IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bap/journl/140303.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Cultural Participation, Relational Goods and Individual Subjective Well-Being: Some Empirical Evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Giorgio Tavano Blessi

    (Department of Sociology and Economic Law, Bologna University, Via San Giacomo 3, 40126, Bologna, ITALY)

  • Enzo Grossi

    (Bracco Foundation, Via Cino del Duca, 8, 20122 Milano - ITALY)

  • Pier Luigi Sacco

    (Faculty of Arts, Markets, and Heritage, IULM University, via Carlo Bo, 1, 20143 Milan, ITALY)

  • Giovanni Pieretti

    (Department of Sociology and Economic Law, Bologna University, Via San Giacomo 3, 40126, Bologna, ITALY)

  • Guido Ferilli

    (Faculty of Arts, Markets, and Heritage, IULM University, via Carlo Bo, 1, 20143 Milan, ITALY)

Abstract

This paper focuses on the role of cultural participation as a source of individual subjective well-being in terms of the sociability orientation of different cultural activities. In previous works, we have found a strong association between subjective well-being and cultural participation. Here, we want to test to what extent such as association can be ascribed to the fact that cultural participation allows individuals to engage in non instrumental forms of social interaction, which are conducive to genuine forms of interpersonal relations. The test is conducted through two different evidence bases: on a survey covering Italian population and focused on the relation between culture and well-being; and an online survey of experts, ranking the 14 culturally related activities of the previous survey in terms of their sociability orientation. Our findings show that cultural participation tends to be oriented preferentially toward relatively sociable activities, thereby contributing to the production of relational goods and social capital.

