Remittances and subjective well-being: A static versus dynamic panel approach to happiness

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mduduzi Biyase ◽  
Bianca Fisher ◽  
Marinda Pretorius
Keyword(s):  
Instrumental Variable ◽  
National Income ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Income Dynamics ◽  
Dynamic Panel ◽  
The Past ◽  
Static Versus Dynamic ◽  
Dynamic Panel Models

Using all five waves of the National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) panel dataset, we examine the effect of domestic remittances on the static and dynamic subjective well-being (SWB) of recipient individuals in South Africa, by using a random effects ordered probit model that accounts for individual heterogeneity. Moreover, we check the robustness of our static model results by making use of an instrumental variable for migrants’ remittances. Two major empirical findings emerge from this paper: firstly, domestic remittances are consistently found to have a positive and statistically significant impact on the happiness of recipient individuals. Moreover, this finding persists in both the static and dynamic panel models. Secondly, the coefficient on lagged SWB (derived from the dynamic model) is found to be positive and statistically significant, confirming that SWB today is significantly influenced by SWB in the past.

scholarly journals The determinants of subjective well-being in South Africa: An exploratory enquiry

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derick Blaauw ◽  
Anmar Pretorius
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
National Income ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Ordered Probit ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Income Dynamics ◽  
Number Of Children ◽  
Developed World

The study of subjective well-being is no longer on the periphery of study in the field of economics. A significant body of literature exists on the determinants of subjective well-being in the developed world. This paper uses the first wave of the National Income Dynamics Survey (NIDS) dataset to investigate the determinants of subjective well-being in South Africa, involving a broad range of economic, socio-economic and attitudinal variables identified from literature. Ordinary Least Squares and ordered probit estimations reveal that age, race, level of income, years of education, gender, marital status and the number of children explain varying levels of well-being. Unlike studies in the developed world, respondents’ height, health and residence in urban areas do not explain well-being. Two of the surprising findings point towards the significant influence of religion and provincial location in determining well-being in South Africa.

scholarly journals Psychocapital and Shangri-Las: How happiness became both a means and end to governmentality

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Mckay
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
The Past ◽  
Means And Ends ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Mental Well Being ◽  
Politics Of Happiness

In this paper a paradox is revealed in the politics of well-being over the means and ends of happiness. That paradox, in brief, is that although happiness is argued to be the ultimate end of all governmentality, in order to serve as that end, it first needs to be translated into a means for bolstering the economy, for only that way can a teleology of happiness gain a foothold in a world which prioritizes economic growth as an end in itself. To show this the paper gives a history of subjective well-being (SWB) research, and contrasts it with the politics of happiness in the UK, where SWB has in the past decade been translated into a discourse around the psychological wealth of the nation via the concepts of mental capital (MC) and mental well-being (MWB).

scholarly journals Advances and Open Questions in the Science of Subjective Well-Being

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ed Diener ◽  
Richard E. Lucas ◽  
Shigehiro Oishi
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Experimental Designs ◽  
Active Area ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
National Accounts ◽  
Policy Decisions ◽  
The Past ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
Process Oriented

Subjective well-being (SWB) is an extremely active area of research with about 170,000 articles and books published on the topic in the past 15 years. Methodological and theoretical advances have been notable in this period of time, with the increasing use of longitudinal and experimental designs allowing for a greater understanding of the predictors and outcomes that relate to SWB, along with the process that underlie these associations. In addition, theories about these processes have become more intricate, as findings reveal that many associations with SWB depend on people’s culture and values and the context in which they live. This review provides an overview of many major areas of research, including the measurement of SWB, the demographic and personality-based predictors of SWB, and process-oriented accounts of individual differences in SWB. In addition, because a major new focus in recent years has been the development of national accounts of subjective well-being, we also review attempts to use SWB measures to guide policy decisions.

Standing in the glory or shadow of the past self: Cultures differ in how much the past self affects current subjective well-being.

