|
on Economics of Happiness |
|
Issue of 2025–11–17
six papers chosen by Viviana Di Giovinazzo, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca |
| By: | Zangger, Christoph |
| Abstract: | This study investigates how objective and subjectively perceived relative deprivation among door-to-door neighbors shape subjective well-being. Drawing on unique geocoded, longitudinal data from Switzerland, this paper introduces a novel, geographically informed measure of objective relative deprivation. Building on directed acyclic graphs (DAGs), it explicitly tests the mechanisms that link objective and subjectively perceived relative deprivation to subjective well-being, measured as people's life satisfaction. Doing so, we find little evidence for a negative effect of objective relative deprivation. Meanwhile, subjectively perceived relative deprivation among neighbors decreases subjective well-being in a non-linear fashion, stressing the importance of perceived relative losses over relative gains. These results are then also confirmed in robustness analyses using, among others, spatial Durbin and SLX models. Overall, the results suggest that relative deprivation also works at a geographically small, well-defined level, although it does not seem to be a key determinant of subjective well-being in this context. |
| Date: | 2025–11–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:87nez_v1 |
| By: | Salahodjaev, Raufhon |
| Abstract: | The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between globalization and life satisfaction in Europe and Central Asia over the period of 2005 to 2018. Using the KOF index of globalization, we documented the non-linear (U-shaped) relationship between globalization and subjective wellbeing. Once we account for endogeneity and simultaneity with the aid of a two-step GMM estimator, the turning point is 66 points, which is approximate to the levels of globalization in Albania in 2018. We also report that the sub-dimension of globalization (political, economic and social) are also non-linearly related to life satisfaction. The results are robust to a number of tests. |
| Keywords: | globalization, life satisfaction, Europe and Central Asia |
| JEL: | F6 F60 |
| Date: | 2025–05–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:125959 |
| By: | Yusuke Inoue (The Research Center for Advanced Policy Studies (CAPS), Institute of Economic Research, Kyoto University); Yasuharu Tabara (Graduate School of Public Health, Shizuoka Graduate University of Public Health); Fumihiko Matsuda (Center for Genomic Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine) |
| Abstract: | In Japan's era of population decline and fiscal strain, exploring alternative policy levers beyond conventional health-system reforms has become imperative. We examine whether greater happiness reduces individual medical expenditures, using the Nagahama Cohort, a community-based study conducted by the city of Nagahama in partnership with Kyoto University, which links municipal health checks with socioeconomic surveys in 2019 and 2020. An instrumental-variable two-part model, treating happiness as endogenous with perceived "mattering" and "trust" as instruments, shows that a one-point increase in subjective happiness reduces average monthly medical spending by about ¥264 in 2019 (non-IV: ¥95) and ¥354 in 2020 (non-IV: ¥171). This average effect can be decomposed into two components: the probability of any medical use (extensive margin) and out-of-pocket spending among individuals with positive spending (intensive margin). The extensive margin shows weak effects, while the intensive margin consistently drives the overall decline in both years. These findings imply that strengthening psychosocial well-being could complement conventional reforms as a feasible lever for cost containment in ageing societies. |
| Keywords: | health economics, happiness, subjective well-being, medical expenditure, healthcare utilization, social capital, instrumental variable, two-part model, Japan |
| JEL: | C36 I12 I18 I31 |
| Date: | 2025–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kyo:wpaper:1121 |
| By: | Sahoo, Dukhabandhu; Lokesh Kumar, Jena; Mohapatra, Souryabrata |
| Abstract: | This study investigates the interconnections between subjective well-being (SWB), climate change and agriculture through a bibliometric analysis of 3107 publications from 1998 to 2024. The research reveals a growing body of literature on this topic, yet a significant research gap exists in exploring the intricate relationships between these domains, for which thematic analysis was conducted. The study uncovers a complex relationship between climate change, environmental impacts, agricultural practices, and subjective well-being by mapping the intellectual structure and identifying key trends. Bibliometric analysis uncovered influential sources (Sustainability), writers (Whitmee with co-authors) and nations (China) that made substantial contributions to the subject. A proposed relational framework highlights the multifaceted effects of climate change on SWB, mediated by factors such as health, stress, technology, soil health and water availability. The findings emphasise the need for integrated approaches involving education, policy and mitigation strategies as moderating variables to address the challenges posed by climate change and enhance agricultural sustainability and human well-being. |
| Keywords: | Climate Change |
| Date: | 2024–09–29 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:haaepa:374788 |
| By: | Greyling, Talita; Rossouw, Stephanie; Burger, Martijn J. |
| Abstract: | Positive affect and life evaluation are positively correlated in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), but the relationship is much weaker than in Western countries, revealing a disconnect between how people feel and how they judge their lives. Using Gallup World Poll microdata (2013-2024) for 39 SSA and 27 Western countries, we construct a metric that measures the difference in positive affect and life evaluation scores (named PA-LE balance) and apply eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) with SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) to uncover its drivers. Our results show that the PA-LE balance for SSA has a wider distribution, and more than two-thirds of individuals are classified as "cheerfully discontented" (positive balance). In contrast, Western countries have a narrower distribution with approximately the same number of individuals classified as "cheerfully discontented" and "contentedly despairing" (negative balance). Uncovering the drivers of these observed differences in the PA-LE balance reveals that the most important predictors are the same across SSA and Western countries; two subjective factors, individual optimism and negative affect, account for roughly two-thirds of the variation in the balance. Further analyses show that low economic optimism, combined with low negative affect, is characteristic of the African scenario, meaning people feel happier than their life evaluations suggest. This suggests that, amid low levels of optimism due to resource constraints and low expectations, especially regarding youth prospects, strong social ties and satisfaction with one's place buffer against daily worry, sadness, or stress and sustain higher positive affect, creating a situation of cheerful discontent. |
| Keywords: | Life evaluation, positive affect, Africa, XGBoost, SHAP |
| JEL: | I31 O55 C55 Z13 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1688 |
| By: | Dongyoung Kim; Young-Il Albert Kim; Haedong Aiden Rho |
| Abstract: | This paper uses daily Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data to estimate the causal effect of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, a highly competitive race whose outcome resolved lingering uncertainty on election day, on mental-health and life-satisfaction outcomes through a regression discontinuity design. Following the resolution of electoral uncertainty on election day, we find a sharp and persistent post-election decline in subjective well-being, concentrated among female, non-White, urban, and more-educated respondents. These findings reveal an expected-outcome shock, showing that political polarization itself, not electoral surprise, can act as a chronic psychological stressor. |
| Date: | 2025–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2511.04912 |