Determinants of Interdependent Happiness Focusing on the Role of Social Capital: Empirical Insight From Japan¹

Abstract

This study aimed to identify determinants of interdependent happiness (IH), with a focus on social capital resources. Using data from a population survey conducted in Sapporo, Japan, we ran hierarchical regressions to compare determinants of IH with determinants of a standard measure of subjective well-being (SWB), the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). While we confirmed the relationships of control variables generally associated with SWB also for IH, we found several decisive differences between the two well-being measures regarding social capital. For IH, an overall larger share of variance was predicted by social capital resources than for SWLS. IH is most strongly affected by social affiliation, which measures a sense of belonging to society, followed by interpersonal reliance, and social support. Reciprocal norms and institutional reliance predicted only IH, but not SWLS. Overall, our results imply that IH captures aspects of well-being related to social capital not fully covered by standard measures of SWB. Thus, for societies in which the cultural construal of happiness is more inclined to IH, the specific importance of social capital resources for SWB might be underestimated when relying solely on standard measures of well-being.

Editorial: Culture and Health

“…Each of the next two papers in the series measures interdependent happiness using the Interdependent Happiness Scale (IHS) developed by Hitokoto and Uchida (2015). In the article by Hommerich et al (2022), entitled "Determinants of Interdependent Happiness Focusing on the Role of Social Capital: Empirical Insight From Japan," the authors focused on the relationship between social capital and interdependent happiness (IH). Using data from a large survey conducted in Sapporo, Japan, the authors compared IH with Diener et al's (1985) Satisfaction With Life Scale.…”

Editorial for the Special Issue: Frontiers of Macro to Micro Regional Studies With Big Theory and Data Science

“…Such an awareness can lead to the development of prosocial motivation that seeks to contribute to the community. In fact, data shows that communities with high levels of subjective well-being have high levels of community trust (e.g., Fukushima et al, 2021;Hommerich et al, 2022) and prosociality toward the community and the next generation. In order to achieve such well-being, it is important to be psychologically "open" to involving a diverse range of people in the community.…”