scholarly journals Individual differences and changes in lifestyle behaviours predict decreased subjective well-being during COVID-19 restrictions in an Australian sample

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Brindal ◽  
Jillian C Ryan ◽  
Naomi Kakoschke ◽  
Sinead Golley ◽  
Ian T Zajac ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Australian Sample

Abstract Background Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, social distancing practices were introduced to curb infection rates in many countries. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of these restrictions on behaviours and well-being and whether individual differences predict changes in well-being. Methods Australian adults participated in a cross-sectional, online survey during May 2020. The survey captured demographic information; health behaviours; personality traits; life satisfaction and COVID-19-related attitudes, financial concerns, perceived risks and impacts. Results In total, 3745 (86.8% of 4313) participants completed all items. Participants were mostly female (85.7%) and 56.4 years (standard deviation [SD] = 12.6) on average. Over 95.0% of the sample indicated they had been social distancing or isolating. Health behaviours and well-being had generally worsened, with social connections being the most negatively affected. Life satisfaction was significantly lower since restrictions. For changes in life satisfaction, extroversion was a risk factor and openness to experience was a protective factor. Conclusions Overall, well-being was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated social distancing particularly in this sample containing mainly older women. In future, it will be crucial to understand why and who may be differentially affected, to encourage behaviours that are protective of well-being.

scholarly journals Life Satisfaction during Forced Social Distancing and Home Confinement Derived from the COVID-19 Pandemic in Spain

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1474
Author(s):  
Jerónimo J Gonzalez-Bernal ◽  
Paula Rodríguez-Fernández ◽  
Mirian Santamaría-Peláez ◽  
Josefa González-Santos ◽  
Benito León-del-Barco ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Satisfaction With Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Satisfaction With Life Scale ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Life Scale ◽  
Restrictive Measures

Life satisfaction is one of the main dimensions of well-being related to psychological factors, being essential for a person to adjust to difficult circumstances. The restrictive measures adopted to minimize the diffusion of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) could alter the subjective dimension of well-being, so the objective of this study was to determine the factors related to life satisfaction of the Spanish population during forced home confinement derived from the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional study was designed, based on an online survey, and disseminated through the main social networks, which included the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) and sociodemographic and COVID-19-related variables. The possible relationships between the different variables were studied using univariate and multivariable regression analyses. A total of 3261 subjects participated in the study. Factors associated with greater personal life satisfaction were fewer days of home confinement (β = (−0.088); p ≤ 0.001), the perception of having received enough information (β = 0.076; p ≤ 0.001), having private access to the outside (β = 0.066; p ≤ 0.001), being employed (β = 0.063; p ≤ 0.001), being male (β = 0.057; p = 0.001) and not having been isolated (β = 0.043; p = 0.013). The results of this study provide novel information about the profiles of people related to greater well-being and life satisfaction during forced social distancing and home confinement, but more studies are needed to help to understand and complement these findings.

scholarly journals Subjective Well-being, Mental Health and Concerns During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence From the Global South

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 72
Author(s):  
Lina Martínez ◽  
Valeria Trofimoff ◽  
Isabella Valencia
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Global South ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Depression And Anxiety ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
Study Results

COVID-19 pandemic is harming many social and economic spheres beyond physical health. The subjective well-being of the population (positive emotions and life satisfaction) and the prevalence of stressors affecting good mental health like worry, depression, and anxiety are increasing worldwide. This analysis presents evidence of subjective well-being and mental health in Colombia, South America, during the current crisis. The data for this analysis comes from an online survey released after one month of quarantine. In total, 941 adults participated in the study. Results show that women are more affected by their well-being and experience more often worry, depression, and anxiety than males. In particular, younger women and from the lower socioeconomic strata. Respondents identify three primary concerns because of the pandemic: i) financial consequences, ii) health (personal and loved one's health), and iii) productivity. Respondents are, on average, more concerned for the health of loved ones than their health. 49% of study participants report having an income reduction as a consequence of the pandemic, but women in all subgroups analyzed are more affected than males. In terms of productivity –working remotely-, educated people, and from 50+ age range, feels more productive working from home. Evidence from this analysis contributes to the broader research of the consequences of COVID-19 on the well-being of the population. Evidence comes from a country in the global South with high population ratings of subjective well-being, happiness, and life satisfaction before the pandemic. 

