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Unmet Aspirations as an Explanation for the Age U-Shape in Human Wellbeing

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  • Hannes Schwandt

Abstract

A large literature in behavioral and social sciences has found that human wellbeing follows a U-shape over age. Some theories have assumed that the U-shape is caused by unmet expectations that are felt painfully in midlife but beneficially abandoned and experienced with less regret during old age. In a unique panel of 132,609 life satisfaction expectations matched to subsequent realizations, I find people to err systematically in predicting their life satisfaction over the life cycle. They expect -- incorrectly -- increases in young adulthood and decreases during old age. These errors are large, ranging from 9.8% at age 21 to -4.5% at age 68, they are stable over time and observed across socio-economic groups. These findings support theories that unmet expectations drive the age U-shape in wellbeing.

Suggested Citation

  • Hannes Schwandt, 2013. "Unmet Aspirations as an Explanation for the Age U-Shape in Human Wellbeing," CEP Discussion Papers dp1229, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
  • Handle: RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1229
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    1. Happiness, age & class
      by chris dillow in Stumbling and Mumbling on 2014-03-01 20:27:31

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    Cited by:

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    2. Alan Piper, 2014. "Zukunftsangst! Fear of (and Hope for) the Future and Its Impact on Life Satisfaction," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 706, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    3. Reto Odermatt & Alois Stutzer, 2019. "(Mis-)Predicted Subjective Well-Being Following Life Events," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 17(1), pages 245-283.
    4. Yongwei Chen & Ying Zhang, 2020. "Effects of free compulsory education on rural well‐being in China," Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, The Crawford School, The Australian National University, vol. 34(2), pages 78-92, November.
    5. Marta Barazzetta, 2015. "The asymmetric effect of expectations on subjective well-being," Working Papers 374, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    6. Piper, Alan T., 2014. "Sliding down the U-shape? An investigation of the age-well-being relationship, with a focus on young adults," MPRA Paper 55819, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    7. Marco Bertoni & Luca Corazzini, 2015. "Life Satisfaction and Endogenous Aspirations," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 761, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    8. Bell, Andrew, 2014. "Life-course and cohort trajectories of mental health in the UK, 1991–2008 – A multilevel age–period–cohort analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 21-30.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Life satisfaction; expectations; aging;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A12 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Other Disciplines
    • I30 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General
    • D84 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Expectations; Speculations

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