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Hajdu, Gábor & Tamás Hajdu (2024): Does the unemployment rate moderate the well-being disadvantage of the unemployed? Within-region estimates from the European Social Survey. In: Kyklos, Jg. 77, H. 1, S. 40-56. DOI:10.1111/kykl.12357

Abstract

"Using pooled cross-sectional data (eight waves of the European Social Survey), this work analysed how the regional unemployment rate influences the well-being disadvantages of the unemployed. We estimate region fixed effects and slopes models that, unlike the standard region fixed effects approach, provide an unbiased estimate of the cross-level interaction term (between being unemployed and the unemployment rate) in the absence of unobserved time-variant confounders. The results show that the satisfaction disadvantage of the unemployed (relative to the employed) is larger when the regional unemployment rate is higher. Smaller and insignificant differences were found regarding happiness. These results are in line with the argument that worse re-employment perspectives in high-unemployment regions may be particularly harmful to unemployed people. These results do not contradict the claim that, in regions with a weaker social norm to work, unemployed people may be more satisfied. Instead, they suggest that the unemployment rate does not reflect the social norm to work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Hildenbrand, Kristin, Pascale Daher, Anna Topakas & Xiaoyu Gan (2024): Multidimensional work-nonwork balance: are balanced employees productive at work and satisfied with life? In: The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Jg. 35, H. 6, S. 1048-1087. DOI:10.1080/09585192.2023.2258335

Abstract

"Given ever increasing work and nonwork demands, achieving work-nonwork (WNW) balance is an important priority for many employees. Scholars have only recently settled on a definition of WNW balance as multidimensional and, as such, our understanding of its antecedents and outcomes is limited. Drawing on Conservation of Resources theory, we explore how organizations can support employees to achieve WNW balance and whether ‘balanced’ employees are more productive at work and satisfied with life. In detail, we hypothesize that the positive effect of supervisor WNW support (FSS) on employees’ life satisfaction and job performance is mediated by multidimensional WNW balance. We find, across two studies with two waves each, that only the dimension of WNW balance effectiveness and not the dimension of WNW balance satisfaction mediated the relationships between FSS, life satisfaction (Study 1 and 2) and self-rated job performance (Study 1). The relationship between FSS and supervisor-rated job performance (Study 2) was not mediated by either WNW balance dimension. As such, organizations can facilitate WNW balance through FSS, while ‘balanced’ employees seem indeed happier with their life and consider themselves to be better performing at work. We discuss the unexpected finding regarding the superior role of WNW balance effectiveness over WNW balance satisfaction for our outcomes in relation to the conceptualization of WNW balance as multidimensional and delineate important theoretical and practical implications." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Lawes, Mario, Clemens Hetschko, Ronnie Schöb, Gesine Stephan & Michael Eid (2024): Examining interindividual differences in unemployment-related changes in subjective well-being: The role of psychological well-being and re-employment expectations. In: European Journal of Personality online erschienen am 12.02.2024, S. 1-22. DOI:10.1177/08902070241231315

Abstract

"This study examined whether the six trait-like dimensions of psychological well-being (e.g., autonomy and environmental mastery) moderate the effects of unemployment on various facets of subjective well-being (i.e., life satisfaction, satisfaction with life domains, and experienced mood). Further, re-employment expectations during unemployment were investigated as a moderator in this context. The study is based on monthly panel data (Nobservations > 23,000) of two samples of initially employed German jobseekers, who either registered as jobseekers due to (i) mass layoffs or plant closures (N = 552) or (ii) other reasons (N = 988). The results indicate substantial interindividual differences in unemployment-related changes across all examined subjective well-being facets. However, dimensions of psychological well-being did generally not moderate these changes. Only in one unemployment context, environmental mastery was positively related to unemployment-related mood changes. Good re-employment expectations were related to increases in several well-being facets (e.g., leisure satisfaction) compared to being employed, whereas poor re-employment expectations were associated with particularly detrimental effects of unemployment in terms of life satisfaction. Overall, the study provides further evidence that (perceived) contextual features of unemployment seem to be particularly relevant for how individuals experience unemployment, whereas internal (coping) resources only seem to play a negligible role." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Akay, Alpaslan, Olivier B. Bargain & H. Xavier Jara (2023): Experienced versus decision utility: large-scale comparison for income–leisure preferences. In: The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Jg. 125, H. 4, S. 823-859. DOI:10.1111/sjoe.12538

Abstract

"Subjective well‐being (SWB) data are increasingly used to perform welfare analysis. Interpreted as “experienced utility”, it has recently been compared to “decision utility” using small‐scale experiments most often based on stated preferences. We transpose this comparison to the framework of non‐experimental and large‐scale data commonly used for policy analysis, focusing on the income–leisure domain where redistributive policies operate. Using the British Household Panel Survey, we suggest a “deviation” measure, which is simply the difference between actual working hours and SWB‐maximizing hours. We show that about three‐quarters of individuals make decisions that are not inconsistent with maximizing their SWB. We discuss the potential channels that explain the lack of optimization when deviations are significantly large. We find proxies for a number of individual and external constraints, and show that constraints alone can explain more than half of the deviations. In our context, deviations partly reflect the inability of the revealed preference approach to account for labor market rigidities, so the actual and SWB‐maximizing hours should be used in a complementary manner. The suggested approach based on our deviation metric could help identify labor market frictions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Benjamin, Daniel J., Jakina Debnam Guzman, Marc Fleurbaey, Ori Heffetz & Miles Kimball (2023): What do Happiness Data Mean? Theory and Survey Evidence. In: Journal of the European Economic Association, Jg. 21, H. 6, S. 2377-2412. DOI:10.1093/jeea/jvad026

Abstract

"What utility notion—e.g. flow/lifetime, self/family-centered—do self-reported well-being (SWB) questions measure? Existing applications make different assumptions regarding the (i) life domains, (ii) time horizons, and (iii) other-regarding preferences captured by SWB data. To obtain relevant evidence, we ask survey respondents what they had in mind regarding (i)–(iii) when answering commonly used—life satisfaction, happiness, ladder—and new SWB questions. We find that respondents’ self-reports differ from researchers’ assumptions and differ across SWB questions and sociodemographic groups. At the same time, simple SWB-question wording tweaks are effective in moving self-reports toward desired interpretations. We outline actionable suggestions for SWB researchers. (JEL: D69, D90, I31)" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Bertermann, Alexander, Daniel A. Kamhöfer & Hannah Schildberg-Hörisch (2023): More education does make you happier — unless you are unemployed. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 1192), Berlin, 40 S.

Abstract

"This paper investigates the causal effect of education on life satisfaction, exploring effect heterogeneity along employment status. We use exogenous variation in compulsory schooling requirements and the build-up of new, academically more demanding schools, shifting educational attainment along the entire distribution of schooling. Leveraging plant closures and longitudinal information, we also address the endogeneity of employment status. We find a positive effect of education on life satisfaction for employed individuals, but a negative one for those without a job. We propose an aspiration-augmented utility function as a unifying explanation for the asymmetric effect of education on life satisfaction." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Bertermann, Alexander, Daniel A. Kamhöfer & Hannah Schildberg-Hörisch (2023): More Education Does Make You Happier – Unless You Are Unemployed. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16454), Bonn, 40 S.

Abstract

"This paper investigates the causal effect of education on life satisfaction, exploring effect heterogeneity along employment status. We use exogenous variation in compulsory schooling requirements and the build-up of new, academically more demanding schools, shifting educational attainment along the entire distribution of schooling. Leveraging plant closures and longitudinal information, we also address the endogeneity of employment status. We find a positive effect of education on life satisfaction for employed individuals, but a negative one for those without a job. We propose an aspiration-augmented utility function as a unifying explanation for the asymmetric effect of education on life satisfaction." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Cimpoeru, Smaranda (2023): Impact of income and unemployment on happiness: panel data evidence for European countries. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 30, H. 8, S. 1047-1051. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2022.2035666

Abstract

"This study examines the short-run and long-run relationships between happiness and two economic variables, namely income and unemployment. Drawing from a sample of eleven European countries over a time period of 36 years spanning 1985–2020, we find that both income and unemployment have a significant impact on happiness levels. In particular, the results show that higher income leads to higher happiness in the long-run, but the short-run impact is rather weak. Moreover, unemployment decreases people’s happiness levels both in the short and in the long-run, emphasizing the need for European policies directed to job creation." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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De Rock, Bram & Guillaume Périlleux (2023): Time Use and Life Satisfaction within Couples: A Gender Analysis for Belgium. In: Feminist economics, Jg. 29, H. 4, S. 1-35. DOI:10.1080/13545701.2023.2251505

Abstract

"This article looks at the time allocation of individuals with a focus on paid and unpaid work, its division within households, and its link with life satisfaction. The study uses the cross-sectional MEqIN database for Belgium in 2016 and corrects for heterogeneity by using measures of the personality traits. The division of time appears to be quite gendered. Women are found to be more satisfied when working part time. This could be because a majority of working women still undertake most of the unpaid work so that they end up operating a double shift. Looking at the link of time allocation of both partners on the individuals' life satisfaction, men's behavior appears to be in accordance with a conservative gender attitude, and even a breadwinner version, while women's behavior is closer to an egalitarian gender attitude. The study further observes that those behaviors are softened by the presence of children." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Easterlin, Richard A. (2023): Why does happiness respond differently to an increase vs. decrease in income? In: Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Jg. 209, S. 200-204. DOI:10.1016/j.jebo.2023.02.005

Abstract

"The answer is that people's evaluations of their income situation are based on different considerations when the economy is expanding and when it is contracting. When, in the course of economic growth, incomes generally are rising, evaluations of one's own income—whether it is satisfactory –tend to be dominated by comparisons with the incomes of others—by “social comparison”. If one's income is just “keeping up with the Joneses”, happiness is unchanged. But in a recession, as incomes decline and people increasingly have difficulty satisfying consumption habits and fixed financial obligations acquired when incomes were higher, the benchmark for income evaluations shifts to comparisons with one's past experience– how current income compares with one's previous peak income. The greater the shortfall, the less one's happiness. The shift when income declines, from comparison with others to comparison with one's past experience, is typically forced on individuals by the growing pressure of meeting fixed financial obligations. There is thus an asymmetry in the psychological roots of income evaluations when income is rising vs. falling, and this causes a corresponding asymmetry in the response of happiness to income change. When income is rising and social comparison is the basis for evaluating one's income situation, changes in income have, on average, a nil effect on happiness. When income falls below its previous peak and past personal experience is the basis for evaluating one's income situation, happiness goes down and up with income." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2023 Elsevier) ((en))

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Fritsch, Michael, Alina Sorgner & Michael Wyrwich (2023): Are Senior Entrepreneurs Happier than Who? The Role of Income and Health. (IZA discussion paper / Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit 16534), Bonn, 46 S.

Abstract

"We propose an extension of the standard occupational choice model to analyze the life satisfaction of senior entrepreneurs as compared to paid employees and particularly retirees in Germany. The analysis identifies income and health status as main factors that shape the relationship between occupational status and life satisfaction. Senior entrepreneurs enjoy higher levels of life satisfaction than retirees and senior paid employees. This higher life satisfaction is mainly due to their higher income. Physical and mental health play a crucial role in determining both an individual's occupational status and their overall life satisfaction. We find that senior self-employed report to be healthier compared to other groups of elderly individuals. However, when controlling for health, retirees exhibit an even higher level of life satisfaction compared to their self-employed counterparts. Heterogeneity analysis of various types of senior entrepreneurs and senior paid employees confirms this general pattern. In addition, we find some evidence indicating that senior entrepreneurs may compromise their leisure time, a main asset of retired individuals. Implications for research, policy, and practitioners are discussed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Lawes, Mario, Clemens Hetschko, Ronnie Schöb, Gesine Stephan & Michael Eid (2023): The Impact of Unemployment on Cognitive, Affective, and Eudaimonic Well-Being Facets: Investigating Immediate Effects and Short-Term Adaptation. In: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Jg. 124, H. 3, S. 659-681., 2022-02-10. DOI:10.1037/pspp0000417

Abstract

"While long-lasting declines in life satisfaction following unemployment have been well documented, evidence on the impact of unemployment on affective and eudaimonic well-being is scarce. Moreover, most existing studies relied on yearly panel data and were unable to separate the immediate effects of entering unemployment from prospective effects occurring before individuals become unemployed. The present study identified the immediate effects of entering unemployment on cognitive, affective and eudaimonic well-being facets using a control-group design based on monthly panel data of initially employed German jobseekers who were at high risk of losing their job. In order to investigate patterns of short-term adaptation, the study further examined whether average well-being levels change within the first months of unemployment using a mixed-effects trait-state-occasion model. All effects were separately computed for jobseekers affected by mass-layoffs or plant closures and individuals who registered as jobseekers due to other reasons. Multi-item instruments and experience sampling were used to validly measure the various well-being facets. The results indicate that life satisfaction and income satisfaction significantly decreased for individuals affected by mass-layoffs or plant closures from the last month in employment to the first month in unemployment. For individuals who registered as jobseekers due to other reasons, these effects were smaller and not significant in the case of life satisfaction. Crucially, there were no immediate effects of entering unemployment on the examined affective and eudaimonic well-being facets. Moreover, well-being levels were generally stable within the first months of unemployment indicating a general absence of short-term adaptation." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) ((en))

