intelligence and positive affect. These effects were especially strong for first-semester residents. The results offer new information regarding social environment contexts of trait emotional intelligence and extend findings regarding contagion of emotion and transmission of individual differences in complex emotion processing.