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An empirical investigation into the determinants of life satisfaction in New Zealand

Author

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  • Denise Brown
  • Julie Woolf
  • Conal Smith

Abstract

The past decade has seen an increasing body of evidence emerge that subjective wellbeing can be empirically measured through relatively straightforward questions on self-reported happiness or life satisfaction carried in sample surveys. This paper analyses the determinants of subjective wellbeing using data from the 2008 New Zealand General Social Survey. The paper first provides a brief summary of what is known about the determinants of subjective wellbeing from the international literature. A simple model of the determinants of subjective wellbeing in New Zealand is described, and coefficients for the model are estimated using ordinary least squares. The model is re-estimated using an ordered Probit to confirm that the results are not biased due to the ordinal nature of the data. The paper finds that demographic factors are largely not significant drivers of wellbeing in New Zealand and conforms to the international literature in identifying income, unemployment, health status, and social contact as the four main factors affecting subjective wellbeing.

Suggested Citation

  • Denise Brown & Julie Woolf & Conal Smith, 2012. "An empirical investigation into the determinants of life satisfaction in New Zealand," New Zealand Economic Papers, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(3), pages 239-251, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:nzecpp:v:46:y:2012:i:3:p:239-251
    DOI: 10.1080/00779954.2012.657896
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Richard Layard, 2006. "Happiness and Public Policy: a Challenge to the Profession," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 116(510), pages 24-33, March.
    2. Rainer Winkelmann, 2005. "Subjective well-being and the family: Results from an ordered probit model with multiple random effects," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 749-761, October.
    3. Paul Dolan & Richard Layard & Robert Metcalfe, 2011. "Measuring Subjective Wellbeing for Public Policy: Recommendations on Measures," CEP Reports 23, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
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    Cited by:

    1. Leah Haines & Arthur Grimes, 2022. "What Matters for the Wellbeing of Mothers and Children in Material Hardship? Application of a Modified Indicator Framework," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 162(1), pages 449-474, July.
    2. Rebecca J. Jarden & Mohsen Joshanloo & Dan Weijers & Margaret H. Sandham & Aaron J. Jarden, 2022. "Predictors of Life Satisfaction in New Zealand: Analysis of a National Dataset," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-17, May.
    3. Thoa Hoang & Ilan Noy, 2019. "Wellbeing After a Managed Retreat: Observations from a Large New Zealand Program," CESifo Working Paper Series 7938, CESifo.

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