Age patterns in subjective well-being are partially accounted for by psychological and social factors associated with aging
Open Access
- 2 December 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Public Library of Science (PLoS) in PLOS ONE
- Vol. 15 (12), e0242664
- https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242664
Abstract
Subjective well-being has captured the interest of scientists and policy-makers as a way of knowing how individuals and groups evaluate and experience their lives: that is, their sense of meaning, their satisfaction with life, and their everyday moods. One of the more striking findings in this literature is a strong association between age and subjective well-being: in Western countries it has a U-shaped association over the lifespan. Despite many efforts, the reason for the curve is largely unexplained, for example, by traditional demographic variables. In this study we examined twelve social and psychological variables that could account for the U-shaped curve. In an Internet sample of 3,294 adults ranging in age from 40 to 69 we observed the expected steep increase in a measure of subjective well-being, the Cantril Ladder. Regression analyses demonstrated that the social-psychological variables explained about two-thirds of the curve and accounting for them significantly flattened the U-shape. Perceived stress, distress-depression, an open perspective about the future, wisdom, satisfaction with social relationships, and family strain were measures that had pronounced impacts on reducing the curve. These findings advance our understanding of why subjective well-being is associated with age and point the way to future studies.Funding Information
- National Institute on Aging (3P30AG024928-04S1)
This publication has 29 references indexed in Scilit:
- Item Banks for Measuring Emotional Distress From the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®): Depression, Anxiety, and AngerAssessment, 2011
- The happiness–income paradox revisitedProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2010
- A snapshot of the age distribution of psychological well-being in the United StatesProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2010
- Is well-being U-shaped over the life cycle?Social Science & Medicine (1982), 2008
- Aging, Emotion, and EvolutionAnnals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2003
- Social Support and Strain from Partner, Family, and Friends: Costs and Benefits for Men and Women in AdulthoodJournal of Social and Personal Relationships, 2000
- Emotional experience in everyday life across the adult life span.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2000
- The Decomposition of Effects in Path AnalysisAmerican Sociological Review, 1975
- The Pattern of Human ConcernsBritish Journal of Sociology, 1967