IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/jhappi/v13y2012i5p875-899.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does Government Make People Happy?: Exploring New Research Directions for Government’s Roles in Happiness

Author

Listed:
  • Seoyong Kim
  • Donggeun Kim

Abstract

Our study aims to explore new directions for researches on government’s role in enhancing quality of life (QOL). Although government can influence, to the greatest extent, people’s happiness, very few studies have systemically examined the quantitative or qualitative attributes of government in happiness enhancement, compared with the large volume of studies on economic, political, and cultural factors’ impact on QOL. Related to government’s role in happiness, we suggest ‘nine new research directions,’ all of which can generally be related with its’ quantitative and qualitative attributes. Even though much existing researches have focused on a part of quantitative sides of government, there are still many remaining attributes to be highlighted. Moreover, we expect that new, composite and nonlinear quality attributes of government will provide bountiful research topics in the future. Also, cross-boundary comparisons and mixtures between quality and quantity, as well as the conditional macro-context for government’s role, suggest new ideas for QOL studies. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012

Suggested Citation

  • Seoyong Kim & Donggeun Kim, 2012. "Does Government Make People Happy?: Exploring New Research Directions for Government’s Roles in Happiness," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 13(5), pages 875-899, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:jhappi:v:13:y:2012:i:5:p:875-899
    DOI: 10.1007/s10902-011-9296-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s10902-011-9296-0
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10902-011-9296-0?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. Christian Bjørnskov & Axel Dreher & Justina Fischer, 2007. "The bigger the better? Evidence of the effect of government size on life satisfaction around the world," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 130(3), pages 267-292, March.
    2. Scully, Gerald W, 2001. "Government Expenditure and Quality of Life," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 108(1-2), pages 123-145, July.
    3. Kaisa Kotakorpi & Jani‐Petri Laamanen, 2010. "Welfare State and Life Satisfaction: Evidence from Public Health Care," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 77(307), pages 565-583, July.
    4. J. Ott, 2011. "Government and Happiness in 130 Nations: Good Governance Fosters Higher Level and More Equality of Happiness," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 102(1), pages 3-22, May.
    5. Rati Ram, 2009. "Government spending and happiness of the population: additional evidence from large cross-country samples," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 138(3), pages 483-490, March.
    6. yamamura, eiji, 2008. "The influence of government size on economic growth and life satisfaction. A case study from Japan," MPRA Paper 10835, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Ram, Rati, 2009. "Openness, country size, and government size: Additional evidence from a large cross-country panel," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(1-2), pages 213-218, February.
    8. Elia Kacapyr, 2008. "Cross‐country determinants of satisfaction with life," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 35(6), pages 400-416, May.
    9. Jan Ott, 2005. "Level and Inequality of Happiness in Nations: Does Greater Happiness of a Greater Number Imply Greater Inequality in Happiness?," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 6(4), pages 397-420, December.
    10. Radcliff, Benjamin, 2001. "Politics, Markets, and Life Satisfaction: The Political Economy of Human Happiness," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 95(4), pages 939-952, December.
    11. Zohal Hessami, 2010. "The Size and Composition of Government Spending in Europe and Its Impact on Well‐Being," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 63(3), pages 346-382, August.
    12. Rafael Di Tella & Robert MacCulloch, 2005. "Partisan Social Happiness," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 72(2), pages 367-393.
    13. 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.
    14. Commander, Simon & Davoodi, Hamid R. & Lee, Une J., 1997. "The causes of government and the consequences for growth and well-being," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1785, The World Bank.
    15. Jan Ott, 2010. "Good Governance and Happiness in Nations: Technical Quality Precedes Democracy and Quality Beats Size," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 11(3), pages 353-368, June.
    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. Estela Núñez-Barriopedro & Rafael Ravina-Ripoll & Eduardo Ahumada-Tello, 2020. "Happiness perception in Spain, a SEM approach to evidence from the sociological research center," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 54(3), pages 761-779, June.
    2. Graafland, Johan, 2023. "Economic freedom and life satisfaction: A moderated mediation model with individual autonomy and national culture," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    3. Behera, Deepak Kumar & Rahut, Dil B & Padmaja, M & Dash, Ajit Kumar, 2024. "Socioeconomic determinants of happiness: Empirical evidence from developed and developing countries," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    4. Yee Ngoo & Nai Tey & Eu Tan, 2015. "Determinants of Life Satisfaction in Asia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 124(1), pages 141-156, October.
    5. 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.
    6. François Facchini, 2022. "Happiness and Public Spending," Post-Print hal-03911710, HAL.
    7. Sujarwoto Sujarwoto & Gindo Tampubolon, 2015. "Decentralisation and Citizen Happiness: A Multilevel Analysis of Self-rated Happiness in Indonesia," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 455-475, April.
    8. Alexander Pacek & Benjamin Radcliff & Mark Brockway, 2019. "Well-Being and the Democratic State: How the Public Sector Promotes Human Happiness," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 143(3), pages 1147-1159, June.
    9. Seol-A Kwon & Seoyong Kim & Jae Eun Lee, 2019. "Analyzing the Determinants of Individual Action on Climate Change by Specifying the Roles of Six Values in South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-24, March.
    10. Ana Paula Barreira & Carla Amado & Sérgio Santos & Jorge Andraz & Maria Helena Guimarães, 2021. "Assessment and Determinants of the Quality of Life in Portuguese Cities," International Regional Science Review, , vol. 44(6), pages 647-683, November.
    11. João Leitão & Helena Alves & Dina Pereira, 2016. "Open innovative governance, transparency and citizens´ quality of life: An application to Portuguese municipalities," Working Papers. Collection B: Regional and sectoral economics 1606, Universidade de Vigo, GEN - Governance and Economics research Network.
    12. Yingzhu Yang & Lexiang Zhao & Feng Cui, 2022. "How Does Public Health Investment Affect Subjective Well-Being? Empirical Evidence from China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-19, April.
    13. Qiang Li & Lian An, 2020. "Corruption Takes Away Happiness: Evidence from a Cross-National Study," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(2), pages 485-504, February.
    14. Robert Davidson & Alexander Pacek & Benjamin Radcliff, 2021. "Public Sector Employment, Quality of Government, and Well-Being: A Global Analysis," International Area Studies Review, Center for International Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, vol. 24(3), pages 193-204, September.
    15. Ariel Herbert Fambeu & Georges Dieudonné Mbondo & Patricia Tchawa Yomi, 2022. "Bigger or better? The effect of public spending on happiness in Africa," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 34(4), pages 487-499, December.
    16. Danish, Muhammad Hassan & Nawaz, Shahzada Muhammad Naeem, 2022. "Does institutional trust and governance matter for multidimensional well-being? Insights from Pakistan," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 25(C).
    17. Seoyong Kim & Jae Eun Lee & Donggeun Kim, 2019. "Searching for the Next New Energy in Energy Transition: Comparing the Impacts of Economic Incentives on Local Acceptance of Fossil Fuels, Renewable, and Nuclear Energies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-32, April.
    18. Iban Ortuzar & Gemma Renart & Angels Xabadia, 2021. "Effects of Public Healthcare Budget Cuts on Life Satisfaction in Spain," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 156(1), pages 311-337, July.
    19. Jaesun Wang & Seoyong Kim, 2019. "Searching for New Directions for Energy Policy: Testing the Cross-Effect of Risk Perception and Cyberspace Factors on Online/Offline Opposition to Nuclear Energy in South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-26, March.

