What Leads Subjective Well-Being to Change Throughout Adolescence? An Exploration of Potential Factors

Abstract

This article presents the results of a one-year follow-up study on a sample of 940 adolescents, in which participants have been classified according to the changes they have experienced in their subjective well-being (SWB), measured by means of two different single-item scales (overall life satisfaction -OLSand happiness overall -HOL). A range of multinomial logistic regression models were employed to determine which factors lead to such differences. Results show that when OLS is considered