scholarly journals Perceived changes of specific attitudes, perceptions and behaviors during the Corona pandemic and their relation to wellbeing

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arndt Büssing ◽  
Daniela Rodrigues Recchia ◽  
Rudolf Hein ◽  
Thomas Dienberg
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cronbach’S Alpha ◽  
Satisfaction Scale ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Cronbach's Alpha ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
And Behaviors

Abstract Background During the COVID-19 pandemic, most people had to cope with the restrictions of the lockdown, leaving them to their fears, insecurity and isolation. On the other hand, due to the unexpected ‘extra time’ there was room for new experiences and for personal reflections on what is essential in life, to perceive nature and relations more consciously etc. We, therefore, intended to analyze perceived changes of attitudes and behaviors during the time of lockdown, and whether these perceptions would contribute to personal wellbeing during the pandemic. Methods An anonym cross-sectional online survey was performed for data collection, using standardized questionnaires, i.e., the WHO-Five Well-being Index (WHO-5), Brief Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale (BMLSS), Awe/Gratitude scale (GrAw-7), and the newly developed Perceived Changes Questionnaire (PCQ). Results Within the number of respondents (n = 1277), women were predominating (67.5%). Participants’ mean age was 50.9 ± 14.9 years. Exploratory factor analyses showed that the 24-item Perceived Changes Questionnaire differentiated five factors that would account for 61% of variance: (1) Nature/Silence/Contemplation (Cronbach’s alpha = .87), (2) Spirituality (Cronbach’s alpha = .83), (3) Relationships (Cronbach’s alpha = .80), (4) Reflection on life (Cronbach’s alpha = .74), (5) Digital media usage (Cronbach’s alpha = .74). Strongest changes were observed for Relationships and Nature/Silence/Contemplation. Perceived changes were stronger among older persons, among persons with higher wellbeing, and among those who relied on their faith as a resource. These changes were predicted best by a person’s perception of wondering awe in distinct situations with subsequent feelings of gratitude. Stepwise regression analyzes revealed that participants’ wellbeing was explained best by low perceived burden and high life satisfaction (R2 = .46). Awe/gratitude, perceived changes in terms of Nature/Silence/Contemplation and low Reflections of live are further variables that would predict a person’s wellbeing among the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions During the Corona pandemic, people tried to find ways to adapt to the outcomes of the restrictions. The perceived changes of attitudes and behaviors can be interpreted in terms of a reappraisal strategy. These can be measured with the extended version of the PCQ which was found to have good quality indices and a plausible factor structure. The reported changes contribute to persons’ wellbeing only to some extend, indicating that they represent an independent quality of relevance in peoples’ life.

scholarly journals Heritability of life satisfaction in adults: a twin-family study

2005 ◽  
Vol 35 (11) ◽  
pp. 1581-1588 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. STUBBE ◽  
D. POSTHUMA ◽  
D. I. BOOMSMA ◽  
E. J. C. De GEUS
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Satisfaction With Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Satisfaction With Life Scale ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Dutch Version ◽  
Sibling Pairs ◽  
Genes And Environment

Background. Subjective well-being (SWB) can be partitioned into the components life satisfaction and affect. Research on factors influencing these components of well-being has mainly focused on environmental characteristics. The aim of this study was to investigate the relative contribution of genes and environment to individual differences in life satisfaction in a large sample of Dutch twins and their singleton siblings.Method. Life satisfaction of 5668 subjects registered with The Netherlands Twin Registry (NTR) was measured with a Dutch version of the self-reported Satisfaction with Life Scale. An extended twin design was used to obtain correlations in life satisfaction scores for monozygotic twins, dizygotic twins and sibling pairs and to estimate the contribution of genes and environment to the variation in life satisfaction.Results. No differences between males and females were found in the mean level of life satisfaction. Broad-sense heritability was 38%. Non-additive genetic factors explained all or most of the genetic influences. The remaining 62% of the variance in life satisfaction could be attributed to unique environmental factors, both persistent and transitory, plus measurement error.Conclusions. Individual differences in life satisfaction are determined in part by genetic factors that are largely or entirely non-additive in nature.

scholarly journals Trust and subjective well-being in Serbia during the pandemic: Research results

