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Internet use and subjective well-being in China

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  • Nie, Peng
  • Nimrod, Galit
  • Sousa-Poza, Alfonso

Abstract

Using data from the 2010 China Family Panel Studies, we analyze the association between Internet use and various measures of subjective well-being (SWB) in a sample of 16- to 60- year-old Chinese. Our analysis shows that although intensive Internet use is significantly associated with lower levels of SWB, we hardly observe any associations when the focus is on participation in specific online activities. Nevertheless, SWB depends on perceptions of Internet use; that is, the importance that different individuals ascribe to different purposes for using the Internet and how much they believe that their Internet use is displacing other activities. Our results suggest that, contrary to previous findings, differences in beneficial outcomes (the third level digital divide) do not necessarily arise from individuals' actual Internet use (the second level digital divide) but rather may result from their subjective perceptions of such usage. Our findings also point to a possible cultural factor that puts Chinese Internet users at psychological risk.

Suggested Citation

  • Nie, Peng & Nimrod, Galit & Sousa-Poza, Alfonso, 2015. "Internet use and subjective well-being in China," Hohenheim Discussion Papers in Business, Economics and Social Sciences 07-2015, University of Hohenheim, Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:hohdps:072015
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    3. Zhongkun Zhu & Wanglin Ma & Chenxin Leng & Peng Nie, 2021. "The Relationship Between Happiness and Consumption Expenditure: Evidence from Rural China," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 16(4), pages 1587-1611, August.
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    5. Nie, Peng & Peng, Xu & Luo, Tianyuan, 2023. "Internet use and fertility behavior among reproductive-age women in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    6. Giacomo Degli Antoni & Chiara Franco, 2022. "The effect of technological behaviour and beliefs on subjective well-being: the role of technological infrastructure," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 32(2), pages 553-590, April.
    7. Nie, Peng & Li, Qiaoge & Sousa-Poza, Alfonso, 2021. "Energy poverty and subjective well-being in China: New evidence from the China Family Panel Studies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    8. David Quintana & Alejandro Cervantes & Yago Sáez & Pedro Isasi, 2018. "Internet Use and Psychological Well-Being at Advanced Age: Evidence from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-13, March.
    9. Yu, Dandan & Fiebig, Denzil G., 2020. "Internet use and cognition among middle-aged and older adults in China: A cross-lagged panel analysis," The Journal of the Economics of Ageing, Elsevier, vol. 17(C).
    10. Ana Suárez Álvarez & María R. Vicente, 2023. "Going “beyond the GDP” in the digital economy: exploring the relationship between internet use and well-being in Spain," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-10, December.
    11. Haiyang Lu & Ivan T. Kandilov, 2021. "Does Mobile Internet Use Affect the Subjective Well-being of Older Chinese Adults? An Instrumental Variable Quantile Analysis," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 22(7), pages 3137-3156, October.
    12. Xin Fan & Shan Jin & Zeyu Chen, 2023. "Who Benefits from Domestic Market Integration?," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 24(6), pages 2083-2109, August.
    13. Sergey Smetanin, 2022. "Pulse of the Nation: Observable Subjective Well-Being in Russia Inferred from Social Network Odnoklassniki," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 10(16), pages 1-38, August.
    14. Shuo Lei & Lu Zhang & Chunfei Hou & Yongwei Han, 2023. "Internet Use, Subjective Well-Being, and Environmentally Friendly Practices in Rural China: An Empirical Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-13, July.
    15. Zhu, Zhongkun & Ma, Wanglin & Sousa-Poza, Alfonso & Leng, Chenxin, 2020. "The effect of internet usage on perceptions of social fairness: Evidence from rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    16. Wanglin Ma & Puneet Vatsa & Hongyun Zheng & Emmanuel Donkor & Victor Owusu, 2023. "Does Adoption of Information and Communication Technology Reduce Objective and Subjective Well-Being Inequality? Evidence from China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 169(1), pages 55-77, September.
    17. Zhongkun Zhu & Wanglin Ma & Chenxin Leng, 2022. "ICT Adoption, Individual Income and Psychological Health of Rural Farmers in China," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 17(1), pages 71-91, February.
    18. Zidan Mao & Fangyu Liu & Ying Zhao, 2023. "Happy city for everyone: Generational differences in rural migrant workers’ leisure in urban China," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 60(16), pages 3252-3271, December.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    China; digital divides; depression; happiness; Internet use; life satisfaction;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • D10 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - General
    • J10 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - General
    • Q53 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Air Pollution; Water Pollution; Noise; Hazardous Waste; Solid Waste; Recycling

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