Investigating Contextual Determinants of Happiness : with Reference to Seoul Citizens

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Purpose: Although happiness is usually construed to be a very personal matter for each individual, the current study attempts to investigate contextual determinants of happiness besides individual determinants to shed light on why the level of happiness of people in Korea is relatively low, how public policies will be able to improve happiness of people in general, and whether material factors or non-material factors are more effective. Specifically, the study aims at identifying contextual determinants of happiness, such as spatial, socio-economic, and socio-political factors.
Design: Taking data from Korean General Social Survey (KGSS) and Seoul Survey, the study applied the simple-level multiple regression analyses for the nation-wide models utilizing samples of KGSS, and multi-level analyses for the city-wide models using samples of Seoul Survey. As to the nation-wide models, to examine the moderator effects of social status with regard to urbanization, hierarchical multiple regression analyses are done. In the city-wide models, multi-level analyses were conducted on the whole sample, controlled for other individual predictors, and separately on cohorts belonging to the higher class and those belonging to the lower class.
Results: In the nation-wide model, people of the higher social class are observed to feel happier in more urbanized areas, while those of the lower class do not. In the city-wide multi-level model, for the people of the lower social class, living in more affluent districts undermines their overall level of happiness. Inequality spoils happiness generally, whether one belongs to the higher or the lower class. On the other hand, environmental amenities and political participation as measured by green spaces and voter turnout increase the level of happiness of the respondents across the whole cohorts, both the lower class cohorts and the higher class cohorts.
Conclusion: This study shows that spatial, socio-economical, and socio-political contexts matter to an individual's level of happiness. Neighbourhood works as a reference point for an individual's happiness, but negative externalities stemming from social comparison are found only in the people of the lower social position, while those of the upper class feel happier with a higher degree of urbanization and economic prosperity. On the other hand, natural amenities like green spaces and political participation like voter turnout do have positive impacts upon happiness of people. Thus, public policy and policy makers should focus more on these contextual non-material determinants, and pay more attention to the implications of happiness studies.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Chapter One: Introduction
• 1. Background of the Study
• 2. Purpose of the Study
• 3. Scope and Methods of the Study
• Chapter Two: Review of the Literature
• 1. Public Policy and Happiness
• 1) Public Policy with No 'Telos'
• 2) Happiness as Profound Concept and Useful Measure
• 3) Why should Public Policy Study Happiness?
• 2. Determinants of Happiness
• 1) Individual Determinants of Happiness
• 2) Contextual Determinants of Happiness
• 3. Socio-economic Determinants of Happiness
• 1) Easterlin Paradox
• 2) Hedonic Treadmill Effects
• 3) Positional Treadmill Effects
• 4) Inequality and Relative Concerns
• 4. Spatial and Socio-political Determinants of Happiness
• 1) Degree of Urbanization
• 2) Environmental Amenities
• 3) Political Participation
• Chapter Three: Research Design
• 1. Research Design
• 2. Hypothesis and Framework
• 3. Methods
• 1) Sources of Data
• 2) Measures
• 3) Statistical Analysis
• Chapter Four: Empirical Results
• 1. Descriptive Statistics
• 2. Findings of Nation-wide Model
• 3. Findings of City-wide Model
• 4. Discussion
• Chapter Five: Conclusion
• 1. Summary of the Results
• 2. Policy Implications
• References