Title: Trends and fluctuations in financial satisfaction and macroeconomic indicators in times of economic changes: the case of Latin America

Authors: Lucía Macchia; Anke C. Plagnol; Richard A. Easterlin

Addresses: School of Health and Psychological Sciences, University of London, Rhind Building, EC1V 0HB, London, UK ' School of Health and Psychological Sciences, University of London, Rhind Building, EC1V 0HB, London, UK ' Department of Economics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA

Abstract: The association between subjective well-being and macroeconomic conditions has been extensively studied across the social sciences, with most evidence stemming from US and Europe due to data constraints. Using time-series analysis, this paper explores trends (long-term tendencies) and fluctuations (short-term movements) of financial satisfaction and macroeconomic indicators in Latin America during a period of great economic changes. We show that between 1996 and 2015, the trend in financial satisfaction was significantly negatively associated with the trend in the unemployment rate but it was not associated with the trends in the log of gross domestic product per capita (GDP) or the inflation rate. In the short-term, financial satisfaction, the unemployment rate, the inflation rate, and the log of GDP per capita move together. This study demonstrates that unemployment is the key macroeconomic indicator to tackle long-term financial satisfaction and thus likely improve citizens' overall well-being.

Keywords: happiness; financial satisfaction; Easterlin paradox; Latin America; time-series analysis.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHD.2024.137970

International Journal of Happiness and Development, 2024 Vol.8 No.3, pp.295 - 312

Received: 16 Apr 2023
Accepted: 18 Sep 2023
Published online: 15 Apr 2024 *

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