scholarly journals Where Should We Live?

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-31
Author(s):  
Andrew E. Clark
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
Reference Group ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Spatial Segregation ◽  
Location Decisions ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Spatial Spillovers

One of the central topics in recent empirical work on subjective well-being is that of comparisons to a reference group, over a variety of domains of economic and social life. One such reference group is neighbours. Any resulting spatial spillovers that are identified have potential implications for the welfare-maximising degree of spatial segregation. In this paper, we summarise some recent findings with respect to geographical comparisons of income, unemployment, health and religion, and present some new results regarding spatial spillovers in marriage. The resulting predictions regarding spatial segregation differ sharply according to the domain under consideration. While work in this area remains very preliminary, subjective well-being data may well help to both identify spillovers from neighbours, and inform about individuals’ location decisions.

Marital Strain and Support and Subjective Well-Being in Later Life: Ascribing a Role to Childhood Adversity

2021 ◽  
pp. 089826432110486
Author(s):  
Laura Upenieks ◽  
Yingling Liu
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Childhood Adversity ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Marital Support ◽  
Lagged Dependent Variable ◽  
Marital Strain

Objectives: We integrate the life course perspective with the stress-process model to offer a framework for how childhood conditions moderate the relationship between marital support/strain and subjective well-being in older adulthood for men and women. Methods: Drawing on longitudinal data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), we use a series of lagged dependent-variable models and stratify the sample by gender. Results: Our results suggest that the benefits associated with greater marital support are stronger for those that did not live with both parents in childhood for men. Women raised in families that experienced financial hardship reported lower subjective well-being in the context of marital strain. Conclusion: Adverse experiences in childhood can be scarring or foster resilience related to well-being in the context of strained or supportive marriages.

scholarly journals Urban environment and mental health: the NAMED project, protocol for a mixed-method study

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. e031963
Author(s):  
Laura Lauwers ◽  
Sonia Trabelsi ◽  
Ingrid Pelgrims ◽  
Hilde Bastiaens ◽  
Eva De Clercq ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Urban Environment ◽  
Mixed Method ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Residential Environment ◽  
University Hospital ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Wide Audience

IntroductionMental health issues appear as a growing problem in modern societies and tend to be more frequent in big cities. Where increased evidence exists for positive links between nature and mental health, associations between urban environment characteristics and mental health are still not well understood. These associations are highly complex and require an interdisciplinary and integrated research approach to cover the broad range of mitigating factors. This article presents the study protocol of a project called Nature Impact on Mental Health Distribution that aims to generate a comprehensive understanding of associations between mental health and the urban residential environment.Methods and analysisFollowing a mixed-method approach, this project combines quantitative and qualitative research. In the quantitative part, we analyse among the Brussels urban population associations between the urban residential environment and mental health, taking respondents’ socioeconomic status and physical health into account. Mental health is determined by the mental health indicators in the national Health Interview Survey (HIS). The urban residential environment is described by subjective indicators for the participant’s dwelling and neighbourhood present in the HIS and objective indicators for buildings, network infrastructure and green environment developed for the purpose of this project. We assess the mediating role of physical activity, social life, noise and air pollution. In the qualitative part, we conduct walking interviews with Brussels residents to record their subjective well-being in association with their neighbourhood. In the validation part, results from these two approaches are triangulated and evaluated through interviews and focus groups with stakeholders of healthcare and urban planning sectors.Ethics and disseminationThe Privacy Commission of Belgium and ethical committee from University Hospital of Antwerp respectively approved quantitative database merging and qualitative interviewing. We will share project results with a wide audience including the scientific community, policy authorities and civil society through scientific and non-expert communication.

Book Reviews

2009 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 210-213 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Economic History ◽  
Reference Group ◽  
Multidimensional Poverty ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Yale University ◽  
External Effects ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

Timothy W. Guinnane of Yale University reviews “Contours of the World Economy, 1-2030 AD: Essays in Macro-Economic History” by Angus Maddison,. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins “Revised and extended edition examines methods of measuring happiness, focusing on subjective measures as a proxy for welfare and well-being. Discusses the analysis of income satisfaction with an application to family equivalence scales; domain satisfactions; the aggregation of satisfactions--general satisfaction as an aggregate; political satisfaction; males, females, and households; the impact of past and future on present satisfaction; the influence of the reference group on our norms; health and subjective well-being; the effects of climate on welfare and well-being--external effects; how to find compensations for aircraft noise nuisance; taxation and well-being; subjective income inequalities; a generalized approach to subjective inequalities; poverty; and multidimensional poverty. Van Praag is at the University of Amsterdam, the Tinbergen Institute, and SCHOLAR. Ferrer-i-Carbonell is at the Institucio Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avancats and at the Institut d’ Analisi Economica. Index.”

