IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/asiaec/v37y2023i1p113-143.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Distributional Effects of Freedom and Income on Life Satisfaction: Evidence from East Asian Chinese Societies

Author

Listed:
  • Hock‐Eam Lim
  • Daigee Shaw
  • Le‐Yu Chen
  • Pei‐Shan Liao

Abstract

We estimate the distributional effects of freedom and income on life satisfaction (LS) for East Asian Chinese societies through an ordinal parametric quantile regression approach. The results show that freedom and income exhibit positive and mostly significant effects across societies and LS levels. The freedom effects generally become larger for those at higher LS quantiles. However, the income effects decline as the LS quantile level increases. Thus, one may have a trade‐off between freedom and income without compromising individual LS. The trade‐off of freedom (income) for income (freedom) is more pronounced for people at a lower (higher) LS level.

Suggested Citation

  • Hock‐Eam Lim & Daigee Shaw & Le‐Yu Chen & Pei‐Shan Liao, 2023. "Distributional Effects of Freedom and Income on Life Satisfaction: Evidence from East Asian Chinese Societies," Asian Economic Journal, East Asian Economic Association, vol. 37(1), pages 113-143, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:asiaec:v:37:y:2023:i:1:p:113-143
    DOI: 10.1111/asej.12291
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/asej.12291
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/asej.12291?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Amanina Abdur Rahman & Ruut Veenhoven, 2018. "Erratum to: Freedom and Happiness in Nations: A Research Synthesis," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 13(2), pages 457-459, June.
    2. Easterlin, Richard A., 1995. "Will raising the incomes of all increase the happiness of all?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 35-47, June.
    3. Chen, Le-Yu & Szroeter, Jerzy, 2014. "Testing multiple inequality hypotheses: A smoothed indicator approach," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 178(P3), pages 678-693.
    4. Schröder, Carsten & Yitzhaki, Shlomo, 2017. "Revisiting the evidence for cardinal treatment of ordinal variables," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 337-358.
    5. Chen, Le-Yu & Oparina, Ekaterina & Powdthavee, Nattavudh & Srisuma, Sorawoot, 2022. "Robust Ranking of Happiness Outcomes: A Median Regression Perspective," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 672-686.
    6. Blanchflower, David G., 2020. "Unhappiness and age," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 461-488.
    7. Sebastian Kripfganz & Jan F. Kiviet, 2021. "kinkyreg: Instrument-free inference for linear regression models with endogenous regressors," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 21(3), pages 772-813, September.
    8. Dezhu Ye & Yew-Kwang Ng & Yujun Lian, 2015. "Culture and Happiness," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 123(2), pages 519-547, September.
    9. Easterlin, Richard A, 2001. "Income and Happiness: Towards an Unified Theory," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 111(473), pages 465-484, July.
    10. Koenker, Roger W & Bassett, Gilbert, Jr, 1978. "Regression Quantiles," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 46(1), pages 33-50, January.
    11. Zimei Huang & Tinghui Li & Mark Xu, 2020. "Are There Heterogeneous Impacts of National Income on Mental Health?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(20), pages 1-22, October.
    12. Amanina Abdur Rahman & Ruut Veenhoven, 2018. "Freedom and Happiness in Nations: A Research Synthesis," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 13(2), pages 435-456, June.
    13. Stefan Boes & Rainer Winkelmann, 2010. "The Effect of Income on General Life Satisfaction and Dissatisfaction," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 95(1), pages 111-128, January.
    14. Michael Minkov & Christian Welzel & Michael Schachner, 2020. "Cultural Evolution Shifts the Source of Happiness from Religion to Subjective Freedom," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(8), pages 2873-2888, December.
    15. Verme, Paolo, 2009. "Happiness, freedom and control," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 71(2), pages 146-161, August.
    16. Pei-Shan Liao & Yang-Chih Fu & Chin-Chun Yi, 2005. "Perceived quality of life in Taiwan and Hong Kong: an intra-culture comparison," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 6(1), pages 43-67, March.
    17. Kiviet, Jan F., 2020. "Testing the impossible: Identifying exclusion restrictions," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 218(2), pages 294-316.
    18. Di Tella, Rafael & MacCulloch, Robert, 2008. "Gross national happiness as an answer to the Easterlin Paradox?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(1), pages 22-42, April.
    19. Timothy N. Bond & Kevin Lang, 2019. "The Sad Truth about Happiness Scales," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 127(4), pages 1629-1640.
    20. Ruut Veenhoven, 1991. "Is happiness relative?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 1-34, February.
    21. Yee Ting Ngoo & Eu Chye Tan & Nai Peng Tey, 2021. "Determinants of Life Satisfaction in Asia: A Quantile Regression Approach," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 907-926, February.
