Is Disciplinary Culture a Moderator Between Materialism and Subjective Well-being? A Three-Wave Longitudinal Study

To clarify the influence of disciplinary culture on the materialism–subjective well-being (SWB) relationship, as well as the relationship between changes in materialism and changes in SWB, the current longitudinal study tracked the levels of materialism and SWB among first-year undergraduates for 12 months. A total of 218 participants from a congruent disciplinary culture (i.e., business school) and 210 participants from an incongruent disciplinary culture (i.e., engineering school) provided ratings on the Material Values Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule in three waves. The following results were obtained: (1) the interaction effect of disciplinary culture and time was significant. In Wave 3, the level of materialism in business school was significantly higher than that in engineering school, but this difference was not found in Waves 1 and 2; (2) the negative relationship between materialism and SWB remained stable over time and was not moderated by disciplinary culture. Moreover, disciplinary culture did not moderate the relationship between changes in materialism and changes in SWB. The above findings indicate that disciplinary culture influences the development of materialism but not the materialism–SWB relationship in the long term.     

The Structure and Stability of Subjective Well-Being: a Structure Equation Modelling Analysis

The purpose of the study is to test the structure and the stability of Subjective Well-Being (SWB), measured through cognitive and affective self-report measures, in global and specific levels of analysis. A sample of 303 adult students was collected and replicated in a 2 month interval. The best model of SWB shows an intercorrelated four-factor structure—Satisfaction with Life, Negative Affect, Positive Affect and Global Subjective Well-being. Results suggest that Global Happiness and Global Satisfaction are measuring the same aspect of SWB. All measures of SWB, in study, show good construct validity and reliability in a 2 month replication. Positive and Negative Affect are significantly weakly correlated. Positive Affect is the most stable variable of SWB, in a short-term interval. Researchers must be aware of the issues related to the measurement of SWB as the order of the items in a questionnaire and the implications of using global or specific measures, cognitive or affective dimensions of the concept, that represent different aspects of the concept. Further study is needed to analyse the structure of SWB with different measures and the relationship between its components.

Predictors of subjective well-being among college youth in Lebanon

The authors investigated the prevalence and predictors of subjective well-being (SWB) in a particular Middle Eastern culture: that of Lebanon. The authors examined personality constructs of self-esteem, optimism, and positive affect in relation to SWB. The authors surveyed a sample of 689 individuals between the ages of 17 and 24 by using four instruments with established cross-cultural validity: (a) the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; E. Diener, R. Emmons, R. J. Larsen, & S. Griffin, 1985), (b) the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS; D. Watson, L. A. Clark, & A. Tellegen, 1988), (c) the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE; M. Rosenberg, 1965), and (d) the revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R; M. F. Scheier, C. S. Carver, & M. W. Bridges, 1994). The results indicated that college youth's SWB was positively correlated with self-esteem, optimism, and positive affect. Examining the demographic variable of gender, the authors found that men had higher scores on positive affect than did women. A trend emerged that suggested that language dominance and socioeconomic status were associated with SWB levels. The results suggest that internal personality constructs are more predictive of satisfaction with life than are demographic variables.     

A will and a proper way leading to happiness: Self-Directedness Mediates the Effect of Persistence on Positive Affectivity

Persistence is a temperament dimension that enables maintenance of behaviors. Persistent pursuit of need-satisfying goals is suggested to lead to increased Subjective Well-Being (SWB). The psychological advantages of being highly persistent can be evaluated by investigating the interactions of Persistence with other personality dimensions in relation to SWB. The aim of the present study is to investigate if Self-Directedness, defined as the ability to develop good habits and behave in accordance with long-term values and goals, mediates the relationship between Persistence and SWB. In two studies high school pupils (n = 468) reported Persistence, Self-Directedness, Positive and Negative Affect, and Life Satisfaction. Mediation analysis showed that Self-Directedness accounts for a significant amount of the shared variance between Persistence and Positive affect, but did not mediate the relationship of Persistence to Negative affect neither to Life Satisfaction. It can be concluded that Persistence itself might maintain motivation through delay periods, while Self-Directedness guides behavior towards long-term pleasant experiences.     

