Social Capital and Happiness: Additional Cross-Country Evidence

Using several different samples, model specifications, and variable proxies, this study revisits the role of social capital in generating life satisfaction (happiness). The main outcome of the exercise is that the parameter for social capital (generalized trust) is extremely fragile, and most estimates show little significant role of social capital in generating happiness. Six additional points are noted. First, the role of income seems generally positive and significant. Second, there are marked parametric differences between high-income and low-income subgroups, but it is difficult to say whether social capital or income is more important in either group. Third, significance of income inequality and of inflation vary considerably across the models and the samples, but their association with happiness is generally weak. Fourth, two measures of happiness (life satisfaction) yield similar sets of estimates. Fifth, there is some indication that “transition” economies are marked by lower happiness while Latin American countries are generally happier. Last, a reasonable test indicates absence of any significant specification error and mitigates worries about possible endogeneities.     

Life Satisfaction Among Rural Low-Income Mothers: The Influence of Health, Human, Personal, and Social Capital

The satisfaction with life among rural low-income mothers was assessed using a sample of 163 mothers who participated in a multi-state, three-year longitudinal study. Dependent variables included those that represented various forms of capital (health, human, personal and social) as well as the mothers’ levels of life satisfaction from prior years. Nearly two-thirds of the rural mothers were satisfied with their life in all three years. Their level of satisfaction appeared to be constant, however, such persistence had a time frame of only one year. The variables that affected their satisfaction with life were symptoms of risk of depression (health capital) and income adequacy (personal capital). These findings provide important insight on a marginalized, yet often overlooked, population.     

Social Capital, Social Networks, and Political Participation

Social Capital is created through the patterns of interdependence andsocial interaction that occur within a population, and we attempt to understand the participatory consequences of these patterns relative to the effects of human capital and organizational involvement. The production of social capital in personal networks was examined with the use of social network and participation data from the 1992 American study of the Cross National Election Project. The results suggest that politically relevant social capital (that is, social capital that facilitates political engagement) is generated in personal networks, that it is a by-product of the social interactions with a citizen's discussants, and that increasing levels of politically relevant social capital enhance the likelihood that a citizen will be engaged in politics. Further, the production of politically relevant social capital is a function of the political expertise within an individual's network of relations, the frequency of political interaction within the network, and the size or extensiveness of the network. These results are sustained even while taking account of a person's individual characteristics and organizational involvement. Hence, the consequences of social relations within networks are not readily explained away on the basis of either human capital effects or the effects of organizational engagement.     

The Relationship Between Orientations to Happiness and Job Satisfaction One Year Later in a Representative Sample of Employees in Switzerland

There are three different routes to happiness: the pleasant life, the good or engaged life, and the meaningful life. These three orientations are positively related with life satisfaction, but the relation with job satisfaction is still not clear. This study examines the relationship between the three orientations to happiness (OTH) and job satisfaction in a 1-year longitudinal study with a representative sample (N = 752, 387 men) of working adults living in Switzerland. This study is part of a larger survey that includes several self-report measures. Regression analyses showed that engagement was positively related with job satisfaction 1 year later. Moreover, when controlling for sociodemographic variables (i.e., age and gender), work-related variables (i.e., household income, managerial responsibility, and financial responsibility), and the five factors of personality (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness) the interaction of the three OTH (i.e., pleasure × engagement × meaning), still predicted job satisfaction significantly. Individuals who endorse the three OTH presented the highest job satisfaction 1 year later. Therefore, although engagement is more important for job satisfaction than pleasure or meaning, the best predictor of job satisfaction is the interaction of the three OTH. Thus, people who are high in the three OTH simultaneously enjoy the highest job satisfaction. Future studies should examine whether this relationship is causal.     

Well‐being and the anticipation of future positive experiences: The role of income,social networks,and planning ability

The present study aims to answer two questions: (1) are expectations of future positive experiences related to well‐being in the general population?; and (2) what factors (social, psychological, economic) enable people to have expectations of future positive experiences. A community sample (N = 84) was assessed on a measure of anticipation of future positive and negative experiences, factors that might enable positive anticipation (measures of income, social networks, planning ability, and affective capacity) and measures of subjective well‐being (positive and negative affect and life satisfaction). Subjective well‐being was related to having more anticipated positive experiences, which was in turn related to having a large social network, having a high number of steps in plans to achieve goals, and, more marginally, to having a high household income.     

