Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
11-2020
Abstract
This meta-analysis tested if the links between socioeconomic status (SES) and subjective well-being (SWB) differ by whether SES is assessed objectively or subjectively. The associations between measures of objective SES (i.e., income and educational attainment), subjective SES (i.e., the MacArthur ladder SES and perceived SES), and SWB (i.e., happiness and life satisfaction) were synthesized across 357 studies, totaling 2,352,095 participants. Overall, the objective SES and subjective SES measures were moderately associated (r = .32). The subjective SES-SWB association (r = .22) was larger than the objective SES-SWB association (r = .16). The income-SWB association (r = .23) was comparable with the ladder SES-SWB association (r = .22) but larger than the perceived SES-SWB association (r = .196). The education-SWB association (r = .12) was smaller than the associations with both measures of subjective SES. The subjective SES-SWB association was partially explained by common method variance. The subjective SES-SWB association, particularly with the ladder SES measure, also mediated the objective SES-SWB association. In moderation analyses, the objective SES-SWB associations strengthened as samples increased in wealth and population density. The subjective SES-SWB associations strengthened as samples increased in population density, decreased in income inequality, and decreased in relative social mobility. The role of common method variance, social comparisons, and other processes in explaining the SES-SWB links are discussed.
Keywords
meta-analysis, social class, socioeconomic status, subjective well-being
Discipline
Comparative Psychology | Social Psychology | Social Psychology and Interaction
Research Areas
Psychology
Publication
Psychological Bulletin
Volume
146
Issue
11
First Page
970
Last Page
1020
ISSN
0033-2909
Identifier
10.1037/bul0000258
Publisher
American Psychological Association
Embargo Period
11-4-2020
Citation
TAN, Jacinth J. X., KRAUS, Michael W., CARPENTER, Nichelle C., & ADLER, Nancy E..(2020). The association between objective and subjective socioeconomic standing and subjective well-being: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 146(11), 970-1020.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/3244
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000258
Included in
Comparative Psychology Commons, Social Psychology Commons, Social Psychology and Interaction Commons