流动儿童的人格特点对主观幸福感的影响

该文探讨大五人格、乐观和掌控感对流动儿童主观幸福感的影响。运用幸福感自我评定量表、积极情感／消极情感量表（PANAS）修订版、学生总体生活满意度量表（SLSS）、学生多维生活领域满意度量表（MSLSS）、人格五因素问卷、生活取向测验修订版和掌控感量表对1018名流动儿童和319名城市儿童进行调查。结果：1）流动儿童的总体幸福感为7、0,正性情感多于负性情感,总体生活满意度为2、9;2）在正性人格特征（外向性、宜人性、谨慎性、开放性乐观和掌控感）得分上：打工校流动儿童〈混合校流动儿童〈公立校城市儿童,在负性人格特征（情绪性）则相反;3）对主观幸福感的分层回归分析显示外向性、神经质、开放性、掌控感和乐观对主观幸福感有着稳定且显著的影响作用,其中人格五因素起着主要的预测作用。结论：流动儿童的主观幸福整体偏上,打工校流动儿童的人格健全状况最差,人格五因素对主观幸福感起着主要的影响作用。     

When is Meaning in Life Most Beneficial to Young People? Styles of Meaning in Life and Well-Being Among Late Adolescents

The purpose of this article was to investigate the relationships between different dimensions of meaning in life and subjective and psychological well-being (PWB) among late adolescents. Three hundred and eighty four Polish participants completed The Personal Meaning Profile scale, The Satisfaction With Life Scale, The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, The PWB scale, and the Meaning in Life Questionnaire. Two studies were conducted. In Study 1, the findings revealed that personal meaning had strong relations with subjective well-being (SWB) and PWB. In addition, the dimensions of personal meaning were more strongly associated with the cognitive dimension of SWB than with PWB. In Study 2, search for meaning had positive associations with SWB and PWB among those late adolescents who already had substantial meaning in life. Individuals who were in presence and search style had higher levels of SWB and PWB than those in only search style or presence style. The results demonstrate that purpose embedded in the concept of meaning in life appears central to the formation of adolescent well-being as young people come to establish overarching aims.     

贫困大学生个人目标与主观幸福感的关系

贫困群体的心理健康问题是心理学的重要研究课题。为了考察贫困大学生个人目标对其主观幸福感的影响,研究1以130名贫困大学生为被试,采用相关研究法探讨个人目标对个体主观幸福感的影响; 研究2通过提供目标榜样,检验提升个人目标对主观幸福感的影响。结果表明,个人目标的各维度与其主观幸福感显著相关; 提升个体个人目标,能够提升其主观幸福感。     

人格特质与主观幸福感:情绪调节的中介作用

通过对1163名大学生被试进行人格特质、情绪调节策略的使用以及主观幸福感的测查,本研究探讨了气质性人格特质(神经质和外倾性)这种稳定的内在心理结构对主观幸福感产生影响的可能机制。结果发现:(1)除直接影响个体的主观幸福感外,神经质和外倾性还会通过重新评价策略的使用间接影响主观幸福感;(2)人格特质和重新评价策略的使用可以有效预测个体主观幸福感的变异;(3)习惯性地使用表达抑制策略对个体的主观幸福感并没有显著的影响。这些结果表明重新评价策略的使用在人格特质对主观幸福感的影响中具有重要的中介作用。该发现对进一步制定改善和提高个体的主观幸福感的干预措施具有重要的启示和指导意义。     

Cognitive and affective variables as predictors of life satisfaction

This work shows the association between personality variables, such as cognitive and affective variables, and psychological adjustment, such as life satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Accordingly, this study assessed the role of outcome expectancies (optimism and pessimism) and affectivity (positive and negative affect) as a predictors of life satisfaction and depressive symptoms. A total of 458 students from the University Rovira i Virgili completed the scales LOT-R, PANAS, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and BDI. Path analysis results suggest that affectivity variables are more important to predict life satisfaction and depressive symptoms than outcome expectancies. Implications for future research are discussed.     