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Svavarsdottir, Gudrun & Tinna Laufey Asgeirsdottir (2023): The relationship between perceived economic standing and happiness. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 30, H. 17, S. 2413-2419. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2022.2097626

Abstract

"We examine the importance of perception in the relationship between income and happiness. Using Icelandic data, we show that people's perception of their economic standing is more telling of their happiness than their actual income. We find a stronger association between happiness and a negative perception of one's economic standing than happiness and a positive perception." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Tambellini, Elisa (2023): Exploring the relationship between working history, retirement transition and women's life satisfaction. In: Ageing & Society, Jg. 43, S. 1754-1783. DOI:10.1017/S0144686X2100132X

Abstract

"How does the transition to retirement affect female subjective wellbeing? The major theoretical perspectives that have been applied as frameworks to study the heterogeneous adjustment to retirement include role theory and continuity theory. They have often been integrated with a lifecourse approach, which allows us to study retirement as a transition set inside a lifelong process. In this paper, I assess how working life courses are related to changes in subjective wellbeing before and after retirement, using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and concentrating on women. Firstly, I conduct sequence analysis and cluster analysis to identify groups of typical working lifecourses from ages 20 to 50. Secondly, regression models estimate how retirement transition is associated with changes in life satisfaction, according to the different working trajectories. The results show that some of the trajectories, constituted of discontinuity or part-time periods, exhibit a continuous increase in life satisfaction, passing from employment (or unemployment) to retirement. For other trajectories, such as the full-time one, retirement seems not to have implications for subjective wellbeing." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Ćwiek, Małgorzata & Kamila Trzcińska (2023): Assessment of goodness of fit of income distribution in France and Germany based on the Zenga distribution. In: Quality & quantity, Jg. 57, H. 5, S. 4013-4027. DOI:10.1007/s11135-022-01556-w

Abstract

"The aim of this paper is to apply the Zenga distribution for equivalent disposable income from the last two waves of European Quality of Life Surveys for Germany and France (both for total society and selected socio-economic groups) and to assess the goodness of fit to empirical data. The Zenga distribution has not been used to describe the income distribution in these countries yet. The obtained parameters were assessed for fitting to empirical data using two measures—the Wasserstein-Kantorovich and the Wasserstein-Kantorovich standardized measure. The analysis of the results received allows for the conclusion that the Zenga distribution can fit the income distributions both for small as well as large values. It was also shown that the Zenga distribution fits the data well even with small and very small samples. The article uses a new measure to assess the fit of the distribution to empirical data, based on the Wasserstein-Kantorovich measure assessing the distance between the empirical and theoretical cumulative distribution function. The modification consisted in standardizing the Wasserstein-Kantorovich measure by dividing the field between distributors by the rectangle area, where length is maximum income and width is maximum value of the cumulative distribution function. The proposed measure is not sensitive to extreme values, often found in the analysis of income distribution, and can be applied even in very small samples." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Buttler, Dominik (2022): Employment Status and Well-Being Among Young Individuals. Why Do We Observe Cross-Country Differences? In: Social indicators research, Jg. 164, H. 1, S. 409-437. DOI:10.1007/s11205-022-02953-2

Abstract

"In this paper we analyse why in some countries the difference in subjective well-being between employed and unemployed young individuals is substantial, whereas in others it remains small. The strength of this relationship has important consequences, hence it affects the intensity of the job search by the unemployed as well as the retention and productivity of employees. In the analysis we are focused on youth and young adults who constitute a group particularly exposed to the risks of joblessness, precarious or insecure employment. We expect that in economies where young people are able to find jobs of good quality, the employment–well-being relationship tends to be stronger. However, this relationship also depends on the relative well-being of the young unemployed. Based on the literature on school-to-work transition we have identified macro-level factors shaping the conditions of labour market entry of young people (aged 15–35), which consequently affect their well-being. The estimation of multilevel regression models with the use of the combined dataset from the European Social Survey and macro-level databases has indicated that these are mainly education system characteristics (in particular vocational orientation and autonomy of schools) and labour market policy spending that moderate the employment–well-being relationship of young individuals." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Champion, Steven Mark (2022): Eine Analyse der Lebenszufriedenheit bei der Geburtenjahrgänge 1957-1976 in Deutschland entlang des Erwerbsstatus, Erwerbsminderungsstatus und Erwerbsminderungsrentenbezugs. In: Deutsche Rentenversicherung, Jg. 77, H. 4, S. 340-356.

Abstract

"Der Beitrag geht der Forschungsfrage nach, ob sich ein negativer oder positiver Zusammenhang zwischen Erwerbszuständen und Lebenszufriedenheitswerten feststellen lässt. Nach Ausdifferenzierung verschiedener Erwerbszustände über Erwerbsstatus, Erwerbsminderungsstatus, Erwerbsminderungsart und Erwerbsminderungsrentenbezug erfolgt die Synthese eine Zufriedenheitsindexes als Vergleichsmaß. Die Analysen zeigen eine positive Wirkung von Erwerbstätigkeit auf die Lebenszufriedenheit über alle Analysegruppen hinweg. Außerdem zeigt sich, dass eine Erwerbsminderung einen negativen Einfluss auf die Zufriedenheit hat. Eine Erwerbsminderungsrente kann diesen Effekt nicht nachhaltig ausgleichen, sie kann aber insbesondere bei Erwerbslosen dazu beitragen, die Zufriedenheitswerte zu stabilisieren." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Georgellis, Yannis, Andrew E. Clark, Emmanuel Apergis & Catherine Robinson (2022): Occupational Status and Life Satisfaction in the UK: The Miserable Middle? (IZA discussion paper 15360), Bonn, 68 S.

Abstract

"We use British panel data to explore the link between occupational status and life satisfaction. We find puzzling evidence, for men, of a U-shaped relationship in cross-section data: employees in medium-status occupations report lower life satisfaction scores than that of employees in either low- or high-status occupations. This puzzle disappears in panel data: the satisfaction of any man rises as he moves up the status ladder. The culprit seems to be immobility: the miserable middle is caused by men who (in our data) have always been in medium-status occupations. There is overall little evidence of a link between occupational status and life satisfaction for women." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Korsgren, Pontus & Max van Lent (2022): Earmarked Paternity Leave and Well-Being. (IZA discussion paper 15022), Bonn, 24 S.

Abstract

"Earmarked paternity leave has been introduced in an attempt to increase fathers' involvement in child rearing and to achieve gender equality in the labor market and at home. So far well-being effects of such policies are unexplored. This paper takes a first step in that direction by studying the impact of earmarked paternity leave quota on life satisfaction, job satisfaction, and work-life balance using several policy changes in Europe over the period 1993-2007. We find that earmarked paternity leave increases life satisfaction by 0.18 on a 10 point scale which is equivalent to a 10.8 percentage point increase even decades later. Both fathers and mothers benefit, though the increase in life satisfaction for mothers is nearly 30% higher than that of fathers. Perhaps surprisingly, the impact on job satisfaction and work-life balance is close to zero. Hence even when the impact of paternity leave quota on the labor market are small, the increases in life satisfaction may still justify the existence of such policies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Malisauskaite, Gintare, Olena Nizalova & Despoina Xanthopoulou (2022): Unemployment and Well-Being of Europeans Across the Life Cycle: The Role of Countries' Macroeconomic Situation. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 162, H. 3, S. 1387-1412. DOI:10.1007/s11205-022-02892-y

Abstract

"Unemployment impairs individuals' well-being and health and there is some empirical evidence showing that macroeconomic conditions can moderate these effects. This paper goes a step further and investigates differences in how macroeconomic indicators of European countries' economic situation relate to individual subjective health and well-being, and also moderate the relationship between individual labour market exclusion and these outcomes across age groups: young individuals (aged 15–29), prime working age adults (aged 30–49, base category) and pre-retirement age adults (aged 50–64). We used two different macroeconomic indicators to define macroeconomic situation: country-level unemployment rate and gross domestic product (GDP). Both indicators were disaggregated into long-term economic trend and business cycle shocks using Hodrick–Prescott filtering to allow distinguishing between expected and unexpected change in macroeconomic circumstances. We used the European Social Survey individual-level data from 35 European countries for 2002–2014. Multi-level analysis with three levels were run for men and women separately. Results revealed differences in how individual-level unemployment related to well-being depending on the age group, with pre-retirement age group adults' health and well-being suffering the most. Also, macroeconomic indicators were found to moderate the relationship between individual-level unemployment and subjective health and well-being with some noticeable differences between age groups, and with GDP trend having the most sizeable influence." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Patzina, Alexander (2022): The increasing educational divide in the life course development of subjective wellbeing across cohorts. In: Acta sociologica, Jg. 65, H. 3, S. 293-312., 2021-09-27. DOI:10.1177/00016993211055678

Abstract

"Labour market, health, and wellbeing research provide evidence of increasing educational inequality as individuals age, representing a pattern consistent with the mechanism of cumulative (dis)advantage. However, individual life courses are embedded in cohort contexts that might alter life course differentiation processes. Thus, this study analyses cohort variations in education-specific life course patterns of subjective wellbeing (i.e. life, health and income satisfaction). Drawing upon prior work and theoretical considerations from life course theories, this study expects to find increasing educational life course inequality in younger cohorts. The empirical analysis relies on German Socio-Economic Panel data (1984–2016, v33). The results obtained from cohort-averaged random effects growth curve models confirm the cumulative (dis)advantage mechanism for educational life course inequality in subjective wellbeing. Furthermore, the results reveal substantial cohort variation in life course inequality patterns: regarding life and income satisfaction, the results indicate that the cumulative (dis)advantage mechanism does not apply to the youngest cohorts (individuals born between 1970 and 1985) under study. In contrast, the health satisfaction results suggest that educational life course inequality follows the predictions of the cumulative (dis)advantage mechanism only for individuals born after 1959. While the life course trajectories of highly educated individuals change only slightly across cohorts, the subjective wellbeing trajectories of low-educated individuals start to decline at earlier life course stages in younger cohorts, leading to increasing life course inequality over time. Thus, the overall findings of this study contribute to our understanding of whether predictions derived from sociological middle range theories are universal across societal contexts." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Rehwaldt, Ricarda & Timo Kortsch (2022): Was macht bei der Arbeit glücklich? Entwicklung und Validierung einer mehrdimensionalen Skala zur Erfassung von Glück bei der Arbeit. In: Zeitschrift für Arbeits- und Organisationspsychologie, Jg. 66, H. 2, S. 72-86. DOI:10.1026/0932-4089/a000373

Abstract

"Glück bei der Arbeit spielt neben Arbeitszufriedenheit in der Forschung eine immer größere Rolle. Glück wurde sowohl theoretisch als auch metanalytisch mit positiven Folgen in Verbindung gebracht. Allerdings fehlt bislang ein validiertes Instrument in deutscher Sprache, um Bedingungen von Glück bei der Arbeit zu erfassen. Ziel dieses Beitrags ist deshalb, ein Messinstrument zur Erfassung von Bedingungen von Glück bei der Arbeit zu entwickeln und zu validieren. Basierend auf einem Modell von Rehwaldt (2017) entstand in vier aufeinander aufbauenden qualitativen und quantitativen Studien eine vierdimensionale Skala zur Erfassung von Bedingungen von Glück bei der Arbeit (HappinessandWork-Scale). In explorativen und konfirmatorischen Faktorenanalysen konnten vier Faktoren (Sinnempfinden, Selbstverwirklichung, Gemeinschaft professionell und Gemeinschaft vertraut) aufgedeckt werden, die erwartungsgemäß positiv korreliert waren. Die divergente Validität der vier Faktoren zeigte sich durch unterschiedliche Zusammenhänge mit mehreren relevanten Kriterien (z.B. Commitment, innovatives Verhalten). Implikationen der Ergebnisse für Theorie und Praxis werden abschließend diskutiert." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku, © 2021 Hogrefe Verlag)

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Weisstanner, David & Klaus Armingeon (2022): Redistributive preferences: Why actual income is ultimately more important than perceived income. In: Journal of European Social Policy, Jg. 32, H. 2, S. 135-147. DOI:10.1177/09589287211037912

