IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jbrese/v134y2021icp1-12.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Pleasure, meaning or spirituality: Cross-cultural differences in orientations to happiness across 12 countries

Author

Listed:
  • Gaston-Breton, Charlotte
  • Lemoine, Jérémy E.
  • Voyer, Benjamin G.
  • Kastanakis, Minas N.

Abstract

Firms and institutions are increasingly embracing well-being initiatives as a critical way to retain and engage with their employees, customers and citizens all over the world. However, cross-cultural research on the paths to happiness remains scarce and fragmented, typically conceptualizing happiness as an individualistic pleasure-based construct without considering its collectivistic meaning-based dimension. This research investigates simultaneously how hedonic (pleasure) and eudaimonic (meaning and spirituality) orientations to happiness (life satisfaction) vary across 12 countries and among 2615 individuals representing different regions of the world (six continents) and different cultural contexts (individualism or collectivism). Findings reveal no significant difference in terms of the structure of happiness across countries, and that meaning emerges as a stronger predictor of life satisfaction compared to pleasure and spirituality. Accordingly, we inform human resource and marketing managers, policy makers and individuals about common routes to well-being in an international context.

Suggested Citation

  • Gaston-Breton, Charlotte & Lemoine, Jérémy E. & Voyer, Benjamin G. & Kastanakis, Minas N., 2021. "Pleasure, meaning or spirituality: Cross-cultural differences in orientations to happiness across 12 countries," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 1-12.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jbrese:v:134:y:2021:i:c:p:1-12
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.05.013
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0148296321003428
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.05.013?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jörg Schimmel, 2009. "Development as Happiness: The Subjective Perception of Happiness and UNDP’s Analysis of Poverty, Wealth and Development," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 93-111, March.
    2. Gaston-Breton, Charlotte & Sørensen, Elin Brandi & Thomsen, Thyra Uth, 2020. "“I want to break free!” How experiences of freedom foster consumer happiness," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 22-32.
    3. Kastanakis, Minas N. & Voyer, Benjamin G., 2014. "The effect of culture on perception and cognition: A conceptual framework," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(4), pages 425-433.
    4. Christopher Peterson & Nansook Park & Martin Seligman, 2005. "Orientations to happiness and life satisfaction: the full life versus the empty life," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 6(1), pages 25-41, March.
    5. Pagán-Castaño, E. & Maseda-Moreno, A. & Santos-Rojo, C., 2020. "Wellbeing in work environments," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 469-474.
    6. Salas-Vallina, Andrés & Simone, Cristina & Fernández-Guerrero, Rafael, 2020. "The human side of leadership: Inspirational leadership effects on follower characteristics and happiness at work (HAW)," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 162-171.
    7. Veronika Huta & Alan Waterman, 2014. "Eudaimonia and Its Distinction from Hedonia: Developing a Classification and Terminology for Understanding Conceptual and Operational Definitions," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 15(6), pages 1425-1456, December.
    8. Rafi Chowdhury & Mario Fernando, 2013. "The Role of Spiritual Well-Being and Materialism in Determining Consumers’ Ethical Beliefs: An Empirical Study with Australian Consumers," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 113(1), pages 61-79, March.
    9. Yukiko Uchida & Vinai Norasakkunkit & Shinobu Kitayama, 2004. "Cultural constructions of happiness: theory and emprical evidence," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 5(3), pages 223-239, September.
    10. Ledyard Tucker & Charles Lewis, 1973. "A reliability coefficient for maximum likelihood factor analysis," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 38(1), pages 1-10, March.
    11. Eduardo Wills, 2009. "Spirituality and Subjective Well-Being: Evidences for a New Domain in the Personal Well-Being Index," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 49-69, March.
    12. Veronika Huta & Richard Ryan, 2010. "Pursuing Pleasure or Virtue: The Differential and Overlapping Well-Being Benefits of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 11(6), pages 735-762, December.
    13. Rosseel, Yves, 2012. "lavaan: An R Package for Structural Equation Modeling," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 48(i02).
    14. Kemp, Elyria & Cowart, Kelly & Bui, My (Myla), 2020. "Promoting consumer well-being: Examining emotion regulation strategies in social advertising messages," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 200-209.
    15. Henderson, Geraldine Rosa & Guzmán, Francisco & Huff, Lenard & Motley, Carol M., 2013. "The Ian's pizza tribe: Reconceptualizing cross-cultural research in the digital age," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 66(3), pages 283-287.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kastanakis, Minas N. & Magrizos, Solon & Kampouri, Katerina, 2022. "Pain (and pleasure) in marketing and consumption: An integrative literature review and directions for future research," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 189-201.
    2. Papadopoulou, Christina & Vardarsuyu, Merve & Oghazi, Pejvak, 2023. "Examining the relationships between brand authenticity, perceived value, and brand forgiveness: The role of cross-cultural happiness," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    3. Yongsong Wu & Yang Cao, 2023. "Research on the Influence of Ecological Environment Satisfaction and Income Level on Chinese Residents’ Happiness: Empirical Analysis Based on CGSS Data," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-18, May.