Children’s Perspectives and Evaluations of Safety in Diverse Settings and Their Subjective Well-Being: A Multi-National Approach

There is a need to explore variations in children’s safety perceptions for different settings (home, school and neighbourhood) and their relationship with subjective well-being (this including satisfaction with safety and satisfaction with life as whole) by comparing a variety of cultural contexts. A further objective is to explore to what extent gender, age group (10 and 12-year-olds) and level of SWB (measured using the SLSS -Student’s Life Satisfaction Scale- and the BMSLSS -Brief Multidimensional Student’s Life Satisfaction Scale) play a role in this prediction. Results obtained through binary logistic models with samples from Spain (n = 2,724), Algeria (n = 2432), South Africa (n = 2192) and Israel (n = 1914), show that children’s perceptions of safety are predicted by their different perceptions and evaluations of school, home and the nearby area. Perceptions of safety in the nearby area and satisfaction with safety (O.R. = 1.080) contribute to predicting higher levels of satisfaction with life as a whole to a greater extent than scores on the SLSS (O.R. = 1.036) and the BMSLSS (O.R. = 1.050) scales. The country participants live in (especially when combined with satisfaction with safety) and, to a lesser extent gender, also make important contributions. The age group they belong to plays a significant role in predicting higher perceptions of safety at home, in the area nearby, at school, and in predicting higher satisfaction with safety. Results open the door to the introduction of specific interventions (e.g. improving parent-child communication, enhancing public spaces for children to play and promoting children’s participation at school), aimed at promoting higher satisfaction with safety and also indirectly at higher satisfaction with life as a whole, on the basis of achieving positive changes of those factors which make the highest contribution.

     

我国内地教师主观幸福感的变迁(2002~2019)：横断历史研究的视角

教师主观幸福感作为衡量教师群体心理健康状况的一项关键指标, 对其现状的调查和分析至关重要, 同时, 对其随社会变迁的动态变化趋势、及其与社会变迁的关系的监测也不可忽视。本研究对2002至2019年间的51篇采用总体幸福感量表(GWB)测量教师主观幸福感的研究报告(共包括13600名教师)进行横断历史的元分析。研究发现：(1)教师主观幸福感均值与年代呈显著负相关, 这说明我国教师主观幸福感在逐年下降。(2)来自社会经济条件(居民消费水平、房价、老年抚养比和教育经费)、社会联结(家庭规模数、离婚率和城镇化水平)和社会威胁(犯罪率)三方面的8项宏观社会指标的变化能显著预测教师主观幸福感的下降。(3)中小学教师的主观幸福感随年代下降的趋势更明显, 其主观幸福感得分要显著低于高校教师。本研究不仅探究了我国教师主观幸福感近20年的变迁趋势, 而且结合社会宏观发展的指标, 提出了影响我国教师主观幸福感的三维理论框架, 对群体社会心理的研究思路进行了纵向(随时代变迁)及横向(宏观社会指标)的拉伸, 拓展理论基础的同时, 在实践上, 为干预调节我国教师群体主观幸福感提供决策依据。     

A validation of well-being and happiness surveys for administration via the Internet

Internet research is appealing because it is a cost- and time-efficient way to access a large number of participants; however, the validity of Internet research for important subjective well-being (SWB) surveys has not been adequately assessed. The goal of the present study was to validate the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS; Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS-X; Watson & Clark, 1994), and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS; Lyubomirsky & Lepper, 1999) for use on the Internet. This study compared the quality of data collected using paper-based (paper-and-pencil version in a lab setting), computer-based (Web-based version in a lab setting), and Internet (Web-based version on a computer of the participant’s choosing) surveys for these three measures of SWB. The paper-based and computer-based experiment recruited two college student samples; the Internet experiments recruited a college student sample and an adult sample responding to ads on different social-networking Web sites. This study provides support for the reliability, validity, and generalizability of the Internet format of the SWLS, PANAS-X, and SHS. Across the three experiments, the results indicate that the computer-based and Internet surveys had means, standard deviations, reliabilities, and factor structures that were similar to those of the paper-based versions. The discussion examines the difficulty of higher attrition for the Internet version, the need to examine reverse-coded items in the future, and the possibility that unhappy individuals are more likely to participate in Internet surveys of SWB.     