Abstract

"An emerging consensus claims that ‘subjective’ (mis)perceptions of income inequality better explain redistributive preferences than actual ‘objective’ conditions. In this article, we critically re-assess this view. We compare perceived and actual income positions as predictors for preferences for redistribution. We argue that perceived income is partly endogenous to actual income and its effect on preferences conditional on ideology. Using an original survey experiment from Switzerland, we show that the predictive power of perceived income is lower compared to actual income. Perceived income is only associated with redistribution preferences among centre-right respondents, but not among left-wing respondents. Furthermore, providing respondents with corrective information about their true position in the income hierarchy has no effect on redistribution preferences. These findings go against the new consensus about the superior explanatory power of subjective perceptions of income inequality. We argue instead that absolute objective conditions should be at the centre of explaining redistributive preferences." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Blanchflower, David G. (2021): Is happiness U-shaped everywhere? Age and subjective well-being in 145 countries. In: Journal of Population Economics, Jg. 34, H. 2, S. 575-624. DOI:10.1007/s00148-020-00797-z

Abstract

"A large empirical literature has debated the existence of a U-shaped happiness-age curve. This paper re-examines the relationship between various measures of well-being and age in 145 countries, including 109 developing countries, controlling for education and marital and labor force status, among others, on samples of individuals under the age of 70. The U-shape of the curve is forcefully confirmed, with an age minimum, or nadir, in midlife around age 50 in separate analyses for developing and advanced countries as well as for the continent of Africa. The happiness curve seems to be everywhere. While panel data are largely unavailable for this issue, and the findings using such data largely confirm the cross-section results, the paper discusses insights on why cohort effects do not drive the findings. I find the age of the minima has risen over time in Europe and the USA." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Blanchflower, David G. & Andrew E. Clark (2021): Children, unhappiness and family finances. In: Journal of Population Economics, Jg. 34, H. 2, S. 625-653. DOI:10.1007/s00148-020-00798-y

Abstract

"The common finding of a zero or negative correlation between the presence of children and parental well-being continues to generate research interest. We consider international data, including well over one million observations on Europeans from 11 years of Eurobarometer surveys. We first replicate this negative finding, both in the overall data and then for most different marital statuses. Children are expensive: controlling for financial difficulties turns our estimated child coefficients positive. We argue that difficulties paying the bills explain the pattern of existing results by parental education and income and by country income and social support. Last, we underline that not all children are the same, with stepchildren commonly having a more negative correlation with well-being than children from the current relationship." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Durst, Alessa K. (2021): Education as a Positional Good? Evidence from the German Socio-Economic Panel. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 155, H. 2, S. 745-767. DOI:10.1007/s11205-021-02619-5

Abstract

"People care about their relative standing in society and therefore compare themselves to relevant others. Empirical findings suggest that there are concerns for relative standing for different goods and life domains such as income, cars, attractiveness, and supervisor's praise. Even education has been mentioned as having a (partially) positional character. However, there has been only small consideration of education as a positional good in the empirical literature so far. Based on the literature on positional concerns and the role of education on relative position, I use German panel data to investigate the relationship between education and life satisfaction beyond the effect education might have through other variables such as income, health, or occupational prestige. Additionally, I consider the possibility that the consumption of education is subject to positional concerns. I discover a positive relationship between education and life satisfaction, indicating that education has a consumption component. Moreover, the relationship depends on the distribution of particular levels of education, suggesting that education has a positional character." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Emre, Onur & Stan De Spiegeleare (2021): The role of work–life balance and autonomy in the relationship between commuting, employee commitment and well-being. In: The International Journal of Human Resource Management, Jg. 32, H. 11, S. 2443-2467. DOI:10.1080/09585192.2019.1583270

Abstract

"Commuting can be tiring and stressful. An unavoidable part of life for many people, it is almost always associated with negative outcomes. This study examined the implications of commuting time for the commitment and well-being of employees. This paper uses ‘conservation of resources’ theory and job demands–resources approaches to argue that employees with long commutes will be less committed and experience lower well-being. These effects are also expected to be mediated by the work–life balance of the employees and interact with the level of autonomy they perceive themselves to have. Data from the fifth European Working Conditions Survey indicate that there is a negative relationship between commuting time, commitment and well-being. Results also suggest that work–life balance mediates part of these relationships and, finally, that autonomy can act as a buffer against the effects of commuting time on both commitment and well-being." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Gash, Vanessa & Anke C. Plagnol (2021): The Partner Pay Gap: Associations between Spouses' Relative Earnings and Life Satisfaction among Couples in the UK. In: Work, Employment and Society, Jg. 35, H. 3, S. 566-583. DOI:10.1177/0950017020946657

Abstract

"Despite women’s recent gains in education and employment, husbands still tend to out-earn their wives. This article examines the relationship between the partner pay gap (i.e. the difference in earned income between married, co-resident partners) and life satisfaction. Contrary to previous studies, we investigate the effects of recent changes in relative earnings within couples as well as labour market transitions. Using several waves of the UK Household Longitudinal Study, we reveal that men exhibit an increase in life satisfaction in response to a recent increase in their proportional earnings relative to their wives’ earnings. For women, changes in proportional earnings had no effect on life satisfaction. We also find secondary-earning husbands report lower average life satisfaction than majority-earning and equal-earning men, while such differences were not found for women. The analysis offers compelling evidence of the ongoing role of gendered norms in the sustenance of the partner pay gap." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Hadjar, Andreas & Edith Kotitschke (2021): How the Welfare-State Regime Shapes the Gap in Subjective Well-Being Between People With and Without Disabilities. In: Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie, Jg. 73, H. 4, S. 501-525. DOI:10.1007/s11577-021-00805-4

Abstract

"Der vorliegende Beitrag nimmt Behinderung, eine wenig beleuchtete Ungleichheitsachse, und subjektives Wohlbefinden in den Blick. Aufbauend auf die Theorie der sozialen Produktionsfunktionen wird der allgemeinen Annahme gefolgt, dass Menschen mit Behinderungen nicht die gleichen Möglichkeiten wie Menschen ohne Behinderungen haben, Ressourcen, instrumentelle Ziele und letztlich Wohlbefinden zu erlangen. Soziale Teilhabe und Arbeitsmarktintegration scheinen bedeutsame Mechanismen hinter den angesprochenen Disparitäten zu sein. Das Sozialsystem eines Landes auf der Makroebene prägt ebenso Unterschiede im subjektiven Wohlbefinden zwischen Gruppen. Die Hauptziele dieses Beitrags bestehen entsprechend darin, den Unterschied im subjektiven Wohlbefinden zwischen Menschen mit und ohne Behinderungen zu analysieren. Inwieweit lässt sich dieser Unterschied durch Unterschiede in sozialer Teilhabe und Arbeitsmarktintegration erklären, und wie prägt das Wohlfahrtsstaatsregime den Unterschied in subjektivem Wohlbefinden zwischen Menschen mit und ohne Behinderungen? Im Kern der Forschung stehen Mehrebenenanalysen von kumulierten Daten des European Social Survey aus 31 europäischen Ländern. Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass Menschen mit Behinderungen ein signifikant geringeres subjektives Wohlbefinden zeigen als Menschen ohne Behinderungen. Wohlfahrtsstaatsregimes moderieren diesen Unterschied, wobei die Performanz der skandinavischen sozialdemokratischen (und familienorientierten) Länder hinsichtlich der Bereitstellung gleicher Lebensbedingungen für Menschen mit und ohne Behinderungen offenbar im Vergleich am stärksten erscheint." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag)

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Hajdu, Gábor (2021): Perceived income inequality and subjective social status in Europe. (GLO discussion paper / Global Labor Organization 926), Maastricht, 30 S.

Abstract

"This paper analyzes how perceived income inequality is associated with subjective well-being. Using four waves of the "Social Inequality" module of the International Social Survey Programme, I show that the higher the level of perceived income inequality is, the lower the individual's perception of her social standing, even if objective income inequality and preferences for the legitimate level of income inequality are controlled for. The results are robust to the measure of perceived inequality and the choice of the outcome variable. The analysis also provides evidence that the estimated association is weaker for individuals with higher income, higher education, and countries without postcommunist history. Overall, the results suggest that not only do objective inequality and perception of fairness have consequences regarding subjective well-being but also the perceived level of income inequality itself." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Isengard, Bettina & Ronny König (2021): Being Poor and Feeling Rich or Vice Versa? The Determinants of Unequal Income Positions in Old Age Across Europe. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 154, H. 3, S. 767-787. DOI:10.1007/s11205-020-02546-x

Abstract

"Individual prosperity and welfare can be measured using both objective and subjective criteria. Although theory and previous research suggest that these two methods can produce corresponding results, the measurements can also be inconsistent. Against this background, the current paper investigates the relationship between the objective income position of older Europeans (aged 50 + years) and their perception of their financial situation, using the seventh wave of the Survey of Health, Aging, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) conducted in 2017. The main research questions include (1) how is objective income distributed in old age across Europe?, (2) how do elderly Europeans evaluate their income situation subjectively?, (3) is there a discrepancy between the objective prosperity position and their subjective perception observable?, (4) are there country-specific differences that are observable?, and (5) how can such discrepancies be explained?" (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Krahn, Harvey J., Matthew D. Johnson & Nancy L. Galambos (2021): Intrinsically Rewarding Work and Generativity in Midlife: The Long Arm of the Job. In: Work and occupations, Jg. 48, H. 2, S. 184-206. DOI:10.1177/0730888420964942

Abstract

"Work is a productive activity that can also contribute to the well-being of the next generation. Using two waves of data from the Edmonton Transitions Study, this research examined the link between intrinsically rewarding work and generativity, or one?s perceived contributions to society. Controlling for relevant variables, more intrinsically rewarding work at age 43 predicted increasing generativity over the next seven years, and increases in intrinsic work rewards were associated with increased generativity between age 43 and 50. The results demonstrate the potential of the workplace to prompt growth in midlife generativity." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Liao, Tim Futing (2021): Income Inequality, Social Comparison, and Happiness in the United States. In: Socius, Jg. 7, S. 1-17. DOI:10.1177/2378023120985648

Abstract

"Using social comparison theory, I investigate the relation between experienced happiness and income inequality. In the analysis, I study happiness effects of the individual-level within-gender-ethnicity comparison-based Gini index conditional on a state’s overall inequality, using a linked set of the March 2013 Current Population Survey and the 2013 American Time Use Survey data while controlling major potential confounders. The findings suggest that individuals who are positioned to conduct both upward and downward comparison would feel happier in states where overall income inequality is high. In states where inequality is not high, however, such effects are not present because social comparison becomes less meaningful when one’s position is not as clearly definable. Therefore, social comparison matters where inequality persists: One’s comparison with all similar others’ in the income distribution in a social environment determines the effect of one’s income on happiness, with the comparison target being the same gender-ethnic group." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Luo, Jianbo (2021): Happiness adaptation to high income: Evidence from German panel data. In: Economics Letters, Jg. 206. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2021.109995

Abstract

"This paper is the first to use national representative panel data to demonstrate that individuals do not adapt to high income in the long run: after five or more years, the life satisfaction of high-income people is still higher than that of the average population. Using entropy balancing (EB) matching and Lasso variable selection to reweight the control group yields similar results." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2021 Elsevier) ((en))

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Nikolova, Milena, Boris Nikolaev & Olga Popova (2021): The Perceived Well-Being and Health Costs of Exiting Self-Employment. In: Small business economics, Jg. 57, H. 4, S. 1819-1836. DOI:10.1007/s11187-020-00374-4

Abstract

"We explore how involuntary and voluntary exits from self-employment affect life and health satisfaction. To that end, we use rich longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel from 1985 to 2017 and a difference-in-differences estimator. We find that while transitioning from self-employment to salaried employment brings small improvements in health and life satisfaction, the negative psychological costs of business failure (i.e., switching from self-employment to unemployment) are substantial and exceed the costs of involuntarily losing a salaried job. Meanwhile, leaving self-employment has no consequences for self-reported physical health and behaviors such as smoking and drinking, implying that the costs of losing self-employment are mainly psychological. Moreover, former business owners fail to adapt to an involuntary self-employment exit even 2 or more years after this traumatic event. Our findings imply that policies encouraging entrepreneurship should also carefully consider the nonmonetary implications of business failure." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Blanchflower, David G. (2020): Is Happiness U-shaped Everywhere? Age and Subjective Well-being in 132 Countries. (NBER working paper 26641), Cambridge, Mass., 67 S. DOI:10.3386/w26641

Abstract

"I draw systematic comparisons across 109 data files and 132 countries of the relationship between well-being, variously defined, and age. I produce 444 significant country estimates with controls, so these are ceteris paribus effects, and find evidence of a well-being U-shape in age in one hundred and thirty-two countries, including ninety-five developing countries, controlling for education, marital and labor force status. I also frequently find it without any controls at all. There is additional evidence from an array of attitudinal questions that were worded slightly differently than standard happiness or life satisfaction questions such as satisfaction with an individual's financial situation. Averaging across the 257 individual country estimates from developing countries gives an age minimum of 48.2 for well-being and doing the same across the 187 country estimates for advanced countries gives a similar minimum of 47.2. The happiness curve is everywhere." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Blanchflower, David G. (2020): Unhappiness and age. (NBER working paper 26642), Cambridge, Mass., 38 S. DOI:10.3386/w26642