Book Reviews

2009 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 204-207
Keyword(s):  
Reference Group ◽  
Multidimensional Poverty ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Equivalence Scales ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
External Effects ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Income Satisfaction

Nattavudh Powdthavee of University of York reviews “Happiness Quantified: A Satisfaction Calculus Approach” by Bernard Van Praag, Ada Ferrer-i-Carbonell,. The EconLit Abstract of the reviewed work begins “Revised and extended edition examines methods of measuring happiness, focusing on subjective measures as a proxy for welfare and well-being. Discusses the analysis of income satisfaction with an application to family equivalence scales; domain satisfactions; the aggregation of satisfactions--general satisfaction as an aggregate; political satisfaction; males, females, and households; the impact of past and future on present satisfaction; the influence of the reference group on our norms; health and subjective well-being; the effects of climate on welfare and well-being--external effects; how to find compensations for aircraft noise nuisance; taxation and well-being; subjective income inequalities; a generalized approach to subjective inequalities; poverty; and multidimensional poverty. Van Praag is at the University of Amsterdam, the Tinbergen Institute, and SCHOLAR. Ferrer-i-Carbonell is at the Institucio Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avancats and at the Institut d’ Analisi Economica. Index.”

scholarly journals Subjective Well-being as a Result of the Realization of Projects of the Elderly’s Involvement into the Social Life

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena G. Leontyeva ◽  
Tatiana V. Kalashnikova ◽  
Natalia E. Danilova ◽  
Inna V. Krakovetckaya
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
The Social

scholarly journals The Policy Information Gap and Resettlers’ Well-Being: Evidence from the Anti-Poverty Relocation and Resettlement Program in China

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 2957 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cong Li ◽  
Minglai Li
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Information Acquisition ◽  
Reference Group ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Information Gap ◽  
Policy Information ◽  
Implementation Stages ◽  
The Impact

The widespread dissemination of policy information is necessary for the success of the public policy, but the distribution of information among vulnerable groups has received little attention. We examined a public policy that focuses on the poorest people in China, the anti-poverty relocation and settlement program (ARSP). The infrastructure in the region where the policy is implemented is weak, and the information literacy of resettlers is low. This study analyses the impact of the policy information gap on the subjective well-being of resettlers. We found that the distribution of policy information among the poor is uneven, and the resettlers compare the policy information they obtain with a reference group (working-age people and less-educated people in the same village/community) to generate a policy information gap. The policy information gap indirectly affects subjective well-being by affecting the probability that people will be exposed to risks due to policy. As the policy information gap increases, the subjective well-being of resettlers changes in an inverted U-shape. This impact varies significantly among different groups, policy implementation stages, and resettlement methods. Attention should be paid to the information acquisition ability of the vulnerable groups and the welfare effects of social comparison, and to improve the method of publicizing policy information, which helps to improve the well-being of resettlers.

scholarly journals Social capital, social participation and life satisfaction among Chilean older adults

2014 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 739-749 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Soledad Herrera Ponce ◽  
Raúl Pedro Elgueta Rosas ◽  
María Beatriz Fernández Lorca
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Capital ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Social Participation ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Major Determinant ◽  
Steady Increase ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Logistic Regression Models

OBJECTIVE To examine factors associated with social participation and their relationship with self-perceived well-being in older adults. METHODS This study was based on data obtained from the National Socioeconomic Characterization (CASEN) Survey conducted in Chile, in 2011, on a probability sample of households. We examined information of 31,428 older adults living in these households. Descriptive and explanatory analyses were performed using linear and multivariate logistic regression models. We assessed the respondents’ participation in different types of associations: egotropic, sociotropic, and religious. RESULTS Social participation increased with advancing age and then declined after the age of 80. The main finding of this study was that family social capital is a major determinant of social participation of older adults. Their involvement was associated with high levels of self-perceived subjective well-being. We identified four settings as sources of social participation: home-based; rural community-based; social policy programs; and religious. Older adults were significantly more likely to participate when other members of the household were also involved in social activities evidencing an intergenerational transmission of social participation. Rural communities, especially territorial associations, were the most favorable setting for participation. There has been a steady increase in the rates of involvement of older adults in social groups in Chile, especially after retirement. Religiosity remains a major determinant of associativism. The proportion of participation was higher among older women than men but these proportions equaled after the age of 80. CONCLUSIONS Self-perceived subjective well-being is not only dependent upon objective factors such as health and income, but is also dependent upon active participation in social life, measured as participation in associations, though its effects are moderate.

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