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 560-582
Author(s):  
Nina Pavlović ◽  
Jasmina Petrović
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Infectious Agent ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Health ◽  
European Social Survey ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Generalized Trust ◽  
European Values

The context of a pandemic caused by an infectious agent and the resulting health risk to a large number of people is a new type of risk contemporary humans are not quite familiar with. In addition to forcing citizens to rely on the effects of controlled medical and epidemiological measures, this kind of situation steers citizens towards cooperation and solidarity as well as towards personal capabilities of functioning during a crisis and it requires a certain degree of trust, not only in the institutions but also in other persons. The aim of this paper is to learn to what degree Serbian citizens trust others during the COVID-19 pandemic and whether this level of generalized trust differs among different sociodemographic groups, or more precisely, which groups were affected the most by the absence of generalized trust. The paper also analyzes a set of variables which are either a part of the concept of subjective well-being (feeling of happiness and life satisfaction) or are closely connected to it (the feeling of control over life, subjective health assessment, and assessments of solidarity and honesty of others). The analyzed data were obtained from a sample of 602 adult Serbian citizens who participated in an online survey in May 2020 by completing a questionnaire they received via e-mail and social networks from multiple access points. These data are compared to the newest available data on the given indicators in Serbia before the pandemic, collected within the European Values Study (EVS) in 2017 and the European Social Survey (ESS) in 2018. The results indicate a significant decrease in happiness and continuously low levels of the feeling of control over life and life satisfaction, but also an increase in the assessed honesty and solidarity of others. These findings are in accordance with the results of the previous studies, which revealed different dominant aspects in the analyzed concepts, leading to their different flexibility and (non)resilience to the changes in society.

scholarly journals Income More Reliably Predicts Frequent than Intense Happiness

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Jachimowicz ◽  
Ruo Mo ◽  
Adam Eric Greenberg ◽  
Bertus F. Jeronimus ◽  
Ashley Whillans
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Lower Income ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Ongoing Debate ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Relationship

There is widespread consensus that income and subjective well-being are linked, but when and why they are connected is subject to ongoing debate. We draw on prior research that distinguishes between the frequency and intensity of happiness to suggest that higher income is more consistently linked to how frequently individuals experience happiness than how intensely happy each episode is. This occurs in part because lower-income individuals spend more time engaged in passive leisure activities, reducing the frequency but not the intensity of positive affect. Notably, we demonstrate that only happiness frequency underlies the relationship between income and life satisfaction. Data from an experience sampling study (N = 394 participants, 34,958 daily responses), a pre-registered cross-sectional study (N = 1,553), and a day reconstruction study (N = 13,437) provide empirical evidence for these ideas. Together, this research provides conceptual and empirical clarity into how income is related to happiness.

scholarly journals Orvosok kiégettségének összefüggése az egészséggel, életérzéssel, alváskörülményekkel

2016 ◽  
Vol 157 (16) ◽  
pp. 623-630
Author(s):  
Anikó Németh
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Sleep Disturbances ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Psychosomatic Symptoms

Introduction: Burnout is common among health care providers and doctors. Aim: The correlations between burnout and health, psychosomatic symptoms, life satisfaction and sleep were investigated. Method: An online quantitative cross-sectional questionnaire was administered to 186 doctors. Burnout was assessed by the means of the 21-item questionnaire of Pines and Aronson (1981). Data were analysed with chi-square probe, Mann-Whitney test, correlational analysis and linear regression. Results: Level of burnout correlated negatively with age (p = 0.040; r = –0.151), years spent in the health care system (p = 0.027; r = –0.162) and positive well-being (p<0.001, r = –0.670), while there was a negative correlation with negative well-being (p<0.001; r = 0.585) and life satisfaction (p<0.001; r = –0.532). Doctors with burnout reported worse health (p<0.001), more frequent psychosomatic symptoms (p<0.001), tumours (p = 0.007), allergies (p = 0.030), psychiatric disorders (p = 0.025) and sleep disturbances. Conclusions: One-third of the doctors were affected by burnout in the present study. Higher age and having more children served as a protective factor. Orv. Hetil., 2016, 157(16), 623–630.