Suggested Citation

  • Giorgio Tavano Blessi & Enzo Grossi & Pier Luigi Sacco & Giovanni Pieretti & Guido Ferilli, 2014. "Cultural Participation, Relational Goods and Individual Subjective Well-Being: Some Empirical Evidence," Review of Economics & Finance, Better Advances Press, Canada, vol. 4, pages 33-46, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:bap:journl:140303
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.bapress.ca/ref/ref-article/1923-7529-2014-03-33-14.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Maurizio Pugno, 2007. "The Subjective Well-being Paradox: A Suggested Solution Based on Relational Goods," Chapters, in: Luigino Bruni & Pier Luigi Porta (ed.), Handbook on the Economics of Happiness, chapter 14, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    2. Lionel Prouteau & François‐Charles Wolff, 2004. "Relational Goods and Associational Participation," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(3), pages 431-463, September.
    3. Leonardo Becchetti & Alessandra Pelloni & Fiammetta Rossetti, 2008. "Relational Goods, Sociability, and Happiness," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(3), pages 343-363, August.
    4. John F. Helliwell & Christopher P. Barrington-Leigh & Anthony Harris & Haifang Huang, 2009. "International Evidence on the Social Context of Well-Being," NBER Working Papers 14720, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Antoci, Angelo & Sacco, Pier Luigi & Vanin, Paolo, 2007. "Social capital accumulation and the evolution of social participation," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 128-143, February.
    6. Gui,Benedetto & Sugden,Robert (ed.), 2005. "Economics and Social Interaction," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521848848.
    7. Leonardo Becchetti & Giovanni Trovato & David Andres Londono Bedoya, 2011. "Income, relational goods and happiness," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(3), pages 273-290.
    8. Benedetto Gui, 2000. "Beyond Transactions: On the Interpersonal Dimension of Economic Reality," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 71(2), pages 139-169, June.
    9. Bruni, Luigino & Stanca, Luca, 2008. "Watching alone: Relational goods, television and happiness," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 65(3-4), pages 506-528, March.
    10. Enzo Grossi & Giorgio Tavano Blessi & Pier Sacco & Massimo Buscema, 2012. "The Interaction Between Culture, Health and Psychological Well-Being: Data Mining from the Italian Culture and Well-Being Project," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 13(1), pages 129-148, March.
    11. Becchetti, Leonardo & Degli Antoni, Giacomo & Faillo, Marco, 2010. "Let's meet up! The role of relational goods in promoting cooperation," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 661-669, December.
    12. Alex Michalos & P. Kahlke, 2008. "Impact of Arts-Related Activities on the Perceived Quality of Life," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 89(2), pages 193-258, November.
    13. Stefano Bartolini & Ennio Bilancini, 2010. "If not only GDP, what else? Using relational goods to predict the trends of subjective well-being," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 57(2), pages 199-213, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Guido Bonatti & Enrico Ivaldi, 2016. "Un indicatore per la misurazione della partecipazione culturale e sociale nelle regioni italiane," ECONOMIA E DIRITTO DEL TERZIARIO, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2016(2), pages 283-302.
    2. Quaglione, Davide & Crociata, Alessandro & Agovino, Massimiliano & Iaia, Lea, 2020. "Cultural capital and online purchase of tourism services," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    3. Bertacchini, Enrico & Venturini, Alessandra & Misuraca, Roberta & Zotti, Roberto, 2022. "Exploring the relationship between subjective well-being and diversity and intensity in cultural consumption," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis. Working Papers 202219, University of Turin.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Stefania Capecchi & Maria Iannario & Rosaria Simone, 2018. "Well-Being and Relational Goods: A Model-Based Approach to Detect Significant Relationships," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 135(2), pages 729-750, January.
    2. Benedetto Gui, 2013. "Relational goods," Chapters, in: Luigino Bruni & Stefano Zamagni (ed.), Handbook on the Economics of Reciprocity and Social Enterprise, chapter 30, pages 295-305, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    3. Sarracino, Francesco, 2013. "Determinants of subjective well-being in high and low income countries: Do happiness equations differ across countries?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 51-66.
    4. Bernard Guéry, 2018. "Bien relationnel et bien commun : une exploration cartographique aux frontières de la philosophie et de l'économie," Post-Print hal-02552196, HAL.
    5. Damiano Fiorillo, 2010. "Volunteer work and domain satisfactions: Evidence from Italy," Discussion Papers 6_2010, D.E.S. (Department of Economic Studies), University of Naples "Parthenope", Italy.
    6. Leonardo Becchetti & Giacomo Degli Antoni & Marco Faillo, 2013. "Team reasoning theory: an experimental analysis of common reason to believe and social distance," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 60(3), pages 269-291, September.
    7. Stefano Bartolini & Ennio Bilancini, 2010. "If not only GDP, what else? Using relational goods to predict the trends of subjective well-being," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 57(2), pages 199-213, June.
    8. Corsi, Alessandro & Frontuto, Vito & Novelli, Silvia, 2022. "Relational goods and direct purchase from farmers: estimating the value of the relationship between consumers and producers," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 25(2), March.
    9. Benedetto Gui & Luca Stanca, 2010. "Happiness and relational goods: well-being and interpersonal relations in the economic sphere," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 57(2), pages 105-118, June.
    10. Antoci Angelo & Sabatini Fabio & Sodini Mauro, 2009. "Will growth and technology destroy social interaction? The inverted U-shape hypothesis," wp.comunite 0057, Department of Communication, University of Teramo.
    11. Stefano Bartolini & Ennio Bilancini & Maurizio Pugno, 2013. "Did the Decline in Social Connections Depress Americans’ Happiness?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 110(3), pages 1033-1059, February.
    12. Bosworth, Steven & Snower, Dennis J., 2020. "Technological advance, social fragmentation and welfare," Kiel Working Papers 2177, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    13. Matías Membiela-Pollán & María Alló-Pazos & Carlos Pateiro-Rodríguez & Félix Blázquez-Lozano, 2019. "The Inefficiency of the Neoclassical Paradigm in the Promotion of Subjective Well-Being and Socioeconomic, and Environmental Sustainability: An Empirical Test for the Spanish Case," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-14, December.
    14. Tae-Hwan Kim & Hoon Hong & Jonghyun Park & Chung Sik Yoo & Jongick Jang, 2017. "Statistical Estimation of the Casual Effect of Scoial Economy on Subjective Well-Being," Working papers 2017rwp-104, Yonsei University, Yonsei Economics Research Institute.
    15. Julie A. Nelson, "undated". "Getting Past "Rational Man/Emotional Woman": How Far Have Research Programs in Happiness and Interpersonal Relations Progressed?," GDAE Working Papers 09-07, GDAE, Tufts University.
    16. Angelo Antoci & Mauro Sodini & Luca Zarri, 2014. "Relational consumption and nonlinear dynamics in an overlapping generations model," Decisions in Economics and Finance, Springer;Associazione per la Matematica, vol. 37(1), pages 137-158, April.
    17. Leonardo Becchetti & Alessandra Pelloni, 2013. "What are we learning from the life satisfaction literature?," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 60(2), pages 113-155, June.
    18. Lotito, Gianna & Migheli, Matteo & Ortona, Guido, 2011. "An experimental inquiry into the nature of relational goods," POLIS Working Papers 160, Institute of Public Policy and Public Choice - POLIS.
    19. Bilancini, Ennio & D'Alessandro, Simone, 2012. "Long-run welfare under externalities in consumption, leisure, and production: A case for happy degrowth vs. unhappy growth," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 194-205.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Cultural participation; Relational goods; Individual subjective well-being; Psychological health;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A12 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Other Disciplines
    • D11 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Theory
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • Z10 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bap:journl:140303. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Carlson (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.bapress.ca .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.