Journal of Happiness Studies最新文献

An individual's financial situation positively impacts her subjective well-being (SWB) according to the literature. However, most existing studies focus solely on income, neglecting other aspects of an individual's financial situation such as wealth. In this paper, we empirically examine the relationship between SWB, income, household wealth, and its components. Additionally, we explore the significance of one's wealth relative to others' for SWB. Our contribution expands the limited literature on absolute and relative wealth and SWB by utilizing unique microdata from a German wealth survey, the German Panel on Household Finances (PHF). Our findings indicate that both assets and debts, alongside income, are associated with an individual's SWB. In particular, a similar relative increase in financial assets is associated with a greater increase in SWB than the same percentage increase in real assets, and SWB decreases as the level of unsecured debt increases. Furthermore, individuals tend to experience decreased SWB when comparing themselves to others with more assets or less debt. Interestingly, we observe divergent effects of relative wealth on SWB among younger and older individuals. These results underscore the significance of considering wealth, in addition to income, when analyzing determinants of SWB.

A well-known finding in the happiness literature is that Latin Americans report, on average, high happiness. It is not only high, but higher than expected for their socioeconomic situation, as portrayed by commonly used indicators. High happiness in Latin America is a puzzle, and some scholars consider it a paradox, which calls for new and fresh research to understand high happiness in the region. In fact, the high-happiness-in-Latin-America phenomenon constitutes an excellent opportunity to further understand the drivers of happiness, as well as to highlight some drivers that have not received the attention they deserve. This paper argues, and empirically shows, that person-based interpersonal relationships are important in explaining people’s happiness, that they are abundant in Latin America, and that they are uncorrelated with income. In consequence, it is reasonable to observe high happiness in Latin America, as well as happiness that is higher than what would be predicted according to socioeconomic indicators. The empirical analyses are based on information from three high-happiness Latin American countries. Abundance and good quality of interpersonal relationships positively impact on affective and evaluative experiences of being well, as well as on life satisfaction. The Latin American phenomenon indicates that the interpersonal relationships people create and maintain in their journey of life are fundamental for their happiness. Person-based interpersonal relationships allow for the joint enjoyment of life.

In this study, we aimed to investigate the impact of indirect gratitude experience on life satisfaction and perceived social support. The participants included 68 adults (33 males and 35 females) who were assigned to a direct gratitude group, an indirect gratitude group, or a control group for a 6-day writing intervention. This study shows that gratitude treatment, including direct and indirect gratitude, significantly increases life satisfaction and perceived social support levels in the direct and indirect gratitude groups compared to the control group. There was no significant difference in life satisfaction and social support between the direct and indirect gratitude groups. In addition, changes in the measured values of direct and indirect gratitude before and after the intervention were significant in both life satisfaction and perceived social support, indicating that just reading or seeing other people’s gratitude experiences enhances the feeling of gratitude and its psychological effects. Finally, the limitations of this study and suggestions are discussed.

In spite of extensive research that links the absence of pain with happiness, it remains puzzling why possessing beliefs equating the absence of pain with happiness (negative hedonic beliefs) undermine experienced happiness and what underlying mechanisms can explain this paradox. We conducted five studies to address these questions. The participants who had more negative hedonic beliefs exhibited decreased well-being, including subjective well-being and psychological well-being, alongside heightened depression and physical symptoms (Study 1a), an effect that persisted after controlling for behavioral inhibition/activation systems (Study 1b). Hypersensitivity to negative experiences, which reflects a reduced inclination to engage in negative experiences, even when positives exist, mediated the links between negative hedonic beliefs and poor well-being both cross-sectionally (Study 2) and longitudinally (Study 3). Moreover, the propensity to avoid negative experiences was observed in behavioral intention, primarily due to heightened anticipated negative affect when an event was manipulated to include negative aspects (Study 4). Together, the effort to eliminate negative experiences, as adhered to by individuals with negative hedonic beliefs, tends to prevent them from recognizing the potential benefits of unpleasant experiences, inadvertently depriving themselves of opportunities for the enhancement of their well-being.

Research has shown that curiosity plays a crucial role in human performance and well-being. Based on multi-dimensional models of curiosity, we examined potential underlying mechanisms for this relationship. Extending prior research, we expected state and trait variants of curiosity to predict more challenge and less threat appraisals for novel tasks (i.e., joyous exploration dimension), stronger dissatisfaction when denied opportunities to do something interesting (i.e., deprivation sensitivity dimension), and persist longer under stress states (i.e., stress tolerance). We asked 123 participants to prepare and deliver a speech titled "Why are you a good friend?" After preparation, participants were informed that they were randomly selected not to perform the task. Throughout the experiment, we recorded heart rate reactivity as a physiological indicator of task engagement. We found that individuals curious about the upcoming task felt more challenged, less threatened, and presented longer physiological engagement than less curious individuals. Curious individuals expressed more disappointment about the missed opportunity to deliver the speech. In summary, this study revealed theoretically derived mechanisms that partially account for associations between curiosity and positive life outcomes while also indicating adverse effects.

