Economics of happiness : an exploratory study on family relationship qualities and happiness in Singapore.

Abstract

Family appears to be one of the most salient life domains that correlate with personal happiness for people in all cultures. Western studies have accumulated strong evidence showing that family life affects happiness greatly (Argyle, 1987; Chilman, 1982; Rodgers and Bachman, 1988). In an Asian civilization, family life is especially relevant due to Confucian beliefs and ethics. From his review of studies in various fields, economist Richard Layard identified a hierarchy of happiness, seven factors most crucial to happiness. Ranking top of the list is family relationships, of which there are various factors and variables. This paper examines the effect family happiness has on respondents, mainly the children of parents. It also tests the effect of quality and level of closeness of family relationships, and if they are predictors of happiness. Through the use of surveys conducted in a Singaporean university, statistical analysis of these data found family relationships to correlate very highly with happiness levels of the respondents. The perception of household happiness, quality of family relationship, quality of interaction between the family and respondent, filial piety as well as household size were all found to have strong positive correlations with the respondents’ happiness levels. On the other hand, the actual reported happiness levels of parents were found not to have any correlations with their children (their respondents)