    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. Julia Krasko & Sabrina Intelisano & Maike Luhmann, 2022. "When Happiness is Both Joy and Purpose: The Complexity of the Pursuit of Happiness and Well-Being is Related to Actual Well-Being," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 23(7), pages 3233-3261, October.
    2. Laura Giuntoli & Federica Condini & Francesco Ceccarini & Veronika Huta & Giulio Vidotto, 2021. "The Different Roles of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives for Activities in Predicting Functioning and Well-Being Experiences," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(4), pages 1657-1671, April.
    3. Hezhi Chen & Zhijia Zeng, 2023. "Seeking Pleasure is Good, but Avoiding Pain is Bad: Distinguishing Hedonic Approach from Hedonic Avoidance Orientations," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(7), pages 2377-2393, October.
    4. Kennon M. Sheldon & Mike Corcoran & Mike Prentice, 2019. "Pursuing Eudaimonic Functioning Versus Pursuing Hedonic Well-Being: The First Goal Succeeds in Its Aim, Whereas the Second Does Not," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 919-933, March.
    5. Ying Yang & Peipei Li & Xinyuan Fu & Yu Kou, 2017. "Orientations to Happiness and Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adolescents: The Roles of Prosocial Behavior and Internet Addictive Behavior," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 18(6), pages 1747-1762, December.
    6. Hagit Sabato & Sapir Bar-Ilan, 2023. "Pleasure or Meaning: Subjective Well-Being Orientations and the Willingness to Help Close Versus Distant Others," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(6), pages 2013-2037, August.
    7. Andrea LeFebvre & Veronika Huta, 2021. "Age and Gender Differences in Eudaimonic, Hedonic, and Extrinsic Motivations," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(5), pages 2299-2321, June.
    8. Kai Guo & Zhigang Wang & Lei Zhang & Chenya Li, 2023. "Self-Transcendence Values Influence Meaningful Sports Consumption Behavior: The Chain Mediator of Team Identification and Eudaimonic Motivation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-30, July.
    9. Jinseok P. Kim & Eunkook M. Suh, 2024. "Childhood Socioeconomic Status Shapes Beliefs About Hedonic Versus Eudaimonic Happiness: A Life History Approach," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 25(5), pages 1-21, June.
    10. Jo-Tzu Chu & Malcolm Koo, 2023. "Life Satisfaction and Self-Esteem in Older Adults Engaging in Formal Volunteering: A Cross-Sectional Study in Taiwan," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-11, March.
    11. José M. Peiró & Malgorzata W. Kozusznik & Aida Soriano, 2019. "From Happiness Orientations to Work Performance: The Mediating Role of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Experiences," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(24), pages 1-17, December.
    12. Aaron Adibe Agbo & Blessing Ome, 2017. "Happiness: Meaning and Determinants Among Young Adults of the Igbos of Eastern Nigeria," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 151-175, February.
    13. Pninit Russo-Netzer, 2019. "Prioritizing Meaning as a Pathway to Meaning in Life and Well-Being," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 20(6), pages 1863-1891, August.
    14. Ethan McMahan & Kevin Dixon & Lindsey King, 2013. "Evidence of Associations Between Lay Conceptions of Well-Being, Conception-Congruent Behavior, and Experienced Well-Being," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 14(2), pages 655-671, April.
    15. Itumeleng P. Khumalo & Angelina Wilson-Fadiji & Symen A. Brouwers, 2020. "Well-Being Orientations and Time Perspective Across Cultural Tightness–Looseness Latent Classes in Africa," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(5), pages 1681-1703, June.
    16. Sabrina Intelisano & Julia Krasko & Maike Luhmann, 2020. "Integrating Philosophical and Psychological Accounts of Happiness and Well-Being," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 161-200, January.
    17. Maria Kryza-Lacombe & Elise Tanzini & Sarah O’Neill, 2019. "Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives: Associations with Academic Achievement and Negative Emotional States Among Urban College Students," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 20(5), pages 1323-1341, June.
    18. Gaston-Breton, Charlotte & Sørensen, Elin Brandi & Thomsen, Thyra Uth, 2020. "“I want to break free!” How experiences of freedom foster consumer happiness," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 22-32.
    19. Nadine Richter & Marcel Hunecke, 2021. "The Mindful Hedonist? Relationships between Well-Being Orientations, Mindfulness and Well-Being Experiences," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(7), pages 3111-3135, October.
    20. Ofer I. Atad & Pninit Russo-Netzer, 2022. "The Effect of Gratitude on Well-being: Should We Prioritize Positivity or Meaning?," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 1245-1265, March.

    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:eee:jbrese:v:134:y:2021:i:c:p:1-12. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jbusres .

    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.