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Subjective Well-Being and Armed Conflict: Evidence from Bosnia-Herzegovina

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  • Olga Shemyakina
  • Anke Plagnol

Abstract

We analyze survey data from Bosnia and Herzegovina collected after the 1992–1995 Bosnian War to answer the following questions: How does individual subjective well-being evolve in the post-conflict period? Does exposure to conflict have an important role in determining one’s post-war experiences? Our identification strategy relies on regional and individual-level variation in exposure to the conflict. Individual war-related trauma has a negative, significant, and lasting impact on subjective well-being. The effect is stronger for those displaced during the war. Municipality-level conflict measures are not significantly associated with subjective well-being once municipality fixed effects are accounted for. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2013

Suggested Citation

  • Olga Shemyakina & Anke Plagnol, 2013. "Subjective Well-Being and Armed Conflict: Evidence from Bosnia-Herzegovina," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 113(3), pages 1129-1152, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:113:y:2013:i:3:p:1129-1152
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-012-0131-8
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    8. Osiichuk, Maryna & Shepotylo, Oleksandr, 2020. "Conflict and well-being of civilians: The case of the Russian-Ukrainian hybrid war," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 44(1).
    9. Swee, Eik Leong & Zhan, Haikun & Powdthavee, Nattavudh, 2021. "Do perceptions of economic well-being predict the onset of war and peace?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    10. Maksym Obrizan, 2019. "Violent conflict and unhappiness: evidence from the 2016 ‘Life in Transition' III surve," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 39(1), pages 192-199.
    11. Sara Kijewski, 2020. "Life Satisfaction Sixty Years after World War II: the Lasting Impact of War Across Generations," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 15(5), pages 1253-1284, November.
    12. Tom Coupé & Maksym Obrizan, 2024. "War and Happiness," Working Papers in Economics 24/06, University of Canterbury, Department of Economics and Finance.
    13. Dinuk Jayasuriya, 2014. "Influence of Posttraumatic Growth on Mental Health and Well-being Across Respondents Severely Affected by War in Post-conflict Sri Lanka," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 119(1), pages 265-280, October.

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