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Gender Differences in Life Satisfaction Among Children and Adolescents: A Meta-analysis

Author

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  • Xinjie Chen

    (Stanford University)

  • Zhihui Cai

    (Central China Normal University)

  • Jinbo He

    (Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen))

  • Xitao Fan

    (Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen))

Abstract

Gender differences in life satisfaction (LS) have been studied for a long time, and the first meta-analysis on this issue was conducted almost 40 years ago. Since then, the social status of females has changed considerably across different nations and cultures. The individual studies in this area continued to show inconsistent results concerning gender group differences in their respective perception of LS. In this study, 46 empirical studies from 1980 to 2017 (with a cumulated total N = 11,772) were meta-analyzed to examine potential gender differences in LS among children and adolescents, and to explore if some study features could be moderators that could account for the observed inconsistencies in the findings across studies. The findings revealed that LS remains invariant across gender groups, but with a slight difference in favor of male children and adolescents. Our results further suggested that four study features were shown to contribute to the variations of the reported gender difference in LS across individual studies: geographical region, population type, age, and domain specific LS measurements. Such different features across the individual studies could have led to the observed inconsistency of the findings. Understanding how gender differences in LS vary by these study features could allow us to consider more targeted support to increase LS of children and adolescents in different situations.

Suggested Citation

  • Xinjie Chen & Zhihui Cai & Jinbo He & Xitao Fan, 2020. "Gender Differences in Life Satisfaction Among Children and Adolescents: A Meta-analysis," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(6), pages 2279-2307, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jhappi:v:21:y:2020:i:6:d:10.1007_s10902-019-00169-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s10902-019-00169-9
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    12. Ana Loreto Ditzel & Yuli Ketain Meiri & Ferran Casas & Asher Ben-Arieh & Javier Torres-Vallejos, 2023. "Satisfaction with the Neighborhood of Israeli and Chilean Children and its Effects on their Subjective Well-being," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 16(2), pages 863-895, April.
    13. Rui Zhang & Lin-Xin Wang & Jesus Alfonso D. Datu & Yue Liang & Kai Dou & Yan-Gang Nie & Jian-Bin Li, 2023. "High Qualities of Relationships with Parents and Teachers Contribute to the Development of Adolescent Life Satisfaction Through Resilience: A Three-Wave Prospective Longitudinal Study," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(4), pages 1339-1365, April.
    14. Joonho Moon & Won Seok Lee & Jimin Shim, 2022. "Effect of Travel Expenditure on Life Satisfaction for Middle-Aged and Older Adults in Korea: Moderating Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-8, October.
    15. Jorge J. Varela & Andrés O. Muñoz-Najar Pacheco & María Josefina Chuecas & Matías E. Rodríguez-Rivas & Paulina Guzmán & Maria Angela Mattar Yunes, 2022. "Life Satisfaction, Bullying, and Feeling Safe as a Protective Factor for Chilean and Brasilian Adolescents," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 15(2), pages 579-598, April.
    16. Ana Loreto Ditzel & María Josefina Chuecas & Lívia Maria Bedin & Javier Torres-Vallejos & Alejandra Villarroel & Mariavictoria Benavente & Jaime Alfaro & Jorge Castellá Sarriera & Joel Juarros-Basterr, 2022. "Access to material resources and the subjective well-being of children in Brazil and Chile," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 15(2), pages 447-465, April.
    17. Emilly Cavalheiro Esidio & Marco Túlio Aniceto França & Gustavo Saraiva Frio, 2023. "Differences between genders in the subjective well-being of students participating in PISA 2018," Child Indicators Research, Springer;The International Society of Child Indicators (ISCI), vol. 16(4), pages 1781-1809, August.

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