scholarly journals Correlates of Resilience of Older People in Times of Crisis

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 723-723
Author(s):  
Isabelle Albert ◽  
Martine Hoffmann ◽  
Elke Murdock ◽  
Josepha Nell ◽  
Anna Kornadt
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Older People ◽  
Protective Factors ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Risk And Protective Factors ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Secondary Effects ◽  
Age Related

Abstract Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, efforts have been made to shield older adults from exposure to the virus due to an age-related higher risk for severe health outcomes. While a reduction of in-person contacts was necessary in particular during the first months of the pandemic, concerns about the immediate and longer-term secondary effects of these measures on subjective well-being were raised. In the present study, we focused on self-reported resilience of older people in a longitudinal design to examine risk and protective factors in dealing with the restrictions. Data from independently living people aged 60+ in Luxembourg were collected via a telephone/online survey after the first lockdown in June (N = 611) and September/October 2020 (N = 523), just before the second pandemic wave made restrictions necessary again. Overall, results showed an increase in life-satisfaction from T1 to T2, although life-satisfaction was still rated slightly lower than before the crisis. Also, about a fifth of participants indicated at T2 difficulties to recover from the crisis. Participants who reported higher resilience to deal with the Covid-19 crisis at T2 showed higher self-efficacy, agreed more strongly with measures taken by the country and felt better informed about the virus. In contrast, participants who reported more difficulties in dealing with the pandemic, indicated reduced social contacts to family and friends at T2, and also felt lonelier. Results will be discussed applying a life-span developmental and systemic perspective on risk and protective factors in dealing with the secondary impacts of the pandemic.

scholarly journals A life satisfaction approach to valuing the impact of health behaviours on subjective well-being

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yipu Shi ◽  
Craig Joyce ◽  
Ron Wall ◽  
Heather Orpana ◽  
Christina Bancej
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Least Squares Regression ◽  
Market Values ◽  
Intermediate Outcomes ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Increasingly, decision-makers are interested in understanding the returns on investments in programs and policies that promote health and prevent chronic diseases. While the costs of these programs are more easily quantified, many of the outcomes they aspire to achieve are intangible and lack obvious market values. The subjective well-being (SWB) method was developed to value a wide range of non-market goods, including health outcomes directly in monetary terms. This paper presents an application of the SWB approach to estimate the monetary value of health-promoting behaviours as the intermediate outcomes of health promotion and chronic disease prevention programs and policies. Methods Life satisfaction (LS) was used as a proxy of individuals’ SWB. Based on the combined Canadian Community Health Survey 2009–10 data, we modeled LS as a function of income and healthy behaviours, controlling for the socio-demographic factors associated with LS at the individual level using ordinary least squares regression. Equivalent effects of income and healthy behaviours on LS derived from the models allowed us to estimate the trade-off between income and healthy behaviours. Results We found that income and healthy behaviours were positively associated with LS. The values of increased physical activity, an additional daily serving of fruits/vegetables, and not smoking are respectively $631, $115 and $563 per week. These represent the amounts of additional weekly income required to maintain an individual at their level of LS in the absence of each of these behaviours. Conclusions The SWB method holds promise as a method to monetize the value of a range of non-market goods, including healthy behaviours for which market values do not exist. The SWB method can be applied efficiently and cost-effectively using readily available survey data.

scholarly journals Income More Reliably Predicts Frequent Than Intense Happiness

2020 ◽  
pp. 194855062097254
Author(s):  
Jon M. Jachimowicz ◽  
Ruo Mo ◽  
Adam Eric Greenberg ◽  
Bertus Jeronimus ◽  
Ashley V. Whillans
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Lower Income ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Ongoing Debate ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Relationship

There is widespread consensus that income and subjective well-being are linked, but when and why they are connected is subject to ongoing debate. We draw on prior research that distinguishes between the frequency and intensity of happiness to suggest that higher income is more consistently linked to how frequently individuals experience happiness than how intensely happy each episode is. This occurs in part because lower-income individuals spend more time engaged in passive leisure activities, reducing the frequency but not the intensity of positive affect. Notably, we demonstrate that only happiness frequency underlies the relationship between income and life satisfaction. Data from an experience sampling study ( N = 394 participants, 34,958 daily responses), a preregistered cross-sectional study ( N = 1,553), and a day reconstruction study ( N = 13,437) provide empirical evidence for these ideas. Together, this research provides conceptual and empirical clarity into how income is related to happiness.

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