Ryff, C. D., &Singer, B. (1998). The contours of positive human health. Psychological inquiry, 9(1), 1-28.

The primary objectives of this article are (a) to put forth an explicit operational formulation of positive human health that goes beyond prevailing “absence of illness” criteria; (b) to clarify that positive human health does not derive from extant medical considerations, which are not about wellness, but necessarily require a base in philosophical accounts of the “goods” in life; (c) to provoke a change of emphasis from strong tendencies to construe human health as exclusively about the mind or the body toward an integrated and positive spiral of mind-body influences; (d) to delineate possible physiological substrates of human flourishing and offer future directions for understanding the biology of positive health; and (e) to discuss implications of positive health for diverse scientific agendas (e.g., stress, class and health, work and family life) and for practice in health fields (e.g., training, health examinations, psychotherapy, and wellness intervention programs).

 

 

Ryff, C. D., &Singer, B. (1998). The contours of positive human health. Psychological inquiry, 9(1), 1-28.

https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli0901_1

 

 

Blanchflower, D. G., &Oswald, A. J. (1998). What makes an entrepreneur?. Journal of labor Economics, 16(1), 26-60.

This article uses various micro data sets to study entrepreneurship. Consistent with the existence of capital constraints on potential entrepreneurs, the estimates imply that the probability of self‐employment depends positively upon whether the individual ever received an inheritance or gift. When directly questioned in interview surveys, potential entrepreneurs say that raising capital is their principal problem. Consistent with our theoretical model’s predictions, the self‐employed report higher levels of job and life satisfaction than employees. Childhood psychological test scores, however, are not strongly correlated with later self‐employment.

 

 

Blanchflower, D. G., &Oswald, A. J. (1998). What makes an entrepreneur?. Journal of labor Economics, 16(1), 26-60.

https://doi.org/10.1086/209881

 

 

Blanchflower, D. G. (2000). Self-employment in OECD countries. Labour economics, 7(5), 471-505.

The paper examines the role and influence of self-employment across the OECD. The overall trend in self-employment, at the economy level in the years since 1966, has been down in most countries. The main exceptions to this are Portugal, New Zealand and the United Kingdom where the trend has been upward. For most countries there is a negative relationship between the self-employment rate and the unemployment rate. The probability of being self-employed is higher among men than women and rises with age. The least educated have the highest probability of being self-employed, however, evidence is found that the most highly educated also have relatively high probabilities. The self-employed have higher levels of job satisfaction than employees. I could find no evidence that increases in the self-employment rate increased the real growth rate of the economy; in fact there was even evidence of the opposite. The self-employed are less willing to move from their neighborhoods, towns and regions than are employees, presumably because of the pull of their customers. I developed a flexibility index based on information provided by individuals in 1995. According to this index the US economy was the most flexible, followed by Canada, Germany and the Netherlands. Latvia, Russia and Hungary were found to be the least flexible countries. Of the OECD countries examined, Austria and Ireland were ranked lowest.

 

 

Blanchflower, D. G. (2000). Self-employment in OECD countries. Labour economics, 7(5), 471-505.

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0927-5371(00)00011-7

 

 

Kraft, K. (2001). Unemployment and the separation of married couples. Kyklos, 54(1), 67-88.

This article analyzes whether unemployment has an effect on the splitting of a marital relationship. The study uses 40 000 observations on unemployment spells and marital status during the period from 1987 to 1996. Random effects probit and conditional likelihood logit models for panel data are applied. Using several control variables, it was confirmed that unemployment does actually lead to a higher probability of the separation of married couples.

 

 

Kraft, K. (2001). Unemployment and the separation of married couples. Kyklos, 54(1), 67-88.

https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6435.00141 

 

Lucas, R. E., Clark, A. E., Georgellis, Y., &Diener, E. (2004). Unemployment alters the set point for life satisfaction. Psychological science, 15(1), 8-13.

According to set-point theories of subjective well-being, people react to events but then return to baseline levels of happiness and satisfaction over time. We tested this idea by examining reaction and adaptation to unemployment in a 15-year longitudinal study of more than 24,000 individuals living in Germany. In accordance with set-point theories, individuals reacted strongly to unemployment and then shifted back toward their baseline levels of life satisfaction. However, on average, individuals did not completely return to their former levels of satisfaction, even after they became reemployed. Furthermore, contrary to expectations from adaptation theories, people who had experienced unemployment in the past did not react any less negatively to a new bout of unemployment than did people who had not been previously unemployed. These results suggest that although life satisfaction is moderately stable over time, life events can have a strong influence on long-term levels of subjective well-being.

 

 

Lucas, R. E., Clark, A. E., Georgellis, Y., &Diener, E. (2004). Unemployment alters the set point for life satisfaction. Psychological science, 15(1), 8-13.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0963-7214.2004.01501002.x

 

 

Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K. M., &Schkade, D. (2005). Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainable change. Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 111-131.

