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Family Constellations and Life Satisfaction in Europe

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  • Daniele Vignoli
  • Elena Pirani
  • Silvana Salvini

Abstract

Existing research on family and well-being has generally focused on the traditional family, and has largely ignored the increasing diversity in family forms and relations. Our aim in this paper is to help fill this gap by investigating the extent of the relationship between living arrangements and life satisfaction (LS) in Europe. We examined variations in life satisfaction by applying a multilevel approach (i.e., individuals nested in countries) to data from the 2007 European Quality of Life Survey. First, we found that levels of life satisfaction among families consisting of couples with children were significantly higher than among people in other (less typical) family arrangements. Second, our results illustrate that after the socioeconomic situation of the family was taken into account, the influence of family status on LS disappeared almost completely. Overall, our findings suggest that the lower levels of life satisfaction experienced by people living in atypical families can be largely attributed to their weaker socioeconomic position. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Daniele Vignoli & Elena Pirani & Silvana Salvini, 2014. "Family Constellations and Life Satisfaction in Europe," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 117(3), pages 967-986, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:117:y:2014:i:3:p:967-986
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-013-0372-1
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    2. Constanze Eib & Steffi Siegert, 2019. "Is Female Entrepreneurship Only Empowering for Single Women? Evidence from France and Germany," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-19, April.
    3. Manuela Stranges & Daniele Vignoli & Alessandra Venturini, 2019. ""Comparison is the thief of joy". Does social comparison affect migrants’ subjective well-being?," Econometrics Working Papers Archive 2019_03, Universita' degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Statistica, Informatica, Applicazioni "G. Parenti".
    4. Manuela Stranges & Daniele Vignoli & Alessandra Venturini, 2019. "“Comparison is the thief of joy”. Does social comparison affect migrants’ subjective well-being?," Discussion Papers 53, Central European Labour Studies Institute (CELSI).
    5. Gundi Knies, 2022. "Effects of Income and Material Deprivation on Children’s Life Satisfaction: Evidence from Longitudinal Data for England (2009–2018)," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 1469-1492, April.
    6. Elena Pirani & Daniele Vignoli, 2014. "Are spouses more satisfied than cohabitors? A survey over the last twenty years in Italy," Econometrics Working Papers Archive 2014_09, Universita' degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Statistica, Informatica, Applicazioni "G. Parenti".
    7. Daniele Vignoli & Maria Letizia Tanturri & Francesco Acciai, 2014. "Home Bitter Home? Gender, Living Arrangements, and the Exclusion from Home-Ownership among Older Europeans," Econometrics Working Papers Archive 2014_05, Universita' degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Statistica, Informatica, Applicazioni "G. Parenti".
    8. Arnaud Régnier-Loilier & Daniele Vignoli, 2014. "Similar incidence, different nature? Characteristics of Living Apart Together relationships in France and Italy," Econometrics Working Papers Archive 2014_11, Universita' degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Statistica, Informatica, Applicazioni "G. Parenti".
    9. Elena Pirani, 2017. "On the Relationship Between Atypical Work(s) and Mental Health: New Insights from the Italian Case," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 130(1), pages 233-252, January.
    10. Raffaele Guetto & Elena Pirani & Patrizio Lodetti, 2021. "The wellbeing of single parents in Italy before and after the covid-19 pandemic," RIEDS - Rivista Italiana di Economia, Demografia e Statistica - The Italian Journal of Economic, Demographic and Statistical Studies, SIEDS Societa' Italiana di Economia Demografia e Statistica, vol. 75(4), pages 108-118, October-D.
    11. Cem Başlevent & Hasan Kirmanoğlu, 2017. "Gender Inequality in Europe and the Life Satisfaction of Working and Non-working Women," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 107-124, February.

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