Comparative Life Satisfaction around the Globe
So why is life satisfaction so low in Belarus compared to other countries around the globe? A couple possible explanations are represented in the figures below, which look at cultural clustering of countries, as well as subjective well-being based on economic development and historical heritage of societies.
While this is far from conclusive evidence, I find it rather intriguing and certainly worthy of further exploration.
Yesterday I posted a few descriptive tidbits about Belarus based on preliminary data analysis from the World Values Survey (self-report subjective well-being indicators). Today I wanted to share some additional information (this information and analysis was not done by me, but by different sources I thought were interesting).
Above is a map of "world happiness," based on the Satisfaction with Life Index. This index
was created by Adrian G. White, an Analytic Social Psychologist at the University
of Leicester (including data from the following sources: UNESCO, the CIA World
Factobook, the New Economics Foundation, the WHO, the Veenhoven Database, the
Latinbarometer, the Afrobarometer, and the UNHDR).
Unlike data in the World Values Survey, this index is not solely based on
directly asking "how people feel", but also on its social and
economic development (representing the overall satisfaction level as one number). Using this index for life satisfaction, Belarus is ranked 170 out of 178 nations around the globe, with only Turkmenistan, Armenia, Sudan, Ukraine, Moldova, Congo, Zimbabwe, and Burundi having lower index scores (this corroborates Belarus being ranked 74 out of 81 countries included in the WVS data).
It is also important to briefly note why I am even interested in comparative life satisfaction. In many studies, life satisfaction has been shown to correlate most strongly with health, wealth, and access to basic education (so when life satisfaction is low, usually health, wealth, and education levels are correspondingly low). However, there are also other relevant social and economic correlates as well—see table below.
Life Satisfaction and its Correlates
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| Source: Röcke, Christina and Lachman, Margie E. 2008. “Perceived trajectories of life satisfaction across past, present, and future: Profiles and correlates of subjective change in young, middle-aged, and older adults.” Psychology and Aging, Vol 23(4), p. 833-847. |
So why is life satisfaction so low in Belarus compared to other countries around the globe? A couple possible explanations are represented in the figures below, which look at cultural clustering of countries, as well as subjective well-being based on economic development and historical heritage of societies.
The World Value Survey Cultural
Map 1999-2004
 |
Source: Inglehart, R. and Welzel, C. 2005.
Modernization, Cultural Change and Democracy. New York: Cambridge University
Press, page 63. This
map reflects the fact that a large number of basic values are closely
correlated; they can be depicted in just two major dimensions of cross-cultural
variation. Each
country is positioned according to its people's values and not its geographical
location.
|
Subjective Well-being by Level of Economic Development and Historical Heritage of Given Societies
 |
Source: Inglehart, R. and Klingemann, H.D. 2000. Genes, Culture and Happiness. MIT Press. Note: GNP/capita purchasing power estimates from World
Bank, World Development Report, 1997. R=.70 N=65 p<.0000.
|
While this is far from conclusive evidence, I find it rather intriguing and certainly worthy of further exploration.
Jon,
ReplyDeleteOn the World Value Survey Cultural Map, how do they define the variables of the two axis? Are they really measuring two or four value dimensions? Traditional values vary so much from one part of the world to another, I am unclear as to how they are comparable. Also... how long must a value system exist for it to be "traditional?"... or is traditional intended to imply conservative vs. liberal as it relates to the prominent religious views of the area? Alan
Dad, good questions. And I have not dug deap enough into everything to have enough info at this point to adequately answer you. For all of those details, see Ronald Inglehart and Christian Welzel's book, "Modernization, Cultural Change and Democracy." (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005).
ReplyDeleteAs for these dimensions, here is a short (though inadequate to answering your questions) explanation I found on the WVS website: "These two dimensions explain more than 70 percent of the cross-cultural variance on scores of more specific values. Traditional/Secular-rational values dimension reflects the contrast between societies in which religion is very important and those in which it is not. A wide range of other orientations are closely linked with this dimension. Societies near the traditional pole emphasize the importance of parent-child ties and deference to authority, along with absolute standards and traditional family values, and reject divorce, abortion, euthanasia, and suicide. These societies have high levels of national pride, and a nationalistic outlook. Societies with secular-rational values have the opposite preferences on all of these topics. The second major dimension of cross-cultural variation is linked with the transition from industrial society to post-industrial societies, which brings a polarization between Survival and Self-¬expression values. The unprecedented wealth that has accumulated in advanced societies during the past generation means that an unprecedented share of the population has grown up taking survival for granted. Thus, priorities have shifted from an emphasis on economic and physical security above all, toward increasing emphasis on subjective well-being, self-expression and the quality of life."
That at least provides a little more info about those dimensions...
"Societies near the traditional pole emphasize the importance of parent-child ties and deference to authority, along with absolute standards and traditional family values, and reject divorce, abortion, euthanasia, and suicide."
ReplyDeleteNo wonder the secular-rational folks are so happy/satisfied... the unhappy ones are dead.
Dad