The Impact of the Great Recession on Well-Being across Europe Ten Years On: A Cluster Analysis

Abstract

To evaluate variations in the well-being dimensions of European citizens, we rely upon Principal Component Analysis methodology, whereby a large set of interrelated indicators are reduced to a small number of aggregate synthetic variables. We find that the 2008 crisis impinged differently on the various dimensions of well-being. The evolution of the indicators has affected different clusters of countries in various ways. Most importantly, we observe that there has been a shift of the principal component from the poor in terms of material deprivation to the risk of poverty for the worsening conditions in the labor market.