Well-being and the anticipation of future positive experiences: The role of income, social networks, and planning ability

The present study aims to answer two questions: (1) are expectations of future positive experiences related to well-being in the general population?; and (2) what factors (social, psychological, economic) enable people to have expectations of future positive experiences. A community sample (N = 84) was assessed on a measure of anticipation of future positive and negative experiences, factors that might enable positive anticipation (measures of income, social networks, planning ability, and affective capacity) and measures of subjective well-being (positive and negative affect and life satisfaction). Subjective well-being was related to having more anticipated positive experiences, which was in turn related to having a large social network, having a high number of steps in plans to achieve goals, and, more marginally, to having a high household income.     

社交网站使用与青少年生活满意度的关系:一个有调节的中介模型

为探讨社交网站使用、线上社会资本、自尊与青少年生活满意度的关系,本研究在社会资本理论及自尊的社会计量器理论的基础上,构建了一个有调节的中介模型。采用社交网站使用强度问卷、线上社会资本问卷、自尊量表以及生活满意度问卷对初（1）到高（3）六个年级的1368名中学生（M=14.63岁,SD=1.75）进行调查研究,结果显示：（1）社交网站使用强度与线上黏接/桥接型社会资本和生活满意度均呈显著正相关;线上黏接型社会资本与自尊、生活满意度均呈显著正相关;线上桥接型社会资本与自尊呈显著正相关,与生活满意度的相关不显著;自尊与生活满意度呈显著正相关。（2）线上黏接型社会资本能够在社交网站使用强度与生活满意度的关系中起部分中介作用。（3）社交网站使用对生活满意度的直接预测作用及线上黏接型社会资本的中介效应会受到自尊的调节,相对于自尊水平低的青少年,社交网站使用更有利于高自尊个体获得线上黏接型社会资本、提升生活满意度。研究结果不仅有利于从社会资本理论及自尊的社会计量器理论视角理解社交网站使用与青少年生活满意度的关系,而且对引导青少年获取社会资本、提升生活满意度具有启示意义。     

Domain-Based and Overall Life Satisfaction for Youth with Chronic Conditions: The Role of Personal,Interpersonal, and Environmental Factors Over a One-Year Period

This paper examined the differential influences of personal, interpersonal, and environmental level factors on domain-based and overall life satisfaction over one year for youth with chronic health conditions. Baseline and Time 2 follow-up data were used from a study examining quality of life for a sample of 439 youth with chronic conditions, aged 11 to 17 years. The Brief Multidimensional Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale measured youths’ life satisfaction in five domains (i.e., satisfaction with self, family life, friendships, school experiences, where one lives) and in overall life. Six multivariate linear regression analyses were performed, each exploring relations of the hypothesized correlates at baseline with one aspect of life satisfaction at follow-up controlling for youth gender, age, household income, and the corresponding aspect of life satisfaction at baseline. Factors at all three levels were found to be important to some aspect of life satisfaction. Emotional well-being played a notable role in life satisfaction across multiple domains and in overall life satisfaction. Family-related factors were also significantly related to life satisfaction across several domains. Social support from close friends and teachers and the school environment were important to specific domains of life satisfaction. Classmate social support emerged as a key factor related to overall life satisfaction. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

A Population-Based Study of Children’s Well-Being and Health: The Relative Importance of Social Relationships,Health-Related Activities,and Income

This study investigated how various risk and protective factors interface with child health and well-being at the population level. Specifically, we examined the association of income, social-contextual variables, and indicators of health-related habits and activities to children’s life satisfaction and perceived overall health. Child data were collected via a self-report survey, the Middle Years Development Instrument, which was administered in three demographically diverse Canadian school districts to 5026 grade 4 students (83 % of the students had complete data and were included in the analyses). Multiple regression and mediation analyses were conducted to examine the joint associations of social relationships with adults and peers, nutrition and sleep habits, and after school sports activities with children’s satisfaction with life and perceived health. Results indicate that peer belonging and relationships with adults at home and school were the strongest predictors of life satisfaction. Furthermore, the (small) association between income and life satisfaction was mediated by social relationship variables. Child reports of perceived health were predicted by peer belonging, adult relationships (home, school, neighborhood), after-school team sports, and nutrition habits. The (small) association between income and health was mediated by social relationships and team sports participation. Findings are discussed in light of previous research on social determinants and socio-economic gradients of children’s health and life satisfaction.     

