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Every breath you take, every move you make: Visits to the outdoors and physical activity help to explain the relationship between air pollution and subjective wellbeing

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  • Laffan, Kate

Abstract

Why does living in a more polluted environment predict lower subjective wellbeing (SWB)? Though much evidence exists linking local air pollution to individuals' reports of their own wellbeing, the mechanisms giving rise to these relationships are not well understood. Using pooled cross-sectional data from Natural England's Monitor of Engagement with the Natural Environment survey, the current work investigates whether air pollution is related to engagement in physical activity and visits to the outdoors and whether frequency of engagement in these behaviours can help to explain the link between air pollution and SWB. The results indicate that local levels of particulate matter are negatively associated with the frequency with which individuals undertake both of these activities, that engagement in these behaviours wholly mediates the association between air pollution and how worthwhile individuals consider their activities to be, and that the frequency of visits to the outdoors partially mediates the negative association between local air pollution and life satisfaction. From a policy perspective, these findings highlight the need to understand the behavioural pathways through which environmental conditions relate to SWB, in order to know how to best promote it.

Suggested Citation

  • Laffan, Kate, 2018. "Every breath you take, every move you make: Visits to the outdoors and physical activity help to explain the relationship between air pollution and subjective wellbeing," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 96-113.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:147:y:2018:i:c:p:96-113
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2017.12.024
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    Cited by:

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    2. Pan Zhang & Zhiguo Wang, 2019. "PM 2.5 Concentrations and Subjective Well-Being: Longitudinal Evidence from Aggregated Panel Data from Chinese Provinces," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-13, March.
    3. Yongliang Yang & Jing Fang & Wen Wang & Yan Li & Yi Li, 2021. "The Impact of Air Quality on Effective Labor Supply: Based on the Survey Data of Zhejiang Province in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-22, April.
    4. Han, Ahram & Ten, Gi Khan & Wang, Shun, 2023. "Gray skies and blue moms: The effect of air pollution on parental life satisfaction," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    5. Wen Xiang & Jianzhong Gao, 2023. "From Agricultural Green Production to Farmers’ Happiness: A Case Study of Kiwi Growers in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(4), pages 1-25, February.
    6. Paul Dolan & Kate Laffan & Alina Velias, 2022. "Who’s miserable now? Identifying clusters of people with the lowest subjective wellbeing in the UK," Social Choice and Welfare, Springer;The Society for Social Choice and Welfare, vol. 58(4), pages 679-710, May.
    7. Ai, Hongshan & Wang, Mengyuan & Zhang, Yue-Jun & Zhu, Tian-Tian, 2022. "How does air pollution affect urban innovation capability? Evidence from 281 cities in China," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 166-178.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Subjective wellbeing; Air pollution; Environmental quality; Mediation; Physical activity; Visits outdoors;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q57 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Ecological Economics
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being

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