Emotion ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1111-1117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young-Hoon Kim ◽  
Huajian Cai ◽  
Matthew Gilliland ◽  
Chi-Yue Chiu ◽  
Stephen Xia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
The Past

scholarly journals A Study on the Influence of Socioeconomic Status on Residents’ Subjective Well-being Based on an Empirical Analysis of CGSS2015 Data

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 196-200
Author(s):  
Jinhua Guo
Keyword(s):  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Social Services ◽  
General Social Survey ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Subjective Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Data Regression

Residents’ happiness is an important indicator of a country’s development and a key issue of social concern. In this paper, we found that residents’ socioeconomic status has a significant positive effect on subjective well-being based on the 2015 China General Social Survey data, regression using ordinary least squares (OLS) model and ordered probit model. In addition, marital status, social equity, and other aspects also have an impact on subjective well-being. Based on this, measures such as increasing residents’ income, increasing investment in education, and increasing social services to improve residents’ subjective socioeconomic status are proposed to improve people’s livelihood and play the role of economic and social status in improving residents’ subjective well-being. 

scholarly journals From Data to Causes I: Building A General Cross-Lagged Panel Model (GCLM)

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 651-687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Zyphur ◽  
Paul D. Allison ◽  
Louis Tay ◽  
Manuel C. Voelkle ◽  
Kristopher J. Preacher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Causal Inference ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
National Income ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Panel Model ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Short Run

This is the first paper in a series of two that synthesizes, compares, and extends methods for causal inference with longitudinal panel data in a structural equation modeling (SEM) framework. Starting with a cross-lagged approach, this paper builds a general cross-lagged panel model (GCLM) with parameters to account for stable factors while increasing the range of dynamic processes that can be modeled. We illustrate the GCLM by examining the relationship between national income and subjective well-being (SWB), showing how to examine hypotheses about short-run (via Granger-Sims tests) versus long-run effects (via impulse responses). When controlling for stable factors, we find no short-run or long-run effects among these variables, showing national SWB to be relatively stable, whereas income is less so. Our second paper addresses the differences between the GCLM and other methods. Online Supplementary Materials offer an Excel file automating GCLM input for Mplus (with an example also for Lavaan in R) and analyses using additional data sets and all program input/output. We also offer an introductory GCLM presentation at https://youtu.be/tHnnaRNPbXs . We conclude with a discussion of issues surrounding causal inference.

scholarly journals Income Trajectories and Subjective Well-Being: Linking Administrative Records and Survey Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (23) ◽  
pp. 4779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Schöllgen ◽  
Kersten ◽  
Rose
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Income Dynamics ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Affect Balance ◽  
Administrative Records ◽  
Representative Study ◽  
Income Development ◽  
Nationally Representative

An association between income and life satisfaction has been well documented, however, little is known of how income trajectories affect different facets of subjective well-being (SWB). The aim of this study was to examine how several aspects of income dynamics are related to life satisfaction and affect balance. Longitudinal information on income from administrative records covering 13 years (1999–2011) is linked to cross-sectional data on SWB collected in 2011/12 from the nationally representative Study on Mental Health at Work (S-MGA; n = 3364). Parameters from subject-specific regression analyses of income over time were used as indicators of income development in regressions over all participants, conducted separately for men and women. Associations between income and life satisfaction were stronger and more consistent than associations between income and affect balance. Major findings were that longer-term income change was more strongly related to SWB than current deviation from expected income. Higher stability in income development was associated with higher SWB. A higher share of income from benefits predicted lower life satisfaction and a more negative affect balance. Our results show the importance of examining income trajectories and taking into account source of income to gain a more differentiated view on the income-SWB association.

scholarly journals Relative Income, Happiness, and Utility: An Explanation for the Easterlin Paradox and Other Puzzles

2008 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew E Clark ◽  
Paul Frijters ◽  
Michael A Shields
Keyword(s):  
Utility Function ◽  
Relative Income ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Thomas Carlyle ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Easterlin Paradox ◽  
The Past ◽  
Average Happiness ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
And Migration

The well-known Easterlin paradox points out that average happiness has remained constant over time despite sharp rises in GNP per head. At the same time, a micro literature has typically found positive correlations between individual income and individual measures of subjective well-being. This paper suggests that these two findings are consistent with the presence of relative income terms in the utility function. Income may be evaluated relative to others (social comparison) or to oneself in the past (habituation). We review the evidence on relative income from the subjective well-being literature. We also discuss the relation (or not) between happiness and utility, and discuss some nonhappiness research (behavioral, experimental, neurological) related to income comparisons. We last consider how relative income in the utility function can affect economic models of behavior in the domains of consumption, investment, economic growth, savings, taxation, labor supply, wages, and migration. Every pitifulest whipster that walks within a skin has had his head filled with the notion that he is, shall be, or by all human and divine laws ought to be, “happy.” Thomas Carlyle

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