The pursuit of happiness is an important goal for many people. However, surprisingly little scientific research has focused on the question of how happiness can be increased and then sustained, probably because of pessimism engendered by the concepts of genetic determinism and hedonic adaptation. Nevertheless, emerging sources of optimism exist regarding the possibility of permanent increases in happiness. Drawing on the past well-being literature, the authors propose that a person’s chronic happiness level is governed by 3 major factors: a genetically determined set point for happiness, happiness-relevant circumstantial factors, and happiness-relevant activities and practices. The authors then consider adaptation and dynamic processes to show why the activity category offers the best opportunities for sustainably increasing happiness. Finally, existing research is discussed in support of the model, including 2 preliminary happiness-increasing interventions.

 

 

 

Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K. M., &Schkade, D. (2005). Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainable change. Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 111-131.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.9.2.111

Helliwell, J. F., &Huang, H. (2008). How& #39;s your government? International evidence linking good government and well-being.British Journal of Political Science, 38(4), 595-619.

This article employs World Values Survey measures of life satisfaction as though they were direct measures of utility, and uses them to evaluate alternative features and forms of government in large international samples. Life satisfaction is found to be more closely linked to several World Bank measures of the quality of government than to real per capita incomes, in simple correlations and more fully specified models explaining international differences in life satisfaction. Differences in the relative importance of different aspects of good government are tested for, and a hierarchy of preferences that depends on the level of development is found. The ability of governments to provide a trustworthy environment, and to deliver services honestly and efficiently, appears to be of paramount importance for countries with worse governance and lower incomes. The balance changes once acceptable levels of efficiency, trust and incomes are achieved, when more value is attached to building and maintaining the institutions of electoral democracy.

 

 

Helliwell, J. F., &Huang, H. (2008). How’s your government? International evidence linking good government and well-being.British Journal of Political Science, 38(4), 595-619.

https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123408000306

 

 

Hudson, J. (2006). Institutional trust and subjective well‐being across the EU. Kyklos, 59(1), 43-62.

This paper analyzes the impact of institutions upon happiness through their intermediary impact upon individual trust. The empirical work is based on Eurobarometer data covering the 15 countries of the EU prior to its expansion in 2004. With respect to trust, we present evidence that, although it is endogenous with respect to the performance of the institution, changes in the individual’s personal circumstances can also have an impact, indicating that trust is not simply learned at an early age. Hence unemployed people tend to have lower levels of trust not only in the main economic institutions – government and the Central Bank – but in other state institutions too such as the police and the law. Trust also differs in a systematic manner with respect to education and household income, increases (decreases) in either increase (decrease) trust in most institutions. If we assume that more educated people make better judgments, this suggests that on average people tend to have too little trust in institutions. However, it is also possible that both of these variables impact on the interaction between institutions such as the police and other government agencies and the citizen, with prosperous, well educated people being at an advantage and possibly able to command more respect. Age too impacts on institutional trust. For the UN, the unions, big business, voluntary organizations and the EU, trust first declines and then increases with the estimated turning points ranging between 44 and 56 years. For most other organizations trust significantly increases with age. Turning to subjective well‐being, we find the standard set of socio‐economic variables to be significant. But the focus here is on the impact of institutional trust. We find that trust (mistrust) in the European Central Bank, the EU, national government, the law and the UN all impact positively (negatively) on well‐being. Hence overall our results support the conclusion that happiness does not solely lie within the realm of the individual, but that institutional performance also has a direct impact upon subjective well‐being.

 

 

Hudson, J. (2006). Institutional trust and subjective well‐being across the EU. Kyklos, 59(1), 43-62.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6435.2006.00319.x

 

 

Ruhm, C. J. (2000). Are recessions good for your health?. The Quarterly journal of economics, 115(2), 617-650.

This study investigates the relationship between economic conditions and health. Total mortality and eight of the ten sources of fatalities examined are shown to exhibit a procyclical fluctuation, with suicides representing an important exception. The variations are largest for those causes and age groups where behavioral responses are most plausible, and there is some evidence that the unfavorable health effects of temporary upturns are partially or fully offset if the economic growth is long-lasting. An accompanying analysis of micro data indicates that smoking and obesity increase when the economy strengthens, whereas physical activity is reduced and diet becomes less healthy.

 

 

Ruhm, C. J. (2000). Are recessions good for your health?. The Quarterly journal of economics, 115(2), 617-650.

https://doi.org/10.1162/003355300554872

 

Wolfers, J. (2003). Is business cycle volatility costly? Evidence from surveys of subjective well‐being. International finance, 6(1), 1-26.

This paper analyses the effects of business cycle volatility on measures of subjective well‐being, including self‐reported happiness and life satisfaction. I find robust evidence that high inflation and, to a greater extent, unemployment lower perceived well‐being. Greater macroeconomic volatility also undermines well‐being. These effects are moderate but important: eliminating unemployment volatility would raise well‐being by an amount roughly equal to that from lowering the average level of unemployment by a quarter of a percentage point. The effects of inflation volatility on well‐being are less easy to detect and are likely smaller.

 

 

Wolfers, J. (2003). Is business cycle volatility costly? Evidence from surveys of subjective well‐being. International finance, 6(1), 1-26.

https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2362.00112