Unidimensionality of life satisfaction and its relation to social desirability: a confirmatory study of a short form of the Life Satisfaction Scale

This study investigated construct validity of a short version of the Life Satisfaction in the Elderly Scale developed from an exploratory factor analysis in 1990 of the original version of Salamon and Conte's Life Satisfaction scale. First, a confirmatory factor analysis (maximum likelihood method) was conducted on 149 adult and elderly Italians to assess whether the latent variable of the Life Satisfaction Short Form scale was adequately represented by one factor. Analysis showed a good fit for the proposed unidimensional model, the items achieved good internal consistency on the scale, and no age differences arose in the score for the Life Satisfaction factor. Second, the correlations between the items measuring Life Satisfaction and the Eysenck 1985 Lie scale indicated that the items on the Life Satisfaction Short Form are largely independent of social desirability for younger and older adults.     

Validity and reliability of Spanish versions of the Ruminative Responses Scale-Short Form and the Distraction Responses Scale in a sample of Spanish high school and college students

This study investigated the construct validity and reliability of the Spanish Ruminative Responses Scale-Short From, and the Distraction Responses Scale of the Response Styles Questionnaire for a sample of 727 Spanish high school and college students who responded anonymously and voluntarily to a questionnaire (293 men, 434 women; ages 16 to 29 years, M=18.8, SD=3.0). In addition to the above scales, the questionnaire included the Spanish forms of the Beck Depression Inventory, the Trait Anxiety Scale from the State-Trait Anxiety Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. The internal consistency of the scales was satisfactory (Cronbach alpha=.86 for the Ruminative Responses Scale and .78 for the Distraction Responses Scale). As expected, scores on the Spanish Ruminative Responses Scale showed positive correlations with those on the Beck Depression Inventory and the Trait Anxiety Scale and negative associations with the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Subjective Happiness Scale. Conversely, the Spanish Distraction Responses Scale was negatively correlated with the Beck Depression Inventory and positively associated with the Satisfaction with Life Scale and the Subjective Happiness Scale. These results provide evidence of appropriate reliability for research purposes. Furthermore, the correlational analysis supported prior findings that ruminative response and distraction response styles are differentially associated with reported depressed and positive moods.     

A bifactor model of subjective well-being: A re-examination of the structure of subjective well-being

The present research has aimed to extend the previous research on the structure of subjective well-being (SWB) by applying the bifactor model. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) were administered to two large samples of Serbian young adults (N₁ = 1669, N₂ = 1522). The bifactor model of SWB with one general and three specific factors (life satisfaction, positive affect, and negative affect) provided the best fit to the data and outperformed the original three-factor model and the higher-factor model in both samples. The results supported the multidimensional nature of SWB, with a strong general factor underlying the SWLS and PANAS. Bifactor modeling has shown that SWLS and PANAS reflect both common and specific variance in SWB, with about half of the reliable variance in life satisfaction, positive affect, and negative affect being independent of the general factor. The present findings imply that researchers should be careful when interpreting SWLS and PANAS scores and that general SWB factor should be taken into account. Implications for scale scoring and interpretation, and theoretical conceptualization of SWB are discussed.     

Happiness,health, and religiosity: significant associations among Lebanese adolescents

The present study sought to test for an association between, and sex-related differences in, happiness, health, and religiosity. A sample (N?=?239) of Lebanese adolescents was recruited (111 boys and 128 girls). They responded to the Oxford Happiness Inventory, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Love of Life Scale as well as five self-rating scales to assess happiness, satisfaction, mental health, physical health, and religiosity. Boys obtained a higher mean score on mental health than did their female counterparts. All the Pearson correlations between the study scales were significant and positive but two. Principal components analysis yielded two salient components in boys and labelled “Happiness”, and “Religiosity and health”. In girls, only one component was retained, and labelled “Happiness, health, and religiosity”. It was concluded that those consider themselves as enjoying happiness, experienced good mental and physical health and more religious.     