Income,Motivation, and Satisfaction with Life: An Empirical Analysis

This paper focuses on how different types of motivations can condition satisfaction with life, studying whether individual heterogeneity in motivations affects the relationship between income and life satisfaction and whether the relationship between motivation and satisfaction differs for people in different income-groups. Data used in this study comes from the World Values Survey and the focus is placed on the relationship between income, motivation and satisfaction with life. Once variables such as gender, age, religion, health or education are controlled for, we find that different motivations significantly affect individual wellbeing. Moreover, our results suggest that moving from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation leads individuals to enjoy greater satisfaction with life. This is so independent of the level of income, but the role of intrinsic motivation is particularly significant for people in the low-income class. Life satisfaction also increases, within extrinsic motivation, when moving from importance placed on a good income to focusing on security and, within intrinsic motivation, when moving from emphasis placed on social relatedness to an increased feeling of accomplishment. Overall, our results suggest that different goals and intended outcomes condition individual’s perceptions of wellbeing, with intrinsic motivations being crucial in attaining greater levels of satisfaction with life.     

A Study on the Linkages between Residential Satisfaction and the Overall Quality of Life in Bandar Tun Razak Area of Kuala Lumpur City,Malaysia

This paper provides an assessment of the links between residential satisfaction with the housing sector and the overall quality of life (QOL) in Bandar Tun Razak area (BTR). As the QOL concept is multidimensional, five domains were selected to measure the overall QOL namely; economic capacity, safety condition, social involvement and community participation, physical and emotional health, and spiritual life. While for the housing sector, the study involved 32 indicators that cover the different housing features. Besides, In order to obtain a representative sample, a stratified convenient sampling was employed and 331 questionnaires were collected. The findings show that respondents were slightly unsatisfied with safety condition and economic capacity, whereas they were only slightly satisfied with social and community participation which require further attention to the improvement of these three domains. Moreover, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was applied on the housing indicators resulting in the extraction of five factors which are: housing size, neighbourhood quality, public facilities, housing suitability, and housing quality. Among these five factors, it was found that the housing size affects the overall residential satisfaction highly. Eventually, a path diagram was employed to measure links between the housing sub-domains and QOL domains. The results show that the housing size and public facilities influence the economic capacity domain effectively. While the neighbourhood quality and housing suitability affect both safety condition and social and community participation domains.     

Well-Being and Trust in the Workplace

This paper uses life satisfaction regressions based on three surveys in two countries (Canada and the United States) to estimate the relative values of financial and non-financial job characteristics. The well-being results show strikingly large values for non-financial job characteristics, especially workplace trust and other measures of the quality of social capital in workplaces. For example, an increase of trust in management that is about one tenth of the scale has a value in terms of life satisfaction equivalent to an increase of more than 30% in monetary income. We find that these values differ significantly by gender and by union status. We consider the reasons for such large values, and explore their implications for employers, employees, and policy-makers.     

Social capital, self-esteem, and use of online social network sites: A longitudinal analysis

A longitudinal analysis of panel data from users of a popular online social network site, Facebook, investigated the relationship between intensity of Facebook use, measures of psychological well-being, and bridging social capital. Two surveys conducted a year apart at a large U.S. university, complemented with in-depth interviews with 18 Facebook users, provide the study data. Intensity of Facebook use in year one strongly predicted bridging social capital outcomes in year two, even after controlling for measures of self-esteem and satisfaction with life. These latter psychological variables were also strongly associated with social capital outcomes. Self-esteem served to moderate the relationship between Facebook usage intensity and bridging social capital: those with lower self-esteem gained more from their use of Facebook in terms of bridging social capital than higher self-esteem participants. We suggest that Facebook affordances help reduce barriers that lower self-esteem students might experience in forming the kinds of large, heterogeneous networks that are sources of bridging social capital.     

Intra-Household Arrangements and Economic Satisfaction

This paper studies the nature of intra-household arrangements in Mexico on the basis of the relationship between a person’s economic satisfaction and her household income. It also studies different theories of the family. The main results support the argument that Mexican families are mostly altruistic and communitarian, with the evidence rejecting a cooperative-bargaining model in Mexican families. Special consideration is given to the situation in low-income families, where marginalization from the household’s economic resources may expose a person to substantially severe economic deprivation. Intra-household arrangements may vary across countries and cultures. Thus, their understanding is crucial for making cross-country comparisons based on household income and per-capita income measures.     

