The Impact of Economic Crisis on Happiness

Autor/in	Gudmundsdottir, Dora Gudrun
Titel	The Impact of Economic Crisis on Happiness
Quelle	In: Social Indicators Research, 110 (2013) 3, S.1083-1101 (19 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0303-8300
DOI	10.1007/s11205-011-9973-8
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; Economic Climate; Longitudinal Studies; Mail Surveys; Psychological Patterns; Well Being; Income; Multiple Regression Analysis; Economic Factors; Unemployment; Adults; Resilience (Psychology); Physical Health; Social Indicators; Measurement; Sociometric Techniques; Socioeconomic Influences; Demography; Psychometrics; National Surveys; Correlation; Predictor Variables; Financial Problems; Iceland + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; Wirtschaftslage; Longitudinal study; Longitudinal method; Longitudinal methods; Längsschnittuntersuchung; Erhebungsinstrument; Well-being; Wellness; Wohlbefinden; Einkommen; Ökonomischer Faktor; Arbeitslosigkeit; Gesundheitszustand; Social indicator; Sozialer Indikator; Messverfahren; Soziometrie; Sozioökonomischer Faktor; Demografie; Psychometry; Psychometrie; Korrelation; Prädiktor; Island
Abstract	There is a common belief that economic crisis will lead to a decrease in subjective wellbeing. Previous studies indicate that income is correlated with happiness and unemployment with unhappiness. The relationship between increased income and happiness is well documented while the impact of decreased income has been less explored. The aim of this paper is to study how the economic downfall in Iceland, followed by reduced income and increased unemployment, affects happiness as well as to explore which groups are most vulnerable to changes in happiness and which are most resilient. The study is a longitudinal, nationally representative postal survey which assessed 5,918 individual's aged 18-79. A total of 4,092 (77.3%) answered again in 2009. The relationship between economic factors and happiness was explored using multiple linear regression to find out how much they explain of the happiness variance and the changes in happiness, together with demographic factors, health and social relationships. Results indicate that income and unemployment did not predict happiness but financial difficulties did. A decrease in happiness was detected after the collapse. The change in happiness from 2007 to 2009 was normally distributed, 40% had the same score in both years and an equal number increased as decreased. The explored factors did not explain the changes in happiness. The economic crisis had a limited affect on happiness. Those with financial difficulties were hardest hit. Changes in happiness need to be studied further since they are not well explained by the factors which influence cross-sectional levels of happiness. (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10