Peer violence in the School Environment and Its Relationship with Subjective Well-Being and Perceived Social Support Among Children and Adolescents in Northeastern Brazil

The general aim of this study was to analyse the relationship between peer violence in the school environment (bullying), subjective well-being and perceived social support from the perspective of 910 children and adolescents in Years 6 and 7 of primary school (M = 11.90 years old; SD = 1.21). The participants were taken from 27 primary schools—both state-run and private, urban and rural—in Cearà state (Brazil). The following instruments were used: the Peer Victimization and Aggression Scale (EVAP); the Social Support from Family and Friends Scale (SSA); an index of satisfaction with different developmental contexts (home, school, neighbourhood); and as indicators of subjective well-being, three scales (Single item on Overall Life Satisfaction, Personal Well-Being Index School Children, Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale). Results indicated that aggression and victimization behaviours correlated negatively with the three well-being indicators used, while social support and satisfaction with different developmental contexts correlated positively. When considering type of involvement in bullying, victims, perpetrators and perpetrator–victims all scored lower on subjective well-being than those not involved in bullying. A model is also presented that explains 42 % of well-being. Understanding how bullying relates to well-being and how social support and favourable developmental contexts can act as protective factors are particularly important when designing public policies aimed at intervening in violence prevention and promoting well-being in childhood and adolescence.     

Does legal education have undermining effects on law students? Evaluating changes in motivation,values, and well‐being

We evaluated changes in subjective well-being (SWB), motivation, and values occurring over the law-student career. In study 1, law students began with levels of SWB higher than a comparison sample of undergraduates, but by the end of the first year their SWB had plummeted. These changes were correlated with the sample-wide decreases in intrinsic motivation over the first year, and were also correlated with increases in appearance values and decreases in community service values. Those with the most intrinsic motivations attained the highest grades, but, ironically, high grades in turn predicted shifts in career preferences towards "lucrative" and higher-stress law careers, and away from "service"-oriented and potentially more satisfying law careers. The declines persisted over the second and third years of law school. In study 2, the basic effects were replicated for a different sample of first-year students at a different law school. Implications for legal education and the legal profession are discussed.     

Adolescents’ Temperament and Character: A Longitudinal Study on Happiness

Personality is considered a major determinant of adults and adolescents Subjective Well-Being (SWB); mainly due to its relation to emotional reactivity, emotional intensity, and to the duration of emotional reactions. However, personality as presented above involves almost only differences in automatic emotional reactions and habits (i.e., temperament). Nevertheless, temperament together with learning experiences from different life events is responsible for what people make of themselves intentionally (i.e., character). The present study examines the relation between temperament and character to SWB at two points in time over a year in an adolescent sample (N?=?109). Adolescents reported personality (The Temperament and Character Inventory; TCI) and SWB at the beginning of the school year (T1). Subjective Well-Being was then again measured at the end of the school year (T2). Temperament (Harm Avoidance and Novelty Seeking) and character (Self-Directedness) predicted SWB at T1. However, only Self-Directedness predicted SWB at T2 and also small but significant changes in SWB at the end of the school year. The inclusion of character in SWB research is discussed.     

Individual-oriented and socially oriented cultural conceptions of subjective well-being: Conceptual analysis and scale development

Adopting a 'cross-cultural indigenous approach' (CCI), we attempted a conceptual analysis of cultural conceptions of SWB in terms of individual-oriented SWB (ISWB) and socially oriented SWB (SSWB) views. Also incorporating findings from our previous qualitative studies, a culturally balanced and fair measurement, The Individual-oriented and Socially oriented cultural conceptions of SWB Scales (ISSWB) was developed and evaluated in two studies involving Chinese and American participants. The 51-item version of the new measure showed good internal consistency reliability, test–retest reliability, convergent and discriminant validity. Further analysis showed that the Chinese possessed stronger SSWB than the Americans, while the Americans possessed stronger ISWB than the Chinese. There were also intracultural differences among the Chinese people. Overall, the studies showed the utility of ISSWB scales for future studies.