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Patterns of Trust and Subjective Well-Being Across Europe: New Insights from Repeated Cross-Sectional Analyses Based on the European Social Survey 2002–2016

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  • Christoph Glatz

    (University of Graz)

  • Anja Eder

    (University of Graz)

Abstract

This paper offers elaborate analyses regarding the effects of social- as well as institutional trust as parts of social capital on subjective well-being (SWB) by using data from the European Social Survey, including 36 countries and eight time-points between 2002 and 2016. We analyze (1) The development of trust and SWB on the aggregate level; (2) The effect of trust on SWB on the individual cross-sectional level; and (3) The longitudinal and cross-sectional effect of trust on SWB on the aggregate level while considering control variables based on previous research. We observe a weak positive trend regarding social trust as well as SWB over time, but no significant change in institutional trust. However, trends are far from homogeneous across countries. In accordance to previous studies, we find a positive effect of social trust on SWB. This effect holds on the individual cross-sectional level for every participating country, but also on the longitudinal level. In view of institutional trust, we see a positive effect on SWB on the individual and aggregate cross-sectional level, but not over time. Thus, this study particularly sheds new light on this relation, indicating that it´s cross-sectional relation is due to confounding variables. Moreover, we observe no relation between economic growth and SWB after controlling for unemployment, but a positive effect of decreasing unemployment and inflation on SWB. Our data suggests that establishing an environment with high social trust across Europe would be rewarded with a happy society.

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  • Christoph Glatz & Anja Eder, 2020. "Patterns of Trust and Subjective Well-Being Across Europe: New Insights from Repeated Cross-Sectional Analyses Based on the European Social Survey 2002–2016," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 148(2), pages 417-439, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:soinre:v:148:y:2020:i:2:d:10.1007_s11205-019-02212-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s11205-019-02212-x
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    2. Eulalia Skawińska & Romuald I. Zalewski, 2020. "Success Factors of Startups in the EU—A Comparative Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-28, October.
    3. Jonathan Muringani & Rune Dahl Fitjar & Andres Rodriguez-Pose, 2024. "Political trust and economic development in European regions," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 2435, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised Oct 2024.
    4. Marja Hult & Minna Kaarakainen & Deborah De Moortel, 2023. "Values, Health and Well-Being of Young Europeans Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-22, March.
    5. Licia Bobzien, 2023. "Income Inequality and Political Trust: Do Fairness Perceptions Matter?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 169(1), pages 505-528, September.
    6. Christoph Glatz & Andreas Schwerdtfeger, 2022. "Disentangling the Causal Structure Between Social Trust, Institutional Trust, and Subjective Well-Being," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 163(3), pages 1323-1348, October.
    7. Magdalena Celuch & Atte Oksanen & Pekka Räsänen & Matthew Costello & Catherine Blaya & Izabela Zych & Vicente J. Llorent & Ashley Reichelmann & James Hawdon, 2022. "Factors Associated with Online Hate Acceptance: A Cross-National Six-Country Study among Young Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-13, January.
    8. Minxiang Zhao & Yixuan Li & Junqi Lin & Yuan Fang & Yuchuan Yang & Boyang Li & Yan Dong, 2024. "The Relationship Between Trust and Well-Being: A Meta-Analysis," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 25(5), pages 1-26, June.

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