Panel Conditioning and Self-Reported Satisfaction: Evidence from International Panel Data and Repeated Cross-Sections

Abstract

Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. Terms of use: Documents in SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research at DIW BerlinThis series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German SocioEconomic Panel Study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences: economics, sociology, psychology, survey methodology, econometrics and applied statistics, educational science, political science, public health, behavioral genetics, demography, geography, and sport science.The decision to publish a submission in SOEPpapers is made by a board of editors chosen by the DIW Berlin to represent the wide range of disciplines covered by SOEP. There is no external referee process and papers are either accepted or rejected without revision. Papers appear in this series as works in progress and may also appear elsewhere. They often represent preliminary studies and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a paper should account for its provisional character. A revised version may be requested from the author directly.Any opinions expressed in this series are those of the author(s) and not those of DIW Berlin.Research disseminated by DIW Berlin may include views on public policy issues, but the institute itself takes no institutional policy positions. AbstractUsing data from three European countries, this paper investigates whether self-reported satisfaction data are subject to panel conditioning or a panel effect, that is, whether answers depend on whether one has previously participated in the panel. The analysis proposes a way to account for panel attrition in cases where the attrition rate is substantial, and finds international evidence for a negative panel effect. This result can be of importance e.g. in the current debate on trends in life satisfaction over time), and might stimulate further research into panel conditioning for other economic data gathered via household surveys.

Subjective Wellbeing: Why Weather Matters

“…(), Das et al . () and van Landeghem () found evidence of experience effects in European panel studies, including declining self‐reported life satisfaction.…”

Third Person Effects in Interview Responses on Life Satisfaction

“…These subjective data have been used in empirical investigations without much concern until recently when the debate on the validity of satisfaction data has resumed. While most of early contributions discussing potential response artefacts in the reporting of individual well-being come from sociologists and psychologists, economists in particular have revived the issue in recent times (see, e.g., Conti / Pudney, 2011;Chadi, 2012;Dolan / Kavetsos, 2012;Frijters / Beatton, 2012;Kassenboehmer / Haisken-DeNew, 2012;van Landeghem, 2012).…”

Do Changes in Regulation Affect Temporary Agency Workers’ Job Satisfaction?

“…Finally, we include the variable "SOEP frequency," which indicates how many times the worker has previously answered the questionnaire. This is important because there is evidence that mean satisfaction scores vary over time due to panel conditioning and panel attrition (Warren and Halpern-Manners 2012;Wooden and Li 2014;Van Landeghem 2012). Table 2 compares the average socioeconomic characteristics of the treatment and control group over all person-year observations.…”