    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. Ümİt Acar & Abdullah Tİrgİl, 2023. "Public expenditures and life satisfaction: Evidence from Turkey," The Developing Economies, Institute of Developing Economies, vol. 61(1), pages 36-56, March.
    2. Ariel Herbert Fambeu & Georges Dieudonné Mbondo & Patricia Tchawa Yomi, 2022. "Bigger or better? The effect of public spending on happiness in Africa," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 34(4), pages 487-499, December.
    3. Iban Ortuzar & Gemma Renart & Angels Xabadia, 2021. "Effects of Public Healthcare Budget Cuts on Life Satisfaction in Spain," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 156(1), pages 311-337, July.
    4. Sarah Brown & Alexandros Kontonikas & Alberto Montagnoli & Mirko Moro & Luisanna Onnis, 2018. "Austerity, Life Satisfaction and Expectations," Working Papers 2018001, The University of Sheffield, Department of Economics.
    5. Brown, Sarah & Kontonikas, Alexandros & Montagnoli, Alberto & Moro, Mirko & Onnis, Luisanna, 2021. "Life satisfaction and austerity: Expectations and the macroeconomy," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    6. O'Donnell, Gus & Oswald, Andrew J., 2015. "National well-being policy and a weighted approach to human feelings," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 59-70.
    7. KASMAOUI, Kamal & BOURHABA, Othmane, 2017. "Happiness and Public Expenditure: Evidence from a panel analysis," MPRA Paper 79339, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. John F. Helliwell & Haifang Huang & Shun Wang, 2020. "Happiness and the Quality of Government," NBER Working Papers 26840, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Chae-jeong Lee, 2021. "Effects of Government Characteristics on the Quality of Life," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 563-579, September.
    10. Naoki Akaeda, 2022. "The Consequences of Social Policy for Subjective Well-Being: A New Paradox?," LIS Working papers 846, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    11. Zohal Hessami, 2010. "The Size and Composition of Government Spending in Europe and Its Impact on Well‐Being," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 63(3), pages 346-382, August.
    12. Chang Beum Kwon, 2022. "The Effect of Defense Spending on Subjective Well-Being: Cross-Country Evidence," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 17(4), pages 1961-1989, August.
    13. Yingzhu Yang & Lexiang Zhao & Feng Cui, 2022. "How Does Public Health Investment Affect Subjective Well-Being? Empirical Evidence from China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-19, April.
    14. Eiji Yamamura, 2012. "The Effects of Information Asymmetry and Government Size on Happiness: A Case Study from Japan," The IUP Journal of Governance and Public Policy, IUP Publications, vol. 0(1), pages 7-20, March.
    15. Alexandra Nonnenmacher & Jürgen Friedrichs, 2013. "The Missing Link: Deficits of Country-Level Studies. A Review of 22 Articles Explaining Life Satisfaction," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 110(3), pages 1221-1244, February.
    16. Gregor Gonza & Anže Burger, 2017. "Subjective Well-Being During the 2008 Economic Crisis: Identification of Mediating and Moderating Factors," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 18(6), pages 1763-1797, December.
    17. Anita Ratcliffe, 2010. "Housing wealth or economic climate: Why do house prices matter for well-being?," The Centre for Market and Public Organisation 10/234, The Centre for Market and Public Organisation, University of Bristol, UK.
    18. KASMAOUI, Kamal & BOURHABA, Othmane, 2017. "Happiness and Public Expenditure: Evidence from a panel analysis," MPRA Paper 79339, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Andrés Rodríguez-Pose & Kristina Maslauskaite, 2011. "Can policy make us happier? Individual characteristics, socio-economic factors and life satisfaction in Central and Eastern Europe," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 5(1), pages 77-96.
    20. Paleologou, Suzanna-Maria, 2022. "Happiness, democracy and socio-economic conditions: Evidence from a difference GMM estimator," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 101(C).

    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:spr:jhappi:v:13:y:2012:i:5:p:875-899. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.