Are Happiness and Life Satisfaction Different Across Religious Groups? Exploring Determinants of Happiness and Life Satisfaction

by | Sep 26, 2016 | Research Publications

Author(s):

  • Ngamaba, Kayonda Hubert
  • Soni, Debbie

Abstract:

This study explores whether different religions experience different levels of happiness and life satisfaction and in case this is affected by country economic and cultural environment. Using World Value Survey (from 1981 to 2014), this study found that individual religiosity and country level of development play a significant role in shaping people’s subjective well-being (SWB). Protestants, Buddhists and Roman Catholic were happier and most satisfied with their lives compared to other religious groups. Orthodox has the lowest SWB. Health status, household’s financial satisfaction and freedom of choice are means by which religious groups and governments across the globe can improve the SWB of their citizens.

Document:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10943-017-0481-2

References:
  1. Boldt, J. (2006). Volume therapy in cardiac surgery: Are Americans different from Europeans? [Review]. Journal of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia, 20(1), 98–105. doi:10.1053/j.jvca.2005.07.023.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  2. Boyce, C. J., Brown, G. D. A., & Moore, S. C. (2010). Money and happiness: Rank of income, not income, affects life satisfaction. Psychological Science, 21(4), 471–475. doi:10.1177/0956797610362671.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  3. Brickman, P., & Campbell, D. T. (1971). Hedonic relativism and planning the good society. In M. H. Appley (Ed.), Adaptation-level theory (pp. 287–305). New York: Academic Press. Google Scholar 
  4. Brockmann, H., Delhey, J., Welzel, C., & Yuan, H. (2009). The China puzzle: Falling happiness in a rising economy. Journal of Happiness Studies, 10(14), 407. doi:10.1007/s10902-008-9095-4.Article  Google Scholar 
  5. Chatters, L. M., Mattis, J. S., Woodward, A. T., Taylor, R. J., Neighbors, H. W., & Grayman, N. A. (2011). Use of ministers for a serious personal problem among african americans: Findings from the national survey of american life. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 81(1), 118–127. doi:10.1111/j.1939-0025.2010.01079.x.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  6. Coburn, D. (2004). Beyond the income inequality hypothesis: Class, neo-liberalism, and health inequalities. Social Science and Medicine, 58(51), 41–56. doi:10.1016/S0277-9536%2803%2900159-X.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  7. Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 155–159.CAS  Article  Google Scholar 
  8. Diener, E., & Chan, M. Y. (2011). Happy people live longer: Subjective well-being contributes to health and longevity. Applied Psychology-Health and Well Being, 3(1), 1–43. doi:10.1111/j.1758-0854.2010.01045.x.Article  Google Scholar 
  9. Diener, E., Suh, E. M., Lucas, R. E., & Smith, H. L. (1999). Subjective well-being: Three decades of progress. Psychological Bulletin, 125(2), 276–302. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.125.2.276.Article  Google Scholar 
  10. Easterlin, R. A. (1974). Does economic growth improve the human lot? Some empirical evidence. In P. A. David & M. W. Reder (Eds.), Nations and households in economic growth: Essays in honour of Moses Abramovitz. New York: Academic Press. Google Scholar 
  11. Easterlin, R. A. (2005). Feeding the illusion of growth and happiness: A reply to Hagerty and Veenhoven. Social Indicators Research, 74(3), 429–443. doi:10.1007/s11205-004-6170-z.Article  Google Scholar 
  12. Eichhorn, J. (2013). Unemployment needs context: How societal differences between countries moderate the loss in life-satisfaction for the unemployed. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14(6), 1657–1680. doi:10.1007/s10902-012-9402-y.Article  Google Scholar 
  13. Ellison, C. G., & Flannelly, K. J. (2009). Religious Involvement and risk of major depression in a prospective nationwide study of African American adults. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 197(8), 568–573. doi:10.1097/Nmd.0b013e3181b08f45.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  14. Ferriss, A. L. (2002). Does material well-being affect non-material well-being? Social Indicators Research, 60(1–3), 275–280. doi:10.1023/a:1021273317425.Article  Google Scholar 
  15. Fischer, P., Ai, A. L., Aydin, N., Frey, D., & Haslam, S. A. (2010). The relationship between religious identity and preferred coping strategies: An examination of the relative importance of interpersonal and intrapersonal coping in Muslim and Christian faiths. Review of General Psychology, 14(4), 365–381. doi:10.1037/A0021624.Article  Google Scholar 