Abstract

"I examine the relationship between unhappiness and age using data from six well-being data files on nearly ten million respondents across forty European countries and the United States. I use fifteen different individual characterizations of unhappiness including despair; anxiety; loneliness; sadness; strain, depression and bad nerves; phobias and panic; being downhearted; having restless sleep; losing confidence in oneself; not being able to overcome difficulties; being under strain; feeling a failure; feeling left out; feeling tense; and thinking of yourself as a worthless person. I also analyze responses to two more general attitudinal measures regarding the situation in the respondent's country as well as on the future of the world. Responses to all these unhappiness questions show a, ceteris paribus, inverted U-shape in age, with controls and many also do so without them. The resiliency of communities left behind by globalization was diminished by the Great Recession which made it especially hard for the vulnerable undergoing a midlife crisis with few resources, to withstand the shock. Unhappiness is hill-shaped in age. There is an unhappiness curve." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons) ((en))

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Blankenberg, Ann-Kathrin & Martin Binder (2020): Zum beruflichen Selbstbild und zur Arbeits- und Lebenszufriedenheit im Handwerk in Deutschland. (Göttinger Beiträge zur Handwerksforschung 42), Göttingen, 29 S. DOI:10.3249/2364-3897-gbh-42

Abstract

"Die Arbeit im Handwerk unterscheidet sich von vielen anderen Berufen durch Arbeitsmerkmale, die stark prägend für das berufliche Selbstbild sind und außerdem positiv das Wohlbefinden der Arbeitnehmer beeinflussen können. Dazu zählt, dass Handwerker die Ergebnisse ihrer Arbeit sehen können, und sie die Möglichkeit haben, das gesamte Werkstück (und nicht nur einen kleinen Teil davon) eigenständig herzustellen. Dadurch nehmen sie ihre Arbeit als nützlich und sinnstiftend wahr. Angesichts von Untersuchungen, die zeigen, dass Arbeit in manchen Berufszweigen zunehmend als sinnlos empfunden wird, ist es von großer Bedeutung zu verstehen, welche Facetten der Arbeit die Schaffung einer starken beruflichen Identität ermöglichen, die dazu führt, dass Arbeit als sinnvoll und befriedigend erlebt wird. Die Studie hat dieses Forschungsziel und nutzt dafür eine deutschlandweite Umfrage im Handwerkssektor mit rund 2000 Teilnehmern. Der Fokus der Datenerhebung lag dabei darauf, einen Einblick in das berufliche Selbstbild und die Arbeitszufriedenheit der im deutschen Handwerk Beschäftigten zu erhalten. Diese zeichnen sich in der Befragung durch ein stark ausgeprägtes berufliches Selbstbild aus und identifizieren sich stark mit ihrer handwerklichen Tätigkeit. Dabei weisen Beschäftigte im Handwerk eine hohe Arbeitszufriedenheit auf. Die Arbeitszufriedenheit kann in Teilen mit der Ganzheitlichkeit der Arbeit, dem Fokus auf manuelle Tätigkeit, der Wahrnehmung der Sinnhaftigkeit der Tätigkeit sowie einer hohen wahrgenommenen Autonomie in Zusammenhang gebracht werden." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Deter, Max (2020): Hartz and Minds. Happiness Effects of Reforming an Employment Agency. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 1106), Berlin, 34 S.

Abstract

"Since the labor market reforms around 2005, known as the Hartz reforms, Germany has experienced declining unemployment rates. However, little is known about the reforms’ effect on individual life satisfaction of unemployed workers. This study applies difference-in-difference estimations and finds a decrease in life satisfaction after the reforms that is more pronounced for male unemployed in west Germany. The effect is driven by income and income satisfaction, but not by the unemployment rate. Also unemployed persons who exogenously lost their jobs are affected by the reforms. In line with the structure of the reforms, the effect is stronger on long-term and involuntarily unemployed persons." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Di Paolo, Antonio & Ada Ferrer-i-Carbonell (2020): Regional borders, local unemployment and happiness. (AQR working paper 2020,06 2020,14), Barcelona, 36 S.

Abstract

"In this paper we provide novel evidence on the effect of local unemployment rate on life satisfaction. We investigate how changes in unemployment rate in local administrative areas affect subjective well-being in Germany, allowing for the presence of spatial spillovers and considering the role played by regional borders. The results indicate that higher unemployment in the own local area of residence has a negative effect on satisfaction. Similarly, individuals' happiness negatively correlates with the unemployment rate in contiguous local areas, but only if these areas are located in the same Federal State as the one where the individual lives. These results are robust to a variety of specifications, definitions, sample restrictions and estimation methods. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that these negative effects of local unemployment rate are larger for individuals with stronger ties to the job market and less secure jobs. This points to worries about own job situation as the main driver of individuals' dislike for living in areas with high unemployment rate and tight labour markets. Consistently with this, the same asymmetric effect of local unemployment rate of surrounding areas is replicated when life satisfaction is replaced with a proxy for perceived job security as outcome variable." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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D’Ambrosio, Conchita, Markus Jäntti & Anthony Lepinteur (2020): Money and Happiness: Income, Wealth and Subjective Well-Being. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 148, H. 1, S. 47-66. DOI:10.1007/s11205-019-02186-w

Abstract

"We examine the complex relationship between money and happiness. We find that both permanent income and wealth are better predictors of life satisfaction than current income and wealth. They matter not only in absolute terms but also in comparative terms. However, their relative impacts differ. The first exerts a comparison effect—the higher the permanent income of the reference group, the lower life satisfaction—the second exerts an information effect—the higher the permanent wealth of the reference group, the higher life satisfaction. We also show that negative transitory shocks to income reduce life satisfaction while transitory shocks to wealth have no effect. Lastly, we analyse the effects of their components and find that not all of them predict life satisfaction: permanent taxes do not matter, while only the value of permanent real estate, financial and business assets do. Finally, we use quantile regression and analyse to what extent our results vary along the well-being distribution, finding the impacts to be larger at lower levels of life satisfaction." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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FitzRoy, Felix R. & Michael A. Nolan (2020): Education, income and happiness: panel evidence for the UK. In: Empirical economics, Jg. 58, H. 5, S. 2573-2592. DOI:10.1007/s00181-018-1586-5

Abstract

"Using panel data from the BHPS and its Understanding Society extension, we study life satisfaction (LS) and income over nearly two decades, for samples split by education, and age, to our knowledge for the first time. The highly educated went from lowest to highest LS, though their average income was always higher. In spite of rapid income growth up to 2008/2009, the less educated showed no rise in LS, while highly educated LS rose after the crash despite declining real income. In panel LS regressions with individual fixed effects, none of the income variables was significant for the highly educated." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Hastings, Orestes P. & Kassandra K. Roeser (2020): Happiness in Hard Times: Does Religion Buffer the Negative Effect of Unemployment on Happiness? In: Social forces, Jg. 99, H. 2, S. 447-473. DOI:10.1093/sf/soaa018

Abstract

"Two well-known findings are that the religious are happier than the non-religious, and people are less happy when they lose their job. We investigate a link between these by asking whether religion buffers against the negative effect of unemployment on happiness. Although theorized or implicitly assumed in many studies, empirical demonstrations of a causal, moderating effect of religion have been infrequent and often not strong methodologically. We conduct individual-level fixed effects models to test for the buffering effect in the US context using recent panel data from the 2006–2014 General Social Surveys. Religious service attendance, belief in life after death, and trying to carry one's religious beliefs over into other dealings in life all substantially buffered the effect of unemployment on happiness. Praying daily, believing God exists, identifying as a religious person, and having a religious affiliation did not. We discuss these results in the context of prior work and existing theory. To further support a causal interpretation of these findings, we also conduct a secondary analysis showing that unemployment does not appear to increase or decrease religiousness. This paper makes an important sociological contribution to the growing field of happiness research and to our understanding of how religion matters to people during hard times." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Heigle, Julia & Friedhelm Pfeiffer (2020): Langfristige Wirkungen eines nicht abgeschlossenen Studiums auf individuelle Arbeitsmarktergebnisse und die allgemeine Lebenszufriedenheit. (ZEW discussion paper 2020-004), Mannheim, 21 S.

Abstract

"To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first study for Germany to assess the long-term impacts of studying without graduating on three labour market outcomes (working hours, wages, and occupational prestige), and on overall life satisfaction, on the basis of a sample of employed individuals from the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) who possess a university entrance qualification. The impact is analyzed relative to individuals who have never been enrolled in university study (baseline group) and to individuals that have attained a university degree. The impacts are assessed by means of a double machine learning procedure that accounts for selection into the three educational paths and generates the counterfactual outcomes for the different paths. The findings indicate an average impact of studying without graduating of plus 5 percentage points on occupational prestige, and minus 2.8 percentage points on life satisfaction relative to the baseline group. The estimates for wages and working hours are not significant. The effects of graduating on all outcomes is positive and substantial relative to studying without graduating or not studying at all." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Huebener, Mathias, Sevrin Waights, Stephen P. Jenkins, Nico A. Siegel & Gert G. Wagner (2020): Parental Well-Being in Times of Covid-19 in Germany. (CESifo working paper 8487), München, 39 S.

Abstract

"We examine the differential effects of Covid-19 and related restrictions on individuals with dependent children in Germany. We specifically focus on the role of school and day care center closures, which may be regarded as a “disruptive exogenous shock” to family life. We make use of a novel representative survey of parental well-being collected in May and June 2020 in Germany, when schools and day care centers were closed but while other measures had been relaxed and new infections were low. In our descriptive analysis, we compare well-being during this period with a pre-crisis period for different groups. In a difference-in-differences design, we compare the change for individuals with children to the change for individuals without children, accounting for unrelated trends as well as potential survey mode and context effects. We find that the crisis lowered the relative well-being of individuals with children, especially for individuals with young children, for women, and for persons with lower secondary schooling qualifications. Our results suggest that public policy measures taken to contain Covid-19 can have large effects on family well-being, with implications for child development and parental labor market outcomes." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Kratz, Fabian & Alexander Patzina (2020): Endogenous selection bias and cumulative inequality over the life course. Evidence from educational inequality in subjective well-being. In: European Sociological Review, Jg. 36, H. 3, S. 333-350., 2019-11-07. DOI:10.1093/esr/jcaa003

Abstract

"According to theories of cumulative (dis-)advantage, inequality increases over the life course. Labour market research has seized this argument to explain the increasing economic inequality as people age. However, evidence for cumulative (dis-)advantage in subjective well-being remains ambiguous, and a prominent study from the United States has reported contradictory results. Here, we reconcile research on inequality in subjective well-being with theories of cumulative (dis-)advantage. We argue that the age-specific endogenous selection of the (survey) population results in decreasing inequalities in subjective well-being means whereas individual-level changes show a pattern of cumulative (dis-)advantage. Using repeated cross-sectional data from the European Social Survey (N = 15,252) and employing hierarchical age-period-cohort models, we replicate the finding of decreasing inequality from the United States with the same research design for Germany. Using panel data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (persons = 47,683, person-years = 360,306) and employing growth curve models, we show that this pattern of decreasing inequality in subjective well-being means is accompanied by increasing inequality in intra-individual subjective well-being changes. This pattern arises because disadvantaged groups, such as the low educated and individuals with low subjective well-being show lower probabilities of continuing to participate in a survey and because both determinants reinforce each other. In addition to allowing individual changes and attrition processes to be examined, the employed multi-cohort panel data have further key advantages for examining inequality in subjective well-being over the life course: They require weaker assumptions to control for period and cohort effects and make it possible to control for interviewer effects that may influence the results." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Pedraza, Pablo de, Martin Guzi & Kea Tijdens (2020): Life satisfaction of employees, labour market tightness and matching efficiency. (IZA discussion paper 12961), Bonn, 24 S.

Abstract

"Di Tella et al. (2001) show that temporary fluctuations in life satisfaction (LS) are correlated with macroeconomic circumstances such as gross domestic product, unemployment, and inflation. In this paper, we bring attention to labour market measures from search and matching models (Pissarides 2000). Our analysis follows the two-stage estimation strategy used in Di Tella et al. (2001) to explore sectoral unemployment levels, labour market tightness, and matching efficiency as LS determinants. In the first stage, we use a large sample of individual data collected from a continuous web survey during the 2007-2014 period in the Netherlands to obtain regression-adjusted measures of LS by quarter and economic sector. In the second-stage, we regress LS measures against the unemployment level, labour market tightness, and matching efficiency. Our results are threefold. First, the negative link between unemployment and an employee’s LS is confirmed at the sectoral level. Second, labour market tightness, measured as the number of vacancies per jobseeker rather than the number of vacancies per unemployed, is shown to be relevant to the LS of workers. Third, labour market matching efficiency affects the LS of workers differently when they are less satisfied with their job and in temporary employment. No evidence of this relationship has been documented before Our results give support to government interventions aimed at activating demand for labour, improving the matching of job-seekers to vacant jobs, and reducing information frictions by supporting matchmaking technologies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Piper, Alan (2020): Temps dip deeper: Temporary employment and the midlife nadir in human well-being. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 1109), Berlin, 28 S.