The subjective well-being (SWB) method has become a popular tool to estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) for non-market goods using widely available well-being data. In this method, the WTP measure contains the ratio of two coefficients (of the non-market good and consumption), which are both estimated in a regression on SWB. Computing confidence intervals for such ratios turns out to be error-prone, in particular when the consumption coefficient is imprecisely estimated. Even though this problem is known, many studies either do not report imprecision in the final estimate, or use inadequate methods. This paper compares five different methods to compute confidence intervals for normal ratio distributions: the delta, Fieller, parametric bootstrapping, and bootstrapping method, and a numerical integration of Hinkley’s formula. In a simulation, a large number of emulated SWB data sets are generated to calculate confidence intervals for WTP and the corresponding coverage rates with each method. The findings suggest that the delta method is the least accurate and not robust to lowering the statistical power or changing correlations between the estimators. All other methods are fairly accurate, robust, and can be recommended for use.

Understanding well-being’s complexities, including its subjective and context-dependent nature, is crucial for informing policy decisions and development interventions aimed at enhancing quality of life and reducing poverty. Unfortunately, subjective well-being (SWB) research, particularly in the context of Global South, has received relatively less attention, despite its fundamental importance in the field of human development. This research aims to contribute to the discussion on SWB by examining its association with diverse forms of inequalities and deprivations. Specifically, we investigate the impact of these deprivations, both at the societal and intra-household levels, on SWB among the rural population of the Western Province in Zambia. The study underscores low levels of SWB in the surveyed area. It reveals the impact of intra-household inequalities, demonstrating that the presence of a more educated individual in the household positively affects well-being. On the other hand, having responsibilities related to decision-making power within households diminishes SWB, probably due to related stress and anxiety. As expected, limited access to resources in the household also negatively affects SWB. Our main finding in the realm of societal inequalities revolves around the assertion that fostering social capital through active participation in formal or informal groups significantly enhances SWB. Empowering individuals through education and knowledge sharing, and promoting inclusivity and diversity in social interactions are key strategies that policymakers can adopt to enhance SWB in the Muoyo-Mukukutu area and similar regions.

The study presents an application of Latent Profile Analysis to sustain the existence of different profiles of meaning-making (i.e., the process of searching and finding meaning in life) within the late adolescent’s population, and to investigate the role of resilience in predicting profiles’ belonginess. 943 Italian senior high-school students (52% females) were clustered into two adaptive profiles, highly-engaged (high presence, average search) and balanced (average presence and search), and two maladaptive profiles, frustrated (average presence, high search) and disengaged (low presence and search). A multinomial logistic regression revealed that adolescents with robust resilience skills were more likely to show adaptive profiles, and less likely to fall into the disengaged group, suggesting that individuals with higher resilience are more prone to engage in search for meaning even when they perceive a lack of presence of meaning. Findings contribute to a nuanced understanding of meaning-making, calling the development of personalized interventions to foster adolescents’ ability to navigate life challenges during their transition toward adulthood.

This study aimed to estimate (a) trajectories of life satisfaction before and after housing relocation and (b) how changes in housing tenure at the time of relocation affect life satisfaction trajectories. Using data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study spanning 2006 to 2021 (N = 9,369), we examined the anticipatory, immediate, and long-term impacts of housing relocation on life satisfaction. We employed individual-level fixed effects models. This study also conducted housing tenure-stratified analysis to determine whether changes in tenure at the time of relocation affect the longitudinal association between housing relocation and life satisfaction. Our study found that life satisfaction decreased in the year leading up to housing relocation but showed an immediate increase during the relocation year. However, this rebound did not result in a long-term improvement, as life satisfaction eventually returned to baseline levels. Regarding housing tenure changes, persistent owner-occupiers experienced an immediate increase in life satisfaction during the year of relocation, while persistent renters did not experience any significant changes in life satisfaction before or after relocation. Individuals transitioning from renters to owner-occupiers reported higher levels of life satisfaction both before and after relocation. In contrast, those transitioning from owner-occupiers to renters experienced a decline in life satisfaction before relocation, with no significant changes in the year of relocation or afterward. These findings highlight the varying impacts of housing relocation on life satisfaction, influenced by changes in housing tenure.

Positive psychological therapy has been found to be effective in psychological health in the broader cancer patient population. However, specific evidence regarding its effectiveness for adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients remains limited. More research is needed to determine the optimal approaches for alleviating distress in this particular group. We evaluated the efficacy of character strength-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CS-CBT) versus cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for distress in AYA patients with cancer. In a randomized controlled three-arm trial, cancer patients aged 15-39 years were assigned to one of three groups using a random number table to ensure equal group sizes: (1) CS-CBT, which incorporated specific exercises focused on identifying and utilizing character strengths within the CBT framework; (2) CBT; or (3) control group. The primary outcome was improvement in patients’ overall mental health on the Distress Thermometer and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale 3 months after assignment to the groups. Analyses used generalized estimating equations. A total of 162 AYAs were randomly and equally assigned to three groups. Improvements in primary outcomes were significantly greater after CS-CBT than after CBT, and no significant differences were found between the CBT and control group. Among all primary and secondary outcomes, the only non-significant difference found was in quality of life with CS-CBT compared to CBT. AYA cancer patients rated their overall mental health and sense of thriving as more improved after CS-CBT than after CBT. However, quality-of-life indicators supported equal intervention effects in both groups. These findings support the effectiveness of the use of CS-CBT intervention in reducing distress and improving thriving.