    22. Jeffrey M Wooldridge, 2010. "Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 2, volume 1, number 0262232588, December.
    23. Grace Yao & Chia-huei Wu, 2009. "Similarities and Differences Among the Taiwan, China, and Hong-Kong Versions of the WHOQOL Questionnaire," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 91(1), pages 79-98, March.
    24. Binder, Martin & Coad, Alex, 2011. "From Average Joe's happiness to Miserable Jane and Cheerful John: using quantile regressions to analyze the full subjective well-being distribution," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 79(3), pages 275-290, August.
    25. Hock-Eam Lim & Daigee Shaw & Pei-Shan Liao & Hongbo Duan, 2020. "The Effects of Income on Happiness in East and South Asia: Societal Values Matter?," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(2), pages 391-415, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kundu, Srikanta & Kundu, Ruma & Chettri, Kul Bahadur, 2024. "Asymmetric effects of democracy and macroeconomic factors on happiness under high and low per capita incomes: A threshold panel analysis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 216(C).
    2. Dieudonne Mignamissi & Yselle Flora Malah Kuete, 2020. "What Makes Africans Happy?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 40(4), pages 2741-2754.
    3. Yee Ting Ngoo & Eu Chye Tan & Nai Peng Tey, 2021. "Determinants of Life Satisfaction in Asia: A Quantile Regression Approach," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 907-926, February.
    4. Kaiser, Caspar, 2022. "Using memories to assess the intrapersonal comparability of wellbeing reports," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 193(C), pages 410-442.
    5. Chen, Le-Yu & Oparina, Ekaterina & Powdthavee, Nattavudh & Srisuma, Sorawoot, 2022. "Robust Ranking of Happiness Outcomes: A Median Regression Perspective," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 672-686.
    6. Lamu, Admassu N. & Olsen, Jan Abel, 2016. "The relative importance of health, income and social relations for subjective well-being: An integrative analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 176-185.
    7. Graham, Carol & Nikolova, Milena, 2015. "Bentham or Aristotle in the Development Process? An Empirical Investigation of Capabilities and Subjective Well-Being," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 163-179.
    8. Jeffrey R. Bloem & Andrew J. Oswald, 2022. "The Analysis of Human Feelings: A Practical Suggestion for a Robustness Test," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 68(3), pages 689-710, September.
    9. Zhilin Tang, 2014. "They Are Richer But Are They Happier? Subjective Well-Being of Chinese Citizens Across the Reform Era," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 117(1), pages 145-164, May.
    10. Muhammad Faress Bhuiyan, 2018. "Life Satisfaction and Economic Position Relative to Neighbors: Perceptions Versus Reality," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 19(7), pages 1935-1964, October.
    11. Hong, Yan-Zhen & Su, Yi-Ju & Chang, Hung-Hao, 2023. "Analyzing the relationship between income and life satisfaction of Forest farm households - a behavioral economics approach," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    12. Blanchflower, David G. & Oswald, Andrew J., 2004. "Well-being over time in Britain and the USA," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(7-8), pages 1359-1386, July.
    13. Easterlin, Richard A. & Angelescu McVey, Laura, 2009. "Happiness and Growth the World Over: Time Series Evidence on the Happiness-Income Paradox," IZA Discussion Papers 4060, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Drakopoulos, Stavros, 2011. "Hierarchical Needs, Income Comparisons and Happiness Levels," MPRA Paper 48343, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    15. Richard Ball & Kateryna Chernova, 2008. "Absolute Income, Relative Income, and Happiness," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 88(3), pages 497-529, September.
    16. Gabriel Leite Mota, 2022. "Unsatisfying ordinalism: The breach through which happiness (re)entered economics," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(3), pages 513-528, June.
    17. Bucciol, Alessandro & Zarri, Luca, 2020. "Wounds that time can’t heal: Life satisfaction and exposure to traumatic events," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    18. Bernhard Christoph, 2010. "The Relation Between Life Satisfaction and the Material Situation: A Re-Evaluation Using Alternative Measures," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 98(3), pages 475-499, September.
    19. Ekaterina Oparina & Sorawoot Srisuma, 2022. "Analyzing Subjective Well-Being Data with Misclassification," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(2), pages 730-743, April.
    20. Bucciol, Alessandro & Burro, Giovanni, 2022. "Is there a happiness premium for working in the public sector? Evidence from Italy," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 97(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:asiaec:v:37:y:2023:i:1:p:113-143. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/eaeaaea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.