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Income and happiness across Europe: Do reference values matter?
- Source :
- Journal of Economic Psychology. 30:42-51
- Publication Year :
- 2009
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2009.
-
Abstract
- Using data from the European Social Survey (ESS), we examine the link between income and subjective well-being. We find that, for the whole sample of nineteen European countries, although income is positively correlated with both happiness and life satisfaction, reference income exerts a negative effect on individual well-being, a result consistent with the relative utility hypothesis. Performing separate analyses for some Eastern European countries, we also find some evidence of a ‘tunnel effect’, in that reference income has a positive impact on subjective well-being. Our findings support the view that in environments with stable income and employment, reference income serves as a basis for social comparisons, whereas in relatively volatile environments, it is used as a source of information for forming expectations about future status.
- Subjects :
- Social comparison theory
Economics and Econometrics
Sociology and Political Science
media_common.quotation_subject
Life satisfaction
Sample (statistics)
jel:I31
European Social Survey
Eastern european
Personal income
comparison income, reference groups, happiness, life satisfaction
Psychological well-being
Economics
Happiness
Demographic economics
Applied Psychology
media_common
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 01674870
- Volume :
- 30
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Journal of Economic Psychology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....56ff552859125913818d77ec542f7475
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2008.06.004