  16. Fisher, G. G., Matthews, R. A., & Gibbons, A. M. (2016). Developing and investigating the use of single-item measures in organizational research. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 21(1), 3–23. doi:10.1037/a0039139.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  17. Fleche, S., Smith, C., & Sorsa, P. (2011). Exploring determinants of subjective well being in OECD countries: Evidence from the world value survey. Paris: OECD Economics Department. Google Scholar 
  18. Geschwind, N., Peeters, F., Drukker, M., van Os, J., & Wichers, M. (2011). Mindfulness training increases momentary positive emotions and reward experience in adults vulnerable to depression: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 79(5), 618–628. doi:10.1037/a0024595.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  19. Greve, B. (2010). Introduction. In B. Greve (Ed.), Happiness and social policy in Europe (pp. 1–10). Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar. Google Scholar 
  20. Gustafsson, B., Johansson, M., & Palmer, E. (2009). The welfare of Sweden’s old-age pensioners in times of bust and boom from 1990. Ageing & Society, 29(24), 539. doi:10.1017/S0144686X08008167.CAS  Article  Google Scholar 
  21. Headey, B. (2010). The set point theory of well-being has serious flaws: On the eve of a scientific revolution? Social Indicators Research, 97(1), 7–21. doi:10.1007/s11205-009-9559-x.Article  Google Scholar 
  22. Howell, R. T., & Howell, C. J. (2008). The relation of economic status to subjective well-being in developing countries: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 134(4), 536–560. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.134.4.536.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  23. Inglehart, R., Foa, R., Peterson, C., & Welzel, C. (2008). Development, freedom, and rising happiness a global perspective (1981–2007). Perspectives on Psychological Science, 3(4), 264–285. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6924.2008.00078.x.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  24. Inglehart, R., Mcintosh, D., & Pacini, R. (1992). Value priorities and religiosity—an empiric investigation. International Journal of Psychology, 27(3–4), 304–304. Google Scholar 
  25. Jung, J. H. (2014). Religious attendance, stress, and happiness in South Korea: Do gender and religious affiliation matter? Social Indicators Research, 118(3), 1125–1145. doi:10.1007/s11205-013-0459-8.Article  Google Scholar 
  26. Kahneman, D., & Deaton, A. (2010). High income improves evaluation of life but not emotional well-being. PNAS Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 107(38), 16489–16493. doi:10.1073/pnas.1011492107.Article  Google Scholar 
  27. Kim-Prieto, C., & Diener, E. (2009). Religion as a source of variation in the experience of positive and negative emotions. Journal of Positive Psychology, 4(6), 447–460. doi:10.1080/17439760903271025.Article  Google Scholar 
  28. Knight, J., & Gunatilaka, R. (2010). The rural–urban divide in China: Income but not happiness? Journal of Development Studies, 46(3), 506–534. doi:10.1080/00220380903012763.Article  Google Scholar 
  29. Levin, J. (2013). Religion and mental health among Israeli Jews: Findings from the SHARE-Israel study. Social Indicators Research, 113(3), 769–784. doi:10.1007/s11205-012-0113-x.Article  Google Scholar 
  30. Linley, P. A., Maltby, J., Wood, A. M., Osborne, G., & Hurling, R. (2009). Measuring happiness: The higher order factor structure of subjective and psychological well-being measures. Personality and Individual Differences, 47(8), 878–884. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2009.07.010.Article  Google Scholar 
  31. Lobao, L., & Hooks, G. (2003). Public employment, welfare transfers, and economic well-being across local populations: Does a lean and mean government benefit the masses? Social Forces, 82(2), 519–556. doi:10.1353/sof.2004.0016.Article  Google Scholar 
  32. Lun, V. M. C., & Bond, M. H. (2013). Examining the relation of religion and spirituality to subjective well-being across national cultures. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 5(4), 304–315. doi:10.1037/A0033641.Article  Google Scholar 
  33. Lutz, A., Brefczynski-Lewis, J., Johnstone, T., & Davidson, R. J. (2008). Regulation of the neural circuitry of emotion by compassion meditation: Effects of meditative expertise. PLoS ONE, 3(3), 1–10. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0001897.CAS  Article  Google Scholar 
  34. Lyubomirsky, S., & Layous, K. (2013). How do simple positive activities increase well-being? Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(1), 57–62. doi:10.1177/0963721412469809.Article  Google Scholar 
  35. Masud, J., & Haron, S. A. (2008). Income differences among elderly in Malaysia: A regional comparison. International Journal of Consumer Studies, 32(4), 335–340. doi:10.1111/j.1470-6431.2008.00674.x.Article  Google Scholar 
