Document Type
Unpublished Paper
Publication Date
12-2006
Keywords
developing countries, religiosity, happiness, women, elderly, survey data
Disciplines
Economics
Abstract
Evidence from developed and developing countries alike demonstrates a strongly positive relationship between religiosity and happiness, particularly for women and particularly among the elderly. Using survey data from the oldest old in China, we find a strong negative relationship between religious participation and subjective well-being in a rich multivariate logistic framework that controls for demographics, health and disabilities, living arrangements and marital status, wealth and income, lifestyle and social networks, and location. In contrast to other studies, we also find that religion has a larger effect on subjective well-being on men than women.
Recommended Citation
Religion and Subjective Well-Being Among China’s Elderly Population Philip H. Brown, Brian Tierney Goldfarb Center Working Paper No. 2006-007 December 2006