Economic Freedom and Life Satisfaction: A Cross Country Analysis
Abstract
Abstract: This paper estimates the relationship between various sub-indicators of economic freedom and life satisfaction for 122 countries. The estimation results show that life satisfaction is positively related to the quality of the legal system and protection of property rights. For poor countries, freedom of trade fosters life satisfaction as well. Life satisfaction is independent from the size of the government and sound money and tends to be negatively related to low regulation. If the relationship between life satisfaction and economic freedom is controlled for income per capita, life satisfaction is independent from economic freedom. This indicates that the relationship between life satisfaction and economic freedom is mediated by income per capita.Download Info
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Paper provided by Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research in its series Discussion Paper with number 2012-038.Length:
Date of creation: 2012
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:dgr:kubcen:2012038
Contact details of provider:
Web page: http://center.uvt.nl
Related research
Keywords:Find related papers by JEL classification:
- A13 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Social Values
- D60 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - General
- E02 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General - - - Institutions and the Macroeconomy
- O57 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Comparative Studies of Countries
- P14 - Economic Systems - - Capitalist Systems - - - Property Rights
- P16 - Economic Systems - - Capitalist Systems - - - Political Economy of Capitalism
- P51 - Economic Systems - - Comparative Economic Systems - - - Comparative Analysis of Economic Systems
This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:
- NEP-ALL-2012-05-22 (All new papers)
- NEP-HAP-2012-05-22 (Economics of Happiness)
References
References listed on IDEASPlease report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
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Citations
Blog mentions
As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:- Freedom vs happiness
by chris dillow in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2012-05-28 13:48:18 - Freedom, well-being & capitalism
by chris dillow in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2012-07-29 12:03:31 - Why was Hobsbawm wrong?
by chris dillow in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2012-10-02 13:03:20
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