  36. McCullough, M. E., Emmons, R. A., & Tsang, J. A. (2002). The grateful disposition: A conceptual and empirical topography. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82(1), 112–127. doi:10.1037//0022-3514.82.1.112.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  37. Metzl, E. S. (2009). The role of creative thinking in resilience after hurricane Katrina. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 3(2), 112–123. doi:10.1037/a0013479.Article  Google Scholar 
  38. Miller, G. A., & Chapman, J. P. (2001). Misunderstanding analysis of covariance. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 110(1), 40–48. doi:10.1037//0021-843X.110.1.40.CAS  Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  39. Miret, M., Caballero, F. F., Chatterji, S., Olaya, B., Tobiasz-Adamczyk, B., Koskinen, S., et al. (2014). Health and happiness: cross-sectional household surveys in Finland, Poland and Spain. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 92, 716–725. doi:10.2471/BLT.13.129254.Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 
  40. Mochon, D., Norton, M. I., & Ariely, D. (2011). Who benefits from religion? Social Indicators Research, 101(1), 1–15. doi:10.1007/s11205-010-9637-0.Article  Google Scholar 
  41. Ng, W., & Diener, E. (2014). What matters to the rich and the poor? Subjective well-being, financial satisfaction, and postmaterialist needs across the world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107(2), 326–338. doi:10.1037/a0036856.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  42. Pew_Research_Center. (2015). Religion and public life: Data and resources from Pew Research Center http://www.pewforum.org/data/.
  43. Rozer, J., & Kraaykamp, G. (2013). Income inequality and subjective well-being: A cross-national study on the conditional effects of individual and national characteristics. Social Indicators Research, 113(3), 1009–1023. doi:10.1007/s11205-012-0124-7.Article  Google Scholar 
  44. Sahraian, A., Gholami, A., Javadpour, A., & Omidvar, B. (2013). Association between religiosity and happiness among a group of Muslim undergraduate students. Journal of Religion and Health, 52(2), 450–453. doi:10.1007/s10943-011-9484-6.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  45. Senf, K., & Liau, A. K. (2013). The effects of positive interventions on happiness and depressive symptoms, with an examination of personality as a moderator. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14(2), 591–612. doi:10.1007/s10902-012-9344-4.Article  Google Scholar 
  46. Smith, R. L., Ager, J. W., & Williams, D. L. (1992). Suppressor variables in multiple-regression correlation. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 52(1), 17–29. doi:10.1177/001316449205200102.CAS  Article  Google Scholar 
  47. Snijders, T. A. B., & Bosker, R. J. (2012). Multilevel analysis: An introduction to basic and advanced multilevel modelling. London: Sage. Google Scholar 
  48. Stata. (2013). Stata 13.1 statistics/data analysis. Texas: Stata Press.
  49. Stiglitz, J. E., Sen, A., & Fitoussi, J.-P. (2009). Report by the commission on the measurement of economic performance and social progress. Paris: INSEE. Google Scholar 
  50. Tewari, S., Khan, S., Hopkins, N., Srinivasan, N., & Reicher, S. (2012). Participation in mass gatherings can benefit well-being: Longitudinal and control data from a North Indian Hindu pilgrimage event. PLoS ONE, 7(10), e47291. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0047291.CAS  Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 
  51. Torres-Reyna, O. (2014). Multilevel analysis (ver. 1.0). Retrieved from http://www.princeton.edu/~otorres/Multilevel101.pdf.
  52. Tovar-Murray, D. (2011). The multiple determinants of religious behaviors and spiritual beliefs on well-being. Journal of Spirituality in Mental Health, 13(3), 182–192. doi:10.1080/19349637.2011.593405.Article  Google Scholar 
  53. UNDP. (2015). Human development index (HDI). New York: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Google Scholar 
  54. Veenhoven, R. (2008). Sociological theories of subjective well-being. In M. Eid & R. J. Larsen (Eds.), The science of subjective well-being (pp. 17–43). London: The Guilford Press. Google Scholar 
  55. Wells, C. R., Probst, J., McKeown, R., Mitchem, S., & Whiejong, H. (2012). The relationship between work-related stress and boundary-related stress within the clerical profession. Journal of Religion and Health, 51(1), 215–230. doi:10.1007/s10943-011-9501-9.Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 
  56. World-Bank. (2015). GDP per capita (current US$). Retrieved from http://data.worldbank.org/indicator.
  57. World-Values-Survey. (2015). 1981–2014 Longitudinal aggregate v.20150418. Retrieved from www.worldvaluessurvey.org.
  58. Wright, S. P. (1992). Adjusted P-values for simultaneous inference. Biometrics, 48(4), 1005–1013. doi:10.2307/2532694.Article  Google Scholar