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on Economics of Happiness |
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Issue of 2023‒06‒19
five papers chosen by |
| By: | Friedman-Sokuler, Naomi (Bar-Ilan University); Senik, Claudia (Paris School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | Using the American and the French time-use surveys, we examine whether people have a preference for a more diversified mix of activities, in the sense that they experience greater well-being when their time schedule contains many different activities rather than is concentrated on a very small number. This could be due to decreasing marginal utility, as is assumed for goods consumption, if each episode of time is conceived as yielding a certain level of utility per se. With returns to specialization, people would then face a trade-off between efficiency and diversity in choosing how to allocate time. We examine these issues and investigate potential gender differences, considering both instantaneous feelings and life satisfaction. |
| Keywords: | time allocation, time-use diversity, subjective well-being, life satisfaction, momentary utility, gender |
| JEL: | I31 J22 |
| Date: | 2023–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16090&r=hap |
| By: | Pablo Blanchard (Universidad de la República (Uruguay). Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y de Administración. Instituto de Economía); Matías Brum (Universidad de la República (Uruguay). Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y de Administración. Instituto de Economía); Paula Carrasco (Universidad de la República (Uruguay). Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y de Administración. Instituto de Economía); Cecilia Parada (Universidad de la República (Uruguay). Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y de Administración. Instituto de Economía); Ivone Perazzo (Universidad de la República (Uruguay). Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y de Administración. Instituto de Economía) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we examine the effects of a social and labor inclusion program called Uruguay Trabaja (UT) on various labor market outcomes and subjective well-being in Uruguay. Using administrative data and a custom survey, we estimate the program’s causal effects by exploiting the random assignment of the beneficiaries. Our findings indicate that the UT program increases by 40% the probability of a beneficiary having a formal job between two and three years after the end of their participation in the program, and it improves satisfaction with different dimensions of employment, but does not affect the probability of being employed overall. Additionally, we provide evidence suggesting that these effects persist over time, up to three years after the intervention ended. This study highlights the importance of implementing comprehensive programs for vulnerable populations and of considering long-term effects when evaluating their effectiveness. |
| Keywords: | employment effects, public policy, inclusion program |
| JEL: | C9 H53 I38 J08 |
| Date: | 2023–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ulr:wpaper:dt-02-23&r=hap |
| By: | Hübler, Olaf (Leibniz University of Hannover) |
| Abstract: | Donations and unpaid working are two important forms of non-market activities that are usually considered separately in the literature. The purpose of this paper is to empirically test hypotheses on determinants of giving to organizations. In particular, the importance of voluntary work for giving behavior is examined in comparison to other unpaid activities. In addition, the aim is to find out whether mutual dependencies exist and to what extent benefits, measured by satisfaction, can be derived from both forms. Estimates using data from the Socio-Economic Panel for the years 2019/2020 lead to the following results for Germany: - Personality traits and individual assessment, under which conditions a society is judged to be just, are important for donation behavior. These two aspects are widely neglected in the literature. - If honorary offices are exercised as a major activity, a clear positive donation effect is derived in contrast to a secondary activity. - Participation in citizens' initiatives shows a similar correlation. In contrast, unpaid overtime in professional life shows a negative link. - No effect can be discerned, based on an honorary office, for payments to unrelated individuals. - Donations to organizations and voluntary work show mutual dependencies. - Life satisfaction is increased both by donating and by doing voluntary work. |
| Keywords: | citizens' initiative, donations, life satisfaction, personality traits, unpaid work, volunteering |
| JEL: | D64 D91 I30 J30 |
| Date: | 2023–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16142&r=hap |
| By: | Martín García Vaquero (EAE - EAE Business School); Antonio Sánchez‐bayón (URJC - Universidad Rey Juan Carlos [Madrid]); José Lominchar (UDIMA - Universidad a Distancia de Madrid) |
| Abstract: | This paper on Political Economic and Labour Economic Policies in the European Green Deal framework analyses the Recovery Plan and Resilience Facility. It pays attention to the effects on the design of new green jobs and the necessary skills to develop this type of new positions generated, with higher labour wellbeing. The paper is focused on the analysis of the green jobs' opportunity for Europe, at a country level, with a specific analysis made for the Spanish case. A systematisation of the concepts and calculations on the issue is made and analysed (attending the international institutions and forums proposals) to harmonise the recovery plans, apply them beyond the energy sector to other related green activities and align the public and private sector, and other critical stakeholders, in achieving this goal. The following research questions were formulated: (1) what is the estimated number of new green jobs that would be created as a consequence of the implementation of the Recovery Plan in Spain; (2) which new soft skills or re-skilling would be necessary to develop such new green jobs; (3) how much are the new jobs aligned with wellbeing economics? The research was conducted by applying a few research methods, i.e., secondary sources, the desk research method and the exploration method, critical and comparative analysis, inductive and deductive reasoning and some mathematical calculations. The research contribution can provide a valuable source of information to coordinate sectoral plans by the policymakers, particularly those responsible for the economy, business, green activities and education. |
| Keywords: | Labour Economic Policies European Green Deal Recovery Plan green jobs skills Wellbeing Economics, Labour Economic Policies, European Green Deal, Recovery Plan, green jobs, skills, Wellbeing Economics |
| Date: | 2021–07–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04056085&r=hap |
| By: | Leonardo Becchetti (CEIS & DEF, University of Rome "Tor Vergata"); Sara Mancini (University of Rome "Tor Vergata"); Nazaria Solferino (Università della Calabria) |
| Abstract: | Based on results from the different fields of the game theoretic literature on strategic interactions and social dilemmas, gift exchange and procedural utility, we argue that corporate social responsibility and relational skills i) with other firms; ii) between employers and workers iii) among workers and iv) with stakeholders are associated to positive effects on productivity. We test our research hypothesis in a comparative perspective on small, medium and large sized Italian firms. We find that size matters when investigating the impact of relational skills on added value per worker after controlling for relevant concurring factors. The identified significant skill related components are: i) corporate policies considering strategic workers’ wellbeing; ii) team working attitudes considered as priority soft skills when hiring workers; iii) initiatives in favour of the productive network operating in the same local area; iv) involvement of stakeholders in CSR projects. Our findings show that the fourth component (stakeholder involvement) is positive and significant for all (small, medium and large) size classes, while the first (workers wellbeing) for small and medium firms, the second (team working) applies mainly to medium firms, and the third (initiative for the local productive network) to medium and large firms. Instrumental variable estimates on the relational skill principal component suggest that a causality link exists beyond these significant correlations. Our conclusion is that scale has an inverse U-shaped effect on the impact of team skills, weakens the impact of gift exchange mechanisms, while it reinforces those of investment in the local productive environment on added value per worker |
| Keywords: | social dilemma, gift exchange, procedural utility, corporate social responsibility, corporate size |
| Date: | 2023–05–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rtv:ceisrp:557&r=hap |