Religiosity and life satisfaction across nations

This paper investigates the relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction in 79 nations using World Values Survey data. Extant literature analyzes religiosity and life satisfaction at person level. But religiosity is an attribute of both, persons and societies. To solve methodological problems evident in previous work a random coefficient multilevel model is employed to account for the fact that individuals are nested within countries. This study shows that the relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction is bimodal. Religious people tend to be either very satisfied or dissatisfied with life. The relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction is also two-dimensional. Forms of religiosity that promote social capital predict high life satisfaction. People have so called “need to belong” and religion helps to satisfy it. On the other hand, forms of religiosity that do not promote social capital do not predict high life satisfaction. Religiosity is also context-dependent. Religious people are happier in religious nations. In other words, it is not only religiosity per se that makes people happy, but rather a social setting it offers.     

被动性社交网站使用与主观幸福感的关系:中介效应分析

为探讨被动性社交网站使用行为、上行社会比较与主观幸福感的两个成分——情绪和生活满意度的关系,采用问卷法对1168名大学生进行调查。结果发现:(1)被动性社交网站使用与上行社会比较和消极情绪显著正相关,与积极情绪以及生活满意度显著负相关;上行社会比较与积极情绪以及生活满意度都呈显著负相关,与消极情绪显著正相关;积极情绪与生活满意度显著正相关;消极情绪与生活满意度显著负相关;(2)被动性社交网站使用对情绪和生活满意度都没有直接的预测作用,但能通过上行社会比较的中介作用预测积极情绪、消极情绪和生活满意度;(3)被动性社交网站使用还可以通过两条链式中介作用预测生活满意度:通过上行社会比较和积极情绪的链式中介作用;通过上行社会比较和消极情绪的链式中介作用。研究结果进一步揭示了被动性社交网站使用与主观幸福感的关系及其作用机制,能为网络时代个体维护和提升主观幸福感提供有益启示。     

Close Social Ties,Socioeconomic Diversity and Social Capital in US Congregations

This paper explores how various types of in-church close social ties of worshipers, socio-economic homogeneity of congregations and sociodemographic characteristics of their geographical locations affect worshipers’ bonding social capital (church-related volunteer participation) and bridging social capital (civic participation outside of church), by using the 2001 USCLS data. Close-social ties index determines various combinations of attending with close friends, children, and/or spouse. Congregational homogeneity levels are measured by looking at the race, income, age and education of churchgoers. Neighborhood-level sociodemographic characteristics include percentages of urban population and the proportion of racial minorities. Findings indicate that each type and composition of close social ties affect bonding and bridging social capital in different ways. Bonding social capital is the highest when worshipers attend together with their spouses, children and close friends. Bridging social capital is the highest when they attend with both spouses and close friends, but it starts to decline after the inclusion of children as the third type of tie. Race and income homogeneity foster church-related participation. Age and education homogeneity negatively affects church-related volunteerism but fosters civic participation outside. Only bonding social capital is affected by neighborhood-level factors. Higher proportions of racial minorities in neighborhoods increase church-related participation.     

中老年人线上社会参与和抑郁症状的关系：基于自我决定理论

为考察中老年人线上社会参与和抑郁症状的关系及其内在机制,采用老年人社交网络量表、流调中心抑郁量表、基本心理需求满足量表和社会网络量表对1063名50岁及以上城市中老年人进行调查。结果表明：(1)中老年人线上社会参与显著负向预测抑郁症状;(2)自主、胜任、关系需求满足在线上社会参与和抑郁症状之间起完全中介作用;(3)社会网络规模调节了“线上社会参与-基本心理需求满足-抑郁症状”这一中介效应的前半段路径。     

How daydreaming relates to life satisfaction, loneliness, and social support: the importance of gender and daydream content

Daydreaming appears to have a complex relationship with life satisfaction and happiness. Here we demonstrate that the facets of daydreaming that predict life satisfaction differ between men and women (Study 1; N=421), that the content of daydreams tends to be social others (Study 2; N=17,556), and that who we daydream about influences the relation between daydreaming and happiness variables like life satisfaction, loneliness, and perceived social support (Study 3; N=361). Specifically, daydreaming about people not close to us predicts more loneliness and less perceived social support, whereas daydreaming about close others predicts greater life satisfaction. Importantly, these patterns hold even when actual social network depth and breadth are statistically controlled, although these associations tend to be small in magnitude. Individual differences and the content of daydreams are thus important to consider when examining how happiness relates to spontaneous thoughts.