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Is there any Difference in Well-being between American and Brazilian College Students?

In: Economic Development in Latin America

Author

Listed:
  • Tiago V. V. Cavalcanti
  • Juliana Ferraz Guimarães
  • José Ricardo Nogueira

Abstract

According to large surveys with tourist and travel agencies abroad, Brazil has an image associated with joyfulness and seems to be eternally celebrating. Such surveys indicate that happiness is one of the main characteristic of the Brazilian people.1 The Brazilian Tourism Institute (EMBRATUR) names the Brazilian Northeast State Bahia as the land of happiness. After a visit to Brazil, moviemaker Fellini once said that he was convinced that Brazilians were the happiest people in the World. Brazilian anthropologist, Darcy Ribeiro (1996), argued that Brazilians have a unique joyful-ness for life that is hard to find in other parts of the world.2 In this article we study happiness in Brazil from a comparative perspective. We study whether there are any differences in the overall reported life satisfaction among Brazilian and American college students. We use two samples collected through direct surveys with college students at Purdue University in Indiana, United States, and at Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Brazil.3 We asked about their overall life satisfaction (see the two questionnaires in the appendix). We think that it is important to compare two similar groups in two different societies. On the one hand, they share similar aspirations and preoccupations, such as their academic grades, future career, and romance, to any college student around the world. On the other hand, socioeconomic conditions and social norms are very different in the two societies.

Suggested Citation

  • Tiago V. V. Cavalcanti & Juliana Ferraz Guimarães & José Ricardo Nogueira, 2010. "Is there any Difference in Well-being between American and Brazilian College Students?," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Hadi Salehi Esfahani & Giovanni Facchini & Geoffrey J. D. Hewings (ed.), Economic Development in Latin America, chapter 17, pages 273-285, Palgrave Macmillan.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palchp:978-0-230-29738-8_17
    DOI: 10.1057/9780230297388_17
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