This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

The value of reunification in Germany; An analysis of changes in life satisfaction?

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Paul Frijters
Michael A. Shields
John P. Haisken-DeNew (School of Economics and Finance, Queensland University of Technology)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

This paper investigates the patterns and determinants of life satisfaction in Germany following reunification. We implement a new fixed-effect estimator for ordinal life satisfaction in the German Socio-Economic Panel and find negative effects on life satisfaction from being recently fired, losing a spouse through either death or separation and time spent in hospital, whilst we find strong positive effects from income and marriage. Using a new causal decomposition technique, we find that East Germans experienced a continued improvement in life satisfaction to which increased household incomes contributed around 12 percent. Most of the improvement is explained by better average circumstances, such as greater political freedom. For West Germans, we find little change in average life satisfaction over this period

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://www.bus.qut.edu.au/paulfrijters/documents/ShieldsJHRfinalversiongeneralsatisfaction.doc
File Format: application/msword
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by School of Economics and Finance, Queensland University of Technology in its series Paul Frijters Discussion Papers with number 2004-6.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length:
Date of creation: 15 Jun 2004
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:qut:pfrijt:2004-6

Contact details of provider:
Postal: GPO Box 2434, BRISBANE QLD 4001
Email:
Web page: http://www.bus.qut.edu.au/faculty/schools/economics/
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (School of Economics).

Related research
Keywords:

Other versions of this item:

References listed on IDEAS
Please 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.:
  1. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew J. Oswald, 2000. "Well-Being Over Time in Britain and the USA," NBER Working Papers 7487, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  2. Gerlach, Knut & Stephan, Gesine, 1996. "A paper on unhappiness and unemployment in Germany," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 52(3), pages 325-330, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Easterlin, Richard A., 1995. "Will raising the incomes of all increase the happiness of all?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 35-47, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Clark, Andrew E & Georgellis, Yannis & Sanfey, Peter, 2001. "Scarring: The Psychological Impact of Past Unemployment," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 68(270), pages 221-41, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  5. Hunt, Jennifer, 2000. "Why Do People Still Live In East Germany?," CEPR Discussion Papers 2431, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Rafael Di Tella & Robert J. MacCulloch & Andrew J. Oswald, 2001. "Preferences over Inflation and Unemployment: Evidence from Surveys of Happiness," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(1), pages 335-341, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Oswald, A.J., 1997. "Happiness and Economic Performance," Papers 18, Centre for Economic Performance & Institute of Economics.
    Other versions:
  8. Gerdtham, Ulf-G & Johannesson, Magnus, 1997. "The Relationship between Happiness, Health and Socio-economic Factors: Results Based on Swedish Micro Data," Working Paper Series in Economics and Finance 207, Stockholm School of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  9. Clark, Andrew E & Oswald, Andrew J, 1994. "Unhappiness and Unemployment," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 104(424), pages 648-59, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Shields, Michael A & Wailoo, Allan, 2002. "Exploring the Determinants of Unhappiness for Ethnic Minority Men in Britain," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 49(4), pages 445-66, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Ravallion, Martin & Lokshin, Michael, 2001. "Identifying Welfare Effects from Subjective Questions," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 68(271), pages 335-57, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  12. Bernard M.S. van Praag & Paul Frijters, 1999. "The measurement of welfare and well-being; the Leyden approach," Paul Frijters Discussion Papers 1999, School of Economics and Finance, Queensland University of Technology. [Downloadable!]
  13. Clark, Andrew E. & Oswald, Andrew J. & Warr, Peter B., 1994. "Is job satisfaction u-shaped in age ?," CEPREMAP Working Papers (Couverture Orange) 9407, CEPREMAP.
  14. Hamermesh, Daniel S., 1999. "The Changing Distribution of Job Satisfaction," IZA Discussion Papers 42, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  15. Chamberlain, Gary, 1980. "Analysis of Covariance with Qualitative Data," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 47(1), pages 225-38, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  16. Andrew Clark, 2001. "Unemployment As A Social Norm: Psychological Evidence from Panel Data," DELTA Working Papers 2001-17, DELTA (Ecole normale supérieure). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  17. McBride, Michael, 2001. "Relative-income effects on subjective well-being in the cross-section," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 251-278, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Frijters, Paul, 2000. "Do individuals try to maximize general satisfaction?," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 21(3), pages 281-304, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  19. Winkelmann, Liliana & Winkelmann, Rainer, 1998. "Why Are the Unemployed So Unhappy? Evidence from Panel Data," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 65(257), pages 1-15, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  20. Frey, Bruno S. & Stutzer, Alois, 2000. "Happiness, Economy and Institutions," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo Group Munich. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please 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.)

  1. Paul Frijters & John P. Haisken-DeNew & Michael Shields, 2003. "Estimating The Causal Effect of Income on Health: Evidence from Post Reunification East Germany," CEPR Discussion Papers 465, Centre for Economic Policy Research, Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University. [Downloadable!]
  2. Ada Ferrer-i-Carbonell, 2002. "Income and Well-being," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 02-019/3, Tinbergen Institute. [Downloadable!]
  3. Luis Diaz-Serrano, 2006. "Housing Satisfaction, Homeownership and Housing Mobility: A Panel Data Analysis for Twelve EU Countries," IZA Discussion Papers 2318, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  4. Mark Wooden & Bruce Headey, 2004. "The Effects of Wealth and Income on Subjective Well-Being and Ill-Being," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2004n03, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. repec:ese:iserwp: is not listed on IDEAS
  6. Claudia Senik, 2003. "What Can we Learn from Subjective Data ? The Case of Income and Well-Being," DELTA Working Papers 2003-06, DELTA (Ecole normale supérieure), revised Oct 2003. [Downloadable!]
  7. Mike Shields & Mark Wooden, 2003. "Investigating the Role of Neighbourhood Characteristics in Determining Life Satisfaction," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2003n24, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  8. Claudia Senik, 2002. "Que nous apprennent les données subjectives ? Une application au lien entre revenu et bien-être," DELTA Working Papers 2002-20, DELTA (Ecole normale supérieure). [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? You too can volunteer for RePEc, for example by editing a NEP report.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-25.


This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.