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Journal of Happiness Studies

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01.10.2015 | Research Paper

An Empirical Investigation of the Relationship Between Social Capital and Subjective Well-Being in Ghana

verfasst von: Iddisah Sulemana

Erschienen in: Journal of Happiness Studies | Ausgabe 5/2015

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Abstract

This paper uses data from the 2012 Afrobarometer Surveys to empirically investigate the relationship between social capital and subjective well-being (SWB) in Ghana. Two measures of SWB are examined—absolute SWB and relative SWB. Results from OLS and ordered logit regressions are mixed. For instance, while generalized trust has no significant effect on either measure of SWB, interpersonal trust and institutional trust are significantly correlated with both measures. The results also suggest that being satisfied with the way democracy works in Ghana has a positive effect on SWB. Even though membership in a voluntary association is negatively correlated with absolute SWB, it has a positive effect on relative SWB. Finally, members of a religious association tend to report lower relative SWB.

Vorheriger Artikel Do Active Labour Market Policies Promote the Subjective Well-Being of the Unemployed? Evidence from the UK National Well-Being Programme

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Increasingly, SWB, happiness, and life satisfaction are being used interchangeably in the literature, especially among economists (see for example Easterlin 2001, 2005b; Gerdtham and Johannesson 2001).

I thank an anonymous reviewer for pointing this out to me.

Between 2010 and 2012, there were numerous reported cases of public corruption, especially judgment debt cases that were heavily discussed in both electronic and print media. These could have affected public perceptions about corruption in the country.

Interpersonal trust is only significantly correlated with relative SWB at the 10 % level for the OLS regression. Following recommendations of an anonymous reviewer, significance at the 10 % level is not shown.

The variance inflation factors (VIFs) were checked in the OLS models, and multicollinearity was not detected.

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Titel: An Empirical Investigation of the Relationship Between Social Capital and Subjective Well-Being in Ghana
verfasst von: Iddisah Sulemana
Publikationsdatum: 01.10.2015
Verlag: Springer Netherlands
Erschienen in: Journal of Happiness Studies / Ausgabe 5/2015
Print ISSN: 1389-4978
Elektronische ISSN: 1573-7780
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-014-9565-9

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