Abstract

"Temporary employees rank lower than permanent employees on various measures of mental and physical health, including well-being. In parallel, much research has shown that the relationship between age and well-being traces an approximate U-shape, with a nadir in midlife. Temporary employment may well have different associations with well-being across the lifespan, likely harming people in midlife more than at the start of their working lives. Using over twenty years of the German Socio-economic panel (SOEP), this investigation considers the relationship between temporary employment, age and well-being. In doing so, it both sheds new light on the relationship between temporary employment and well-being, and explores a reason for the oft-found U-shaped relationship between age and well-being. The results show that temporary employment deepens the U-shape in midlife, and that this result holds when many socioeconomic factors as well as the industry, region, cohort, personality, employment security and job worries are taken into account. Furthermore, the investigation considers transitions between permanent and temporary employment and uses these to assess causation and selection." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Russell, Helen, Janine Leschke & Mark Smith (2020): Balancing flexibility and security in Europe? The impact of unemployment on young peoples' subjective well-being. In: European journal of industrial relations, Jg. 26, H. 3, S. 243-261. DOI:10.1177/0959680119840570

Abstract

"We examine the relationship between 'flexicurity' systems, unemployment and well-being outcomes for young people in Europe. A key tenet of the flexicurity approach is that greater flexibility of labour supply supports transitions into employment, trading longer-term employment stability for short-term job instability. However, there is a risk that young people experience greater job insecurity, both objective and subjective, with less stable contracts and more frequent unemployment spells. Our research draws on data from the European Social Survey and uses multi-level models to explore whether and how flexibility-security arrangements moderate the effect of past and present unemployment on the well-being of young people. We distinguish between flexibility-security institutions that foster improved job prospects and those that provide financial security." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Schröder, Martin (2020): Men Lose Life Satisfaction with Fewer Hours in Employment: Mothers Do Not Profit from Longer Employment. Evidence from Eight Panels. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 152, H. 1, S. 317-334. DOI:10.1007/s11205-020-02433-5

Abstract

"This article uses random and fixed effects regressions with 743,788 observations from panels of East and West Germany, the UK, Australia, South Korea, Russia, Switzerland and the United States. It shows how the life satisfaction of men and especially fathers in these countries increases steeply with paid working hours. In contrast, the life satisfaction of childless women is less related to long working hours, while the life satisfaction of mothers hardly depends on working hours at all. In addition, women and especially mothers are more satisfied with life when their male partners work longer, while the life satisfaction of men hardly depend on their female partners' work hours. These differences between men and women are starker where gender attitudes are more traditional. They cannot be explained through differences in income, occupations, partner characteristics, period or cohort effects. These results contradict role expansionist theory, which suggests that men and women profit similarly from moderate work hours; they support role conflict theory, which claims that men are most satisfied with longer and women with shorter work hours." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Berli, Oliver, Bernd Hammann & Julia Reuter (2019): Wissenschaftskarriere als Glückspiel? Zur Karriererelevanz von Glück aus professoraler Sicht. In: Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung, Jg. 41, H. 4, S. 114-134.

Abstract

"Erfolgreiche Wissenschaftskarrieren werden häufig als das Resultat von persönlich erbrachten Leistungen betrachtet. Jedoch lässt sich Karriereerfolg mit Blick auf fremdes Handeln auch als „Glück“ deuten. Hier ist im wissenschaftlichen Feld eine interessante Spannung zwischen Leistungsglauben und Infragestellung desselben zu beobachten. An dieser Spannung setzt der vorliegende Artikel an und behandelt die Frage der Relevanz von Glück für wissenschaftliche Karrieren aus der Sicht von Professorinnen und Professoren. Grundlage bilden Daten einer standardisierten Befragung dieser Gruppe in ausgewählten Fächern an promotionsberechtigten Hochschulen in Deutschland. Hauptaugenmerk liegt auf den Faktoren, welche mit dem Glauben an die Karriererelevanz von Glück zusammenhängen. Dabei zeigt sich, dass der Glaube an Glück einerseits mit konkreten negativen Erfahrungen im Karriereverlauf, andererseits aber auch mit der Fachkultur sowie der Einschätzung anderer Karrierefaktoren zusammenhängt." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Chłoń-Domińczak, Agnieszka, Iga Magda & Pawel A. Strzelecki (2019): Patterns of labour market participation and their impact on the well-being of older women. In: A. Börsch-Supan, J. Bristle, K. Andersen-Ranberg, A. Brugiavini, F. Jusot, H. Litwin & G. Weber (Hrsg.) (2019): Health and socio-economic status over the life course : First results from SHARE Waves 6 and 7, S. 129-139. DOI:10.1515/9783110617245-013

Abstract

"We focus on identifying the patterns of the full and interrupted careers of women in 13 European countries that participated in the third and subsequent waves of SHARE, in particular the retrospective SHARELIFE survey. Using the survey results, we distinguish women who have had full or interrupted labour market careers. We also analyse differences in the patterns of women's interrupted careers among countries. We then assess whether a link exists between the pattern of labour market career and the current socio-economic situation of older women, including their health, income and life satisfaction levels. Thus, we contribute to studies on various dimensions of life at later stages." (Text excerpt, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Collischon, Matthias (2019): Relative Pay, Rank and Happiness: A Comparison Between Genders and Part- and Full-Time Employees. In: Journal of happiness studies, Jg. 20, H. 1, S. 67-80., 2017-11-01. DOI:10.1007/s10902-017-9937-z

Abstract

"This paper investigates the effects of comparison pay on job and life satisfaction with longitudinal survey data from Germany. I use linear fixed effects models to account for unobserved heterogeneity and define the reference groups as individuals within the same occupation and industry. Men and women are expected to behave differently to comparison pay and are therefore investigated separately. Additionally, I investigate full- and part-time employees separately because the effect of relative positions in the reference group should affect life satisfaction for full-time employees only. The findings indicate that both relative pay and the individual rank within the respective reference group affect job and life satisfaction for full-time employed males only, while part-time employed females gain job satisfaction with increasing rank within their reference group. Part-time employees experience no change in their life satisfaction due to changes in either inequality dimension." (Author's abstract, © 2019 Springer Nature ((en))

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Dhoore, Jasper, Stijn Daenekindt & Henk Roose (2019): Social mobility and life satisfaction across European countries. A compositional perspective on dissociative consequences of social mobility. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 144, H. 3, S. 1257-1272. DOI:10.1007/s11205-019-02083-2

Abstract

"A classic claim in social mobility effects research holds that social mobility is a disruptive and harmful experience. It has been suggested that the experience of social mobility is less disruptive when mobility at the national level is high, because this increases the social and cultural heterogeneity of social classes, which may facilitate the adaptation to the social class of destination. In this article we empirically test the tenability of this claim for social class mobility and life satisfaction. Using Diagonal Reference Models on data for 44 European countries from the 2008 European Values Study, we find evidence for processes of acculturation: the life satisfaction of socially mobile individuals is associated with the class of origin and destination. There is no evidence for effects of social mobility over and above those of social class position of origin and destination. Interestingly, in contrast to suggestions from the literature, national upward or downward mobility rates do not moderate the effect of social mobility on life satisfaction. This study suggests that class heterogeneity does not influence the difficulty of the adaptation to the social class of destination." (Author's abstract, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Donlevy, Vicky, Barry van Driel & Cecile Hoareau McGrath (2019): Education as self-fulfilment and self-satisfaction. (JRC working papers series on labour, education and technology 2019,06), Sevilla, 52 S.

Abstract

"Key drivers of contemporary rapid changes in the educational realm relate to ongoing technological, demographic, economic and social developments in modern European societies. These developments are having an impact on education throughout the lifespan, including a shift to a focus on new types of competences. This shift is becoming increasingly profound in a dynamic, multicultural, and interconnected Europe. The evidence, from various fields of research, shows that non-cognitive competences such as resilience, creativity, and empathy - as well as those noncognitive competences associated with social-emotional learning and active citizenship - have a positive impact on well-being and also performance. This paper takes a closer look at recent developments relating to these issues across the EU, both in terms of challenges and opportunities, and identifies practices that can serve as inspiration for future policies and practices. The paper reviews the literature as well as current practice related to trends, drivers, practices and future developments relating to four key sub-topics: non-cognitive competences as a broader topic; then resilience, creativity, and active citizenship as more specific sub-topics." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Fitzroy, Felix, Jim Jin & Michael Nolan (2019): Higher tax and less work: An optimal response to relative income concern. (IZA discussion paper 12468), Bonn, 21 S.

Abstract

"There is much evidence that relative income concern reduces subjective wellbeing and raises labour supply - 'keeping up with the Joneses' (KUJ), while increasing use of social media and growing inequality encourage comparison. Models with one or two agent - types generally miss the policy relevant dimension of labour force participation, so we include a distribution of wages with intensive and extensive margins of labour supply, both of which are increased by comparison. The optimal tax response increases with comparison, but, surprisingly, dominates the comparison effect and reduces individual labour supply, thus reversing KUJ, and maintains constant employment, independent of comparison." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Hetschko, Clemens, Andreas Knabe & Ronnie Schöb (2019): Looking back in anger? Retirement and unemployment scarring. In: Demography, Jg. 56, H. 3, S. 1105-1129., 2018-10-31. DOI:10.1007/s13524-019-00778-2

Abstract

"Unemployment affects future working conditions and job security negatively, thus reducing life satisfaction after reemployment. These employment-related scars of unemployment should not matter anymore when a person has retired. Using German panel data, we analyze unemployed persons' transition into retirement to test whether unemployment leaves scars beyond working life and thus for reasons that are not employment-related. We find that involuntary unemployment between the last job and retirement causes a loss in life satisfaction after retirement. People who influenced or even initiated unemployment, by contrast, show no scarring. The scarring effect goes beyond what can be explained by the income loss originating from reduced pensions. It shows up independently of whether the unemployment spell directly before retirement was the only experience of unemployment in a person's career, or whether she had also experienced unemployment at earlier times. We do not find evidence that early retirement or involuntary retirement are the reasons why formerly unemployed retirees display unemployment scarring." (Author's abstract, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Högberg, Björn, Jonas Voßemer, Michael Gebel & Mattias Strandh (2019): Unemployment, well-being, and the moderating role of education policies. A multilevel study. In: International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Jg. 60, H. 4, S. 269-291. DOI:10.1177/0020715219874386

Abstract

"This article aims to investigate if education policies moderate the association between unemployment and well-being among young adults. Based on the capability approach, we argue that education policies mitigate the negative effects of unemployment by providing opportunities for education and thus ways to exit unemployment. Education policies can strengthen capabilities, enhance the control that individuals have over their situation, and thereby reduce the stress associated with unemployment. We estimated cross-level interactions between education policies and unemployment status using multilevel methods and data from the European Social Survey. Results showed that policies that increase educational opportunities - such as generous second chance opportunities - were associated with smaller negative effects of unemployment on well-being and that this moderating impact was stronger for young adults with low education. Further analyses show that education policies are also associated with perceived capabilities among unemployed, supporting the proposed mechanism." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Morgan, Robson & Kelsey J. O'Connor (2019): Labor market policy and subjective well-being during the Great Recession. (GLO discussion paper / Global Labor Organization 372), Maastricht, 32 S.

Abstract

"Average subjective well-being decreased in Europe during the Great Recession, primarily among people with less than a college education and people younger than retirement age. However, some countries fared better than others depending on their labor market policies. More generous unemployment support, which provided income replacement or programs to assist unemployed workers find jobs, mitigated the negative effects for most of the population, although not youth. In contrast, stricter employment protection legislation exacerbated the negative effects. We present further evidence that suggests the exacerbating effects of employment protection legislation are due to greater rigidities in the labor market, which in turn affect perceived future job prospects. Our analysis is based on two-stage least squares regressions using individual subjective wellbeing data obtained from Eurobarometer surveys and variation in labor market policy across 23 European countries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Ponomarenko, Valentina, Anja K. Leist & Louis Chauvel (2019): Increases in wellbeing in the transition to retirement for the unemployed. Catching up with formerly employed persons. In: Ageing and society, Jg. 39, H. 2, S. 254-276. DOI:10.1017/S0144686X17000976

Abstract

"This paper examines the extent to which wellbeing levels change in the transition to retirement depending on transitioning from being employed, unemployed or economically inactive. Whereas transitioning from employment to unemployment has been found to cause a decrease in subjective wellbeing with more time spent in unemployment, it is not clear how transitioning from unemployment to retirement affects wellbeing levels. We use the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe to monitor the life satisfaction of respondents who retire in between two waves. We portray wellbeing scores before and after retirement and then identify the change in life satisfaction during the retirement transition using a First Difference model. Results indicate that being unemployed before retirement is associated with an increase in life satisfaction, but presents mainly a catching-up effect compared to employed persons transitioning to retirement. These results are still significant if we control for selection into unemployment and country differences. Retirement from labour market inactivity does not lead to significant changes in wellbeing. As the wellbeing of unemployed persons recovers after transitioning to retirement, especially the currently unemployed population should be supported to prevent detrimental consequences of economically unfavourable conditions and lower wellbeing." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Rose, Damaris & Olga Stavrova (2019): Does life satisfaction predict reemployment? Evidence form German panel data. In: Journal of economic psychology, Jg. 72, H. June, S. 1-11. DOI:10.1016/j.joep.2018.12.008

Abstract

"While life satisfaction has been identified as an important predictor of occupational success, the question of whether it might contribute to reemployment success among unemployed individuals has received much less research attention. Contrasting three theoretical perspectives (motivation theories, positive psychology, and the optimum level of well-being literature), we explored whether life satisfaction has a negative, a positive, or a non-monotonic effect on the likelihood of reemployment. We used large-scale panel data from Germany that gave us the possibility to monitor unemployed individuals' life satisfaction and labor market outcomes for 10?years. Results of a multi-level discrete-time hazard analysis supported the optimum level of well-being perspective providing evidence for an inverted-U-shaped association between life satisfaction and reemployment probability. Moderate levels of life satisfaction were associated with a stronger likelihood of reemployment than lower or higher levels of life satisfaction. This effect remained robust against controlling for individuals' socio-economic characteristics, labor market experience and the Big Five personality traits." (Author's abstract, © 2018 Elsevier) ((en))

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Sage, Daniel (2019): Unemployment, wellbeing and the power of the work ethic. Implications for social policy. In: Critical social policy, Jg. 39, H. 2, S. 205-228. DOI:10.1177/0261018318780910

Abstract

"Unemployment is associated with a range of health and social problems, such as poor physical health and wellbeing. Welfare state research has recently considered how social policies can ameliorate the harmful effects of unemployment. This article argues that such policy suggestions disregard the role of the work ethic in shaping the experience of unemployment. In societies that glorify employment as a signifier of identity and status, it is unsurprising that those without employment suffer. Previous research supports this view, showing how subscription to the work ethic is associated with wellbeing amongst unemployed people. Original analysis of the European Values Study confirms the importance of the work ethic, showing how unemployed people with weaker work ethics have significantly higher life satisfaction than those with stronger work ethics. The article concludes that the most effective way of dealing with the deleterious effects of unemployment is to challenge the centrality of employment in contemporary societies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Sameem, Sediq & Pavlo Buryi (2019): Impact of unemployment on happiness in the United States. In: Applied Economics Letters, Jg. 26, H. 12, S. 1049-1052. DOI:10.1080/13504851.2018.1529390

Abstract

"This study considers the level of demonstrated happiness and unhappiness, the latter measured by the conditional probability of committing suicide within groups that are facing a higher unemployment rate and those that are not. Using individual-level US data from 1989 to 2004, our findings indicate that individuals have lower rates of suicide or are 'happy' when they live in a state that has lower unemployment rate." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Becker, Dominik & Klaus Birkelbach (2018): Social mobility and subjective well-being revisited. The importance of individual locus of control. In: Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, Jg. 54, H. April, S. 1-20. DOI:10.1016/j.rssm.2018.01.001

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Headey, Bruce & Ruud Muffels (2018): A theory of life satisfaction dynamics: Stability, change and volatility in 25-year life trajectories in Germany. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 140, H. 2, S. 837-866. DOI:10.1007/s11205-017-1785-z

Abstract

"An adequate theory of life satisfaction (LS) needs to take account of both factors that tend to stabilise LS and those that change it. The most widely accepted theory in the recent past -- set-point theory -- focussed solely on stability (Brickman and Campbell, in: Appley (ed) Adaptation level theory, Academic Press, New York, pp 287 - 302, 1971; Lykken and Tellegen in Psychol Sci 7:186 - 189, 1996). That theory is now regarded as inadequate by most researchers, given that national panel surveys in several Western countries show that substantial minorities of respondents have recorded large, long term changes in LS (Sheldon and Lucas in The stability of happiness, Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2014). In this paper we set out a preliminary revised theory, based mainly on analysis of the LS trajectories of the 2473 respondents in the German Socio-Economic Panel who reported their LS for 25 consecutive years in 1990 - 2014. The theory entails three sets of propositions in which we attempt to account for stability, change and also volatility. First, it is proposed that stability is primarily due to stable personality traits, and also to parental influence on LS. The second set of propositions indicates that medium and long term changes are due to differences and changes in personal values/life priorities and behavioural choices. Differences in the priority given to pro-social values, family values and materialistic values affect LS, as do behavioural choices relating to one's partner, physical exercise, social participation and networks, church attendance, and the balance between work and leisure. Medium term change is reinforced by two-way causation -- positive feedback loops -- between values, behavioural choices and LS. The third set of propositions breaks new ground in seeking to explain inter-individual differences in the volatility/variability of LS over time; why some individuals display high volatility and others low, even though their mean level of LS may change little over 25 years." (Author's abstract, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Hetschko, Clemens, Benjamin Küfner & Gesine Stephan (2018): Arbeitslosigkeit und Wohlbefinden: Interdisziplinäre Tagung des IAB eröffnet neue Einblicke. In: IAB-Forum H. 16.03.2018, o. Sz., 2018-03-13.

Abstract

"Die Erforschung von mentaler Gesundheit und Glück oder - wissenschaftlich formuliert, von subjektivem Wohlbefinden - hat in der Arbeitsmarktforschung in den vergangenen Jahren stark an Bedeutung gewonnen. 44 Forscherinnen und Forscher aus dem In- und Ausland trafen sich am 25. und 26. Januar dieses Jahres in Nürnberg, um den Zusammenhang zwischen Arbeitslosigkeit und Wohlbefinden aus verschiedenen Perspektiven zu beleuchten." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Hoorn, André van (2018): Is the happiness approach to measuring preferences valid? In: Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Jg. 73, H. April, S. 53-65. DOI:10.1016/j.socec.2018.02.002

Abstract

"Estimating heterogeneous happiness or subjective well-being (SWB) functions and making inferences about differences in people's tastes or preferences has some interesting advantages over stated and revealed preferences methods and is growing in popularity. However, evidence on the validity of such SWB-based or 'inferred' preferences measures, meaning these measures' ability to capture what they are supposed to capture, is lacking, widespread evidence on the (construct) validity of SWB indicators themselves notwithstanding. Empirical analysis reveals that differences in preferences inferred from heterogeneity in estimated happiness functions map onto differences in self-reported behavior and attitudes in expected ways, suggesting that SWB-based measures of differences in preferences indeed capture the construct they are supposed to capture. Hence, the conclusion that the happiness approach provides a valid means for making inferences about differences in people's preferences." (Author's abstract, © 2018 Elsevier) ((en))

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Kaiser, Caspar (2018): People do not adapt to income changes. A re-evaluation of the dynamic effects of (reference) income on life satisfaction with GSOEP and UKHLS data. (INET Oxford working paper 2018-07), 46 S.

Abstract

"Do people adapt to changes in income? This paper shows that there is no evidence of adaptation to income in GSOEP (1984-2015) and UKHLS (1996-2015) data. Following the empirical approach of Vendrik (2013), I arrive at this surprising answer by estimating (dynamic) life satisfaction equations, in which I simultaneously enter contemporaneous and lagged terms for a respondent’s own household income and their estimated reference income. Additionally, I instrument for own income and include lags of a large set of controls. Furthermore, I find that people also do not adapt to changes in reference income. Instead, reference income effects may be subject to reinforcement over time. To explain my findings, a comprehensive account of the puzzling and often divergent results of Ferrer-i-Carbonell and Van Praag (2008), Binder and Coad (2010), Di Tella et al. (2010), and Pfaff (2013) is given. What was found to be adaptation to raw household income in these studies turns out to have been driven by reinforcement of an initially small negative effect of household size that grows large over time. Implications of this result for the estimation of equivalence scales with subjective data are discussed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Lerch, Nils (2018): The causal analysis of the development of the unemployment effect on life satisfaction. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 991), Berlin, 51 S.

Abstract

"The long-term negative effects of unemployment, especially on subjective well-being, have been indicated by many studies. Therefore, unemployment and its effects on the individual life course must remain an important challenge for social policy. Many studies have focused on the cognitive component of subjective well-being, i.e., life satisfaction, and have analysed in particular its development during the unemployment period. The trajectory is usually characterized by the effects of anticipation, reaction and adaption. Studies have shown different findings regarding the shape of the effect development. The present study discusses the effect development in greater detail and analyses whether the development of the effect is different depending on unemployment experience using longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) and applying fixed effects regressions. The findings of this study support a non-linear effect development, which begins with the anticipation of unemployment. The trend can be described by a linear function and polynomials up to the fifth degree. The introduction of a model according to modern causal analysis and the interpretation of the dynamic development of the counterfactual outcomes are the secondary focuses of the study. A detailed discussion of causal assumptions and necessary control variables is needed to reveal the effect of unemployment on life satisfaction. The SOEP provides information about employment status on a monthly basis. This study shows possibilities for using this information for the construction of control groups and treatment groups and analyses with ideal episode patterns." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Merz, Joachim (2018): Are retirees more satisfied? Anticipation and adaptation effects of retirement on subjective well-being. A panel analysis for Germany. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 986), Berlin, 37 S.

Abstract

"Lebensqualität und Lebenszufriedenheit ist für den Einzelnen wie aber auch für die Gesellschaft insgesamt vor dem Hintergrund des demographischen Wandels mit nun länger andauernder Phase nach dem Eintritt in den Ruhestand von besonderer Bedeutung. Die vorliegende Studie will zur Diskussion der Lebenszufriedenheit einen empirisch fundierten Beitrag leisten insbesondere die Lebenszufriedenheit vor und nach einem markanten Ereignis, dem Renteneintritt, quantifizieren und dafür Erklärungsmuster finden. Vor allem wird mit den individuellen Verlaufsdaten und 33 Wellen des Sozio-ökonomischen Panels (SOEP) und der mikroökonometrischen kausalen fixed effects robusten Panelanalyse analysiert, ob die individuelle Lebenszufriedenheit tatsächlich vor dem Renteneintritt absinkt, der Renteneintritt sie hochschnellen lässt und sie nach einer gewissen Zeit wieder auf das vorherige Niveau der Lebenszufriedenheit absinkt. Zu klären wird also zu sein, ob sich ein solches Muster herausschält und wie bedeutend Antizipation und Adaption - bekannt von anderen markanten Ereignissen - für die Lebenszufriedenheit vor und nach dem Renteneintritt in Deutschland sind. Hauptergebnis: Individuelle und familiäre Faktoren erhöhen die Lebenszufriedenheit nach dem Renteneintritt für viele Jahre. Allerdings absorbiert die (vormalige) Arbeitssituation diesen Effekt sowohl für GRV Rentner als auch für Pensionäre (Beamte). Es verbleibt nur eine Periode der Verbesserung mit Antizipation und Adaption nahe dem Renteneintritt aber keine signifikante längere Änderung im Vergleich zur Lebenszufriedenheit vor dem Renteneintritt. Dies gilt für GRV Rentner, für Pensionäre wird kein signifikanter Effekt überhaupt feststellbar." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Mousteri, Victoria & Liam Delaney (2018): The scarring effect of unemployment on psychological well-being across Europe. In: Social science research, Jg. 72, H. May, S. 146-169. DOI:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2018.01.007

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Roex, Karlijn L. A. & Jesper J. Rözer (2018): The social norm to work and the well-being of the short- and long-term unemployed. In: Social indicators research, Jg. 139, H. 3, S. 1037-1064. DOI:10.1007/s11205-017-1723-0

Abstract

"Why are the unemployed particularly unhappy in some societies? According to the social norm theory of unemployment, the well-being of the non-employed is lower in countries with a strong social norm to work because of the greater stigma attached to unemployment. In this study, a social norm to work has been defined as the extent to which people expect others to work: do people think the unemployed should take any job they are offered, or should they have a right to refuse? The combined world and European values study and the European social survey were used to test the theory. Multilevel analyses show that - net of one's own norm and other measures of the social norm to work, such as one's personal work ethic - the well-being of unemployed men is lower in countries with a strong social norm to work, in particular that of the long-term unemployed. Overall, it appears that the social norm to work still weighs more heavily upon men than women." (Author's abstract, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Song, Younghwan (2018): Job displacement and subjective well-being: Findings from the American Time Use Survey Well-Being Modules. In: Journal for labour market research, Jg. 52, H. 1, S. 1-13. DOI:10.1186/s12651-018-0249-5

Abstract

"Using matched cross-sectional data drawn from the 2010 and 2012 Displaced Workers Supplements of the Current Population Surveys and the 2010, 2012, and 2013 American Time Use Survey Well-Being Modules, this paper examines the relationship between job displacement and various measures of subjective well-being by sex. Displaced men report lower levels of life evaluation than nondisplaced men due to the differences in employment, marital status and income, whereas displaced women report lower levels of net affect and happiness and increased pain, sadness, and stress than nondisplaced women, but no difference in their life evaluation. Among men, those displaced by layoffs, not by plant closings, express lower levels of life evaluation than those not displaced, but there is no such difference by cause of displacement among women. The negative relationship between job displacement and subjective well-being decreases over time for both men and women." (Author's abstract, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))

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Tammelin, Mia (Hrsg.) (2018): Family, work and well-being. Emergence of new issues. (SpringerBriefs in well-being and quality of life research), Cham: Springer London, 116 S. DOI:10.1007/978-3-319-76463-4

Abstract

"This book analyses the current state-of-the-art research on families, working hours and well-being in Europe, addressing both paid and non-paid work from a family perspective, and introducing emerging issues related to working hours and family life. Further, it discusses the implications of these issues for the well-being of individuals and families. Examining topics such as the division of paid and non-paid work within families, flexibility patterns, the 24/7 society, intensification of work, and the implication of mobile technology for work - family relations, it illustrates how the experiences of working families differ depending on their socio-economic status." (Publisher information, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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De Neve, Jan-Emmanuel & George Ward (2017): Happiness at work. (CEP discussion paper 1474), London, 72 S.

Abstract

"Happiness is typically defined by how people experience and evaluate their lives as a whole. Since the majority of people spend much of their lives at work, it is critically important to gain a solid understanding of the role that employment and the workplace play in shaping happiness for individuals and communities around the world. In this paper, we focus largely on the role of work and employment in shaping people's happiness, and investigate how employment status, job type, and workplace characteristics relate to measures of subjective wellbeing." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Hetschko, Clemens & Ronnie Schöb (2017): Modes of employment and identity. In: Die Unternehmung. Swiss Journal of Business Research and Practice, Jg. 71, H. 4, S. 369-389., 2017-10-09. DOI:10.5771/0042-059X-2017-4-368

Abstract

"In diesem Beitrag widmen wir uns dem Thema Arbeit aus Sicht der ökonomischen Wohlbefindensforschung. Wir dokumentieren anhand zahlreicher Studien, wie der Erwerbsstatus und das Arbeitsleben das subjektive Wohlbefinden beeinflussen. Im Gegensatz zur traditionellen Arbeitszufriedenheitsforschung basieren diese Studien zumeist auf umfassenden Längsschnittanalysen repräsentativer Daten und widmen sich Indikatoren des Wohlbefindens, die nicht spezifisch auf das Berufsleben abzielen. Im Ergebnis stellt sich heraus, dass insbesondere das Identitätsempfinden von Arbeitnehmern ein wichtiger Kanal ist, durch den Erwerbsstatus und Arbeitsplatzmerkmale das Wohlbefinden beeinflussen." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Melzer, Silvia Maja & Ruud J. Muffels (2017): Migrants' pursuit of happiness. An analysis of the effects of adaptation, social comparison and economic integration on subjective well-being on the basis of German panel data for 1990-2014. In: Migration studies, Jg. 5, H. 2, S. 190-215. DOI:10.1093/migration/mnx021

Abstract

"German reunification provides a unique opportunity to investigate the effects of migration on subjective well-being (SWB) on the basis of longitudinal pre- and post-migration data. Our main goal is to assess the effects of adaptation, social comparison and economic integration on the change in SWB associated with migration from eastern to western Germany after the German reunification of 1990. We expect that gains or losses in SWB after migration are influenced by how migrants adapt to their new economic conditions, with whom they compare themselves and how well they integrate economically (as indicated by their relative income position) into the new society. We estimate fixed-effects generalized least squares regressions using Socio-Economic Panel data for the period 1990 - 2014. The results indicate a positive and strong effect of migration on SWB, both for men and women, which results in part from the higher incomes migrants earn in the new society. In line with the Easterlin paradox, our results show that general income increases do not generate equivalent gains in SWB because of processes of adaptation and social comparison. For migrating men the increase in SWB is diminished significantly by a dissatisfaction resulting from comparing their income with that of their new peers in western Germany and that of their former peers in eastern Germany. The change in SWB of migrating women and men is much more dependent on social comparison than on economic integration." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Mueller, Swantje, Jenny Wagner, Gert G. Wagner, Nilam Ram & Denis Gerstorf (2017): How far reaches the power of personality? Personality predictors of terminal decline in well-being. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 944), Berlin, 56 S.

Abstract

"Personality is a powerful predictor of central life outcomes, including subjective well-being. Yet, we still know little about how personality manifests in the very last years of life when well-being typically falls rapidly. Here, we investigate whether the Big Five personality traits buffer (or magnify) terminal decline in well-being beyond and in interaction with functioning in key physical and social domains. We applied growth models to up to 10-year longitudinal data from 629 now deceased participants in the nation-wide German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP; age at death: M = 76 years; SD = 11). Lower neuroticism and higher conscientiousness were each uniquely associated with higher late-life well-being one year prior to death. At the same time, participants low in neuroticism experienced steeper terminal well-being declines. Similarly, individuals high in agreeableness and women high in extraversion reported higher well-being far away from death, but experienced more severe terminal decline, such that personality-related differences in well-being were not discernible anymore at one year prior to death. Interaction effects further revealed that individuals suffering from disability benefit less from higher levels of conscientiousness, while openness to experience appeared particularly beneficial for the less educated. We conclude that in the context of often severe late-life health challenges that accompany the last years of life, adaptive personality-related differences continue to be evident and sizeable for some traits, but appear to diminish and even reverse in direction for other traits. We discuss possible underlying mechanisms and practical implications." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Schöb, Ronnie (2017): Ungleichheit und Zufriedenheit. Anmerkungen zur Ungleichheitsdebatte. In: Ifo Dresden berichtet, Jg. 24, H. 4, S. 32-35.

Abstract

"Befragungen zur Lebenszufriedenheit in Deutschland zeigen einen deutlichen Anstieg der Zufriedenheit in den Jahren 2005 bis 2015. In der gegenwärtigen politischen Diskussion wird dagegen häufig ein Bild gezeichnet, wonach sich immer mehr Menschen abgehängt fühlen und zunehmend Sorgen um die Zukunft machen. Blickt man aber auf die Entwicklung der subjektiven Lebenszufriedenheit in den unterschiedlichen Einkommensgruppen, zeigt sich, dass die Schere zwischen Unzufriedenen und Zufriedenen nicht etwa aufgegangen ist, sondern sich sogar etwas geschlossen hat. Der vorliegende Beitrag ergründet mögliche Ursachen dieser gegensätzlichen Wahrnehmung." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Yasar, Rusen (2017): Subjective well-being and income: a compromise between Easterlin paradox and its critiques. (Economics. Discussion papers 2017-113), Kiel, 25 S.

Abstract

"Despite rising popularity of subjective well-being (SWB) as a proxy for utility, its relationship with income is still unresolved. Against the background of debates around the 'Easterlin paradox', this paper seeks a compromise between two positions: one that insists on individual relative income, and one that finds similarity between individual and aggregate levels. Proposing a model which puts the emphasis on the interaction between individual and aggregate-level factors, it argues that the effect of relative income on SWB varies across countries as a function of average income, in addition to a relatively small direct effect of the latter, in partial agreement with the two major positions. The model is tested cross-sectionally on the data from the latest wave of World Values Survey. The results from hierarchical mixed-effect models confirm the main argument. But further examination reveals that there is still unaccounted variation especially in middle-income economies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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OECD (2017): How's life? 2017. Measuring well-being. (How's life? 04), Paris, 458 S. DOI:10.1787/how_life-2017-en

Abstract

"Alle zwei Jahre stellt die OECD die Frage: Wie ist das Leben? Wie steht es um Einkommen und Beschäftigung, aber auch Wohnen, Gesundheit, Bildung, den sozialen Zusammenhalt oder die Work-Life-Balance? Die aktuelle Untersuchung zeigt: In den letzten zehn Jahren hat sich die Lebensqualität in vielen Bereichen verbessert, doch es gibt auch rückläufige Entwicklungen und vor allem Unterschiede nach Geschlecht und Bildungsniveau.
Die OECD-Studie 'How's Life? 2017' analysiert mithilfe von 50 international vergleichbaren Indikatoren jenseits des Bruttoinlandsprodukts die Lebensbedingungen der Menschen in den 35 OECD- und sechs Partnerländern. Ein Kapitel befasst sich mit der Situation von Migranten. Ein weiteres Kapitel präsentiert die Ergebnisse der einzelnen Länder." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Burkhauser, Richard V., Jan-Emmanuel De Neve & Nattavudh Powdthavee (2016): Top incomes and human well-being around the world. (CEP discussion paper 1400), London, 57 S.

Abstract

"The share of income held by the top 1 percent in many countries around the world has been rising persistently over the last 30 years. But we continue to know little about how the rising top income shares affect human well-being. This study combines the latest data to examine the relationship between top income share and different dimensions of subjective well-being. We find top income shares to be significantly correlated with lower life evaluation and higher levels of negative emotional well-being, but not positive emotional well-being. The results are robust to household income, individual's socio-economic status, and macroeconomic environment controls." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Crost, Benjamin (2016): Can workfare programs offset the negative effect of unemployment on subjective well-being? In: Economics Letters, Jg. 140, H. March, S. 42-47. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2015.12.007

Abstract

"Previous research suggests that unemployment negatively affects indicators of mental health and well-being, but it remains unclear whether active labor market policy can offset this effect. This paper examines a workfare program that was a key part of Germany's active labor market policy for over 30 years. Fixed effects panel estimates suggest that participation in the workfare program offset most, though not all, of the negative effect of unemployment on subjective life satisfaction. Robustness tests find no evidence that this estimate is due to non-parallel time-trends, unobserved shocks in the pre-treatment period, adaptation to unemployment or differences in regional unemployment rates. These results suggest that active labor market policies can help reduce the negative psychological effect of unemployment." (Author's abstract, © 2016 Elsevier) ((en))

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Ewers, Mara (2016): Vertrauen und emotionale Stabilität als Determinanten von Erfolg und Lebenszufriedenheit. In: IW-Trends, Jg. 43, H. 2, S. 1-89. DOI:10.2373/1864-810X.16-02-06

Abstract

"Wie erklären sich Unterschiede im guten und erfolgreichen Leben, wenn man dieses an der Lebens- und Arbeitszufriedenheit, dem Bruttostundenlohn, der Gesundheit und den Ausbildungsjahren festmacht? Erkenntnisse fachübergreifender Forschung von Ökonomen und Psychologen werfen die Frage auf, ob allein ökonomische Präferenzen sowie gesellschaftliche und ökonomische Rahmenbedingungen hierfür verantwortlich sind. Die vorliegende Untersuchung zeigt, dass Ungleichheit auch eine Folge der Entwicklung der Persönlichkeit ist. Ökonomische Präferenzen und Persönlichkeitsmerkmale sind nicht perfekt austauschbar. Vielmehr ergänzen sie sich. Erfolgreiche Bundesbürger in allen untersuchten Lebensbereichen weisen vor allem hohe Werte bei der emotionalen Stabilität und beim Vertrauen auf. Von den Bundesbürgern, die der Aussage 'Im Allgemeinen kann man den Menschen vertrauen' voll zustimmten, geben 72 Prozent eine hohe Lebenszufriedenheit an. Unter allen Deutschen trifft dies nur auf jeden zweiten zu." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Pfeifer, Christian & Inna Petrunyk (2016): Life satisfaction in Germany after reunification. Additional insights on the pattern of convergence. In: Jahrbücher für Nationalökonomie und Statistik, Jg. 236, H. 2, S. 217-239. DOI:10.1515/jbnst-2015-1010

Abstract

"The authors update previous findings on the total East-West gap in overall life satisfaction and its trend by using data from the German Socio- Economic Panel (SOEP) for the years 1992 to 2013. Additionally, the East-West gap and its trend are separately analyzed for men and women as well as for four birth cohorts. The results indicate that reported life satisfaction is on average significantly lower in East than in West German federal states and that part of the raw East-West gap is due to differences in household income and unemployment status. The conditional East-West gap decreased in the first years after the German reunification and remained quite stable and sizeable since the mid-nineties. The results further indicate that gender differences are small. But the East-West gap is significantly smaller and shows a trend towards convergence for younger birth cohorts." (Author's abstract, © De Gruyter) ((en))

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Poppitz, Philipp (2016): Does self-perceptions and income inequality match? The case of subjective social status. (IMK working paper 173), Düsseldorf, 28 S.

Abstract

"This paper uses subjective social status to test whether individual comparisons are driven by income and wealth, or other dimensions of inequality including education and prestige. Using a cross-sectional data set of 18 European countries and a mixed model with an MCMC estimation method, this work reveals that material factors are just as important as non-material factors. Besides income and wealth, social and cultural capital are important factors to explain the gap between income inequality and the perception of inequality. The most relevant institutions to explain the cross-country differences within Europe are the GDP level, average health and the education system, which also moderates the relevance of wealth on subjective social status." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Schnitzlein, Daniel D. & Christoph Wunder (2016): Are we architects of our own happiness? The importance of family background for well-being. In: The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy, Jg. 16, H. 1, S. 125-149. DOI:10.1515/bejeap-2015-0037

Abstract

"This paper analyzes whether individuals have equal opportunity to achieve happiness (or well-being). We estimate sibling correlations and intergenerational correlations in self-reported life satisfaction, satisfaction with household income, job satisfaction, and satisfaction with health. We find high sibling correlations for all measures of well-being. The results suggest that family background explains, on average, between 30% and 60% of the inequality in permanent well-being. The influence is smaller when the siblings' psychological and geographical distance from their parental home is larger. Results from intergenerational correlations suggest that parental characteristics are considerably less important than family and community factors." (Author's abstract, © De Gruyter) ((en))

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Brown, Sarah, Daniel Gray & Jennifer Roberts (2015): The relative income hypothesis. A comparison of methods. In: Economics letters, Jg. 130, H. May, S. 47-50. DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2015.02.031

Abstract

"Studies of the relative income hypothesis find positive and negative effects of relative income. To facilitate comparisons we use a large household panel and highlight the sensitivity of the relative income effect to the definition of the reference group and to the estimation strategy employed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Calvo, Esteban, Christine A. Mair & Natalia Sarkisian (2015): Individual troubles, shared troubles: the multiplicative effect of individual and country-level unemployment on life satisfaction in 95 nations (1981 - 2009). In: Social forces, Jg. 93, H. 4, S. 1625-1653. DOI:10.1093/sf/sou109

Abstract

"Although the negative association between unemployment and life satisfaction is well documented, much theoretical and empirical controversy surrounds the question of how unemployment actually shapes life satisfaction. Previous studies suggest that unemployment may endanger subjective well-being through individual experiences, contextual influences, or a combination of both. Drawing on data from the World and European Values Surveys, National Accounts Official Country Data, Social Security Programs Throughout the World Reports, World Development Indicators, and World Income Inequality databases for 398,533 individuals in 95 nations (1981 - 2009), we use three-level hierarchical linear models to test four competing theory-based hypotheses -- that unemployment shapes life satisfaction through individual, contextual, additive, or multiplicative effects. Our results support a multiplicative interaction between individual- and country-level unemployment. Unemployed individuals are less satisfied than other individuals, and when unemployment rates rise, their satisfaction drops even further below students, homemakers, and employed individuals; retirees, however, become more similar to the unemployed. We discuss these findings in light of previous theoretical models to argue for a model where individual unemployment is understood in the context of diverse labor force statuses and national unemployment rates. We conclude with policy suggestions aiming to address the negative consequences of unemployment through individualized and contextualized plans." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Headey, Bruce & Ruud Muffels (2015): People typically experience extended periods of relative happiness or unhappiness due to positive feedback loops between LS and variables which are both causes and consequences of LS. In: Schmollers Jahrbuch, Jg. 135, H. 1, S. 97-108. DOI:10.3790/schm.135.1.97

Abstract

"Long term panel data enable researchers to construct trajectories of LS for individuals over time. Bar charts of trajectories, and subsequent statistical analysis, show that respondents typically spend multiple consecutive years above and below their own long-term mean level of LS. We attempt to explain these multi-year waves of change by estimating structural equation models with two-way causal links between LS and variables usually treated as causes of LS, including health, frequency of physical exercise and frequency of social activities. Results are interpreted as showing positive feedback loops between these variables and LS, such that gains and losses of LS tend to be reinforced over time." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Mavridis, Dimitris (2015): The unhappily unemployed return to work faster. In: IZA journal of labor economics, Jg. 4, S. 1-22. DOI:10.1186/s40172-014-0015-z

Abstract

"This paper shows that job loss is associated with a fall in subjective well-being (SWB). It then looks at how this change in SWB predicts job search and unemployment duration. The findings suggest that those who report feeling hurt by unemployment have shorter unemployment durations. Men who report a loss of SWB are also more likely to look for a job, but women's job search is not affected by the SWB loss. These findings confirm the theoretical prediction from job search theory: search effort and unemployment duration are affected by the utility differential between having a job and being unemployed." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Oswald, Andrew J., Eugenio Proto & Daniel Sgroi (2015): Happiness and productivity. In: Journal of Labor Economics, Jg. 33, H. 4, S. 789-822. DOI:10.1086/681096

Abstract

"Some firms say they care about the well-being and 'happiness' of their employees. But are such claims hype or scientific good sense? We provide evidence, for a classic piece rate setting, that happiness makes people more productive. In three different styles of experiment, randomly selected individuals are made happier. The treated individuals have approximately 12% greater productivity. A fourth experiment studies major real-world shocks bereavement and family illness. Lower happiness is systematically associated with lower productivity. These different forms of evidence, with complementary strengths and weaknesses, are consistent with the existence of a causal link between human well-being and human performance." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Pfeifer, Christian & Inna Petrunyk (2015): Life satisfaction in Germany after reunification. Additional insights on the pattern of convergence. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 764), Berlin, 27 S.

Abstract

"The authors update previous findings on the total East-West gap in overall life satisfaction and its trend by using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) for the years 1992 to 2013. Additionally, the East-West gap and its trend are separately analyzed for men and women as well as for four birth cohorts. The results indicate that reported life satisfaction is on average significantly lower in East than in West German federal states and that part of the raw East-West gap is due to differences in household income and unemployment status. The conditional East-West gap decreased in the first years after the German reunification and remained quite stable and sizeable since the mid-nineties. The results further indicate that gender differences are small. But the East-West gap is significantly smaller and shows a trend towards convergence for younger birth cohorts." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Ruckriegel, Karlheinz (2015): Zur Verwendung von "Subjektiven Indikatoren" (Erkenntnissen der interdisziplinären Glücksforschung) in der (Wirtschafts-) Politik - eine grundsätzliche Kritik am Sachverständigenrat Wirtschaft (SVR). (Sonderdruck. Schriftenreihe der Technischen Hochschule Nürnberg Georg Simon Ohm 58), Nürnberg, 21 S.

Abstract

"Bei der Stellungnahme zum Indikatorensystem im Jahre 2010, aber auch beim Mitwirken des SVR bei der Enquete-Kommission durch seinen gegenwärtigen Vorsitzenden, zeigte sich an der (scharf) ablehnenden Haltung gegen eine Verwendung von subjektiven Indikatoren als Orientierungshilfe für die (Wirtschafts-) Politik, dass der SVR noch (immer!) im neoklassischen (neoliberalen) Paradigma und der für dieses Paradigma grundlegenden 'homo oeconomicus-Annahme' und darauf fußend der Theorie der 'offenbarten Präferenzen' verhaftet ist. Die grundsätzliche Ablehnung subjektiver Indikatoren durch den SVR bedeutet faktisch auch eine Leugnung der Psychologie als Wissenschaft.
Als der Psychologe Daniel Kahneman, der für seine Arbeiten auf dem Gebiet der Behavioural Economics (Verhaltensökonomik) 2002 auch den Nobelpreis für Wirtschaftswissenschaften erhielt, erstmals von der homo oeconomicus- Annahme der neoklassischen Ökonomik, wonach der Mensch in der Ökonomik rational und egoistisch sei und seine Präferenzen (im Zeitablauf) nicht ändere ('the agent of economic theory is rational and selfish, and that his tastes do not change'), glaubte er als erfahrener Psychologe kein Wort davon ('not to believe a word of it')." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Benjamin, Daniel J., Ori Heffetz, Miles S. Kimball & Nichole Szembrot (2014): Beyond happiness and satisfaction: toward well-being indices based on stated preference. In: The American economic review, Jg. 104, H. 9, S. 2698-2735. DOI:10.1257/aer.104.9.2698

Abstract

"This paper proposes foundations and a methodology for survey- based tracking of well-being. First, we develop a theory in which utility depends on 'fundamental aspects' of well-being, measurable with surveys. Second, drawing from psychologists, philosophers, and economists, we compile a comprehensive list of such aspects. Third, we demonstrate our proposed method for estimating the aspects' relative marginal utilities -- a necessary input for constructing an individual-level well-being index -- by asking ~4,600 US survey respondents to state their preference between pairs of aspect bundles. We estimate high relative marginal utilities for aspects related to family, health, security, values, freedom, happiness, and life satisfaction." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Blanchflower, David G., David N. F. Bell, Alberto Montagnoli & Mirko Moro (2014): The happiness trade-off between unemployment and inflation. In: Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Jg. 46, H. S2, S. 117-141. DOI:10.1111/jmcb.12154

Abstract

"Unemployment and inflation lower well-being. The macroeconomist Arthur Okun characterized the negative effects of unemployment and inflation by the misery index - the sum of the unemployment and inflation rates. This paper makes use of a large European data set, covering the period 1975 - 2013, to estimate happiness equations in which an individual subjective measure of life satisfaction is regressed against unemployment and inflation rate (controlling for personal characteristics, country, and year fixed effects). We find, conventionally, that both higher unemployment and higher inflation lower well-being. We also discover that unemployment depresses well-being more than inflation. We characterize this well-being trade-off between unemployment and inflation using what we describe as the misery ratio. Our estimates with European data imply that a 1 percentage point increase in the unemployment rate lowers well-being by more than five times as much as a 1 percentage point increase in the inflation rate." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Clark, Andrew E., Sarah Flèche & Claudia Senik (2014): Economic growth evens-out happiness. Evidence from six surveys. (SOEPpapers on multidisciplinary panel data research at DIW Berlin 633), Berlin, 32 S.

Abstract

"In spite of the great U-turn that saw income inequality rise in Western countries in the 1980s, happiness inequality has dropped in countries that have experienced income growth (but not in those that did not). Modern growth has reduced the share of both the 'very unhappy' and the 'perfectly happy'. The extension of public amenities has certainly contributed to this greater happiness homogeneity. This new stylized fact comes as an addition to the Easterlin paradox, offering a somewhat brighter perspective for developing countries." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Dingemans, Ellen & Kène Henkens (2014): Involuntary retirement, bridge employment, and satisfaction with life. A longitudinal investigation. In: Journal of organizational behavior, Jg. 35, H. 4, S. 575-591. DOI:10.1002/job.1914

Abstract

"The increased popularity of bridge employment has raised questions about its consequences for well-being in late adult life. This research explored the consequences of bridge employment for the level of life satisfaction of older adults during the retirement transition period. Changes in life satisfaction were considered to be a function of the different intentions and motives for taking bridge jobs. Furthermore, the impact of bridge employment was empirically examined conditional on the voluntariness of the exit from the career job. Panel data on Dutch retirees (N?=?1248) were investigated using conditional change models. The results demonstrate that older adults willing to prolong their work careers but unable to find bridge jobs reported lower levels of life satisfaction compared with full retirees not considering bridge employment. In addition, participation in bridge employment for financial motives was associated with decreases in life satisfaction compared with postretirement working based on intrinsic motives. Moreover, compared with voluntary retirement, involuntary retirement was detrimental to life satisfaction, but participation in a bridge job was found to mitigate this negative shock. These findings contribute to the understanding of the consequences of various postretirement employment trajectories for older individuals." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

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Hardering, Friedericke (2014): Zwischen Glücksjagd und Sinnsuche in der Arbeitswelt. In: Sozialwissenschaften und Berufspraxis, Jg. 37, H. 2, S. 175-187.

Abstract

"Im Folgenden wird zunächst auf die soziologische Erforschung von Glücksvorstellungen der Arbeit eingegangen. Anschließend werden verschiedene subjektive Bezugnahmen auf Glücksvorstellungen vorgestellt, die aus Interviews mit freiwilligen BerufswechslerInnen rekonstruiert wurden. Da diese Gruppe durch den beruflichen Wechsel eine erhöhte Reflexivität im Hinblick auf eigene Erwartungen an die Arbeit aufweist, lassen sich Deutungen und Eigentheorien darüber, welche Glücksvorstellungen sich für die InterviewpartnerInnen als tragfähig erwiesen haben und welchen Vorstellungen vom Glück sie folgen, gut rekonstruieren. Insgesamt zielt der Beitrag darauf ab, die eigensinnigen Aneignungen und Reaktualisierungen von Glücksvorstellungen in der Arbeit abzubilden, um so den Blick auf individuell genutzte Handlungsspielräume und Ressourcen zu richten und zudem einen konzeptionellen Beitrag zur Systematisierung gegenwärtiger Glücksvorstellungen der Arbeit zu leisten." (Autorenreferat, IAB-Doku)

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Krause, Annabelle (2014): Happiness and work. (IZA discussion paper 8435), Bonn, 12 S.

Abstract

"The relationship between happiness and work is subject to an ever growing empirical literature in economics. The analyses are mostly based on large-scale survey data to measure subjective well-being. Whereas one large strand of research investigates the effect of job loss and becoming unemployed, another field of study focuses on the determinants of job satisfaction evolving around employment conditions, self-employment, and potential public sector satisfaction premiums. A smaller part of the literature investigates potential driving effects of happiness on labor market outcomes. This article will give an overview about the most significant subareas of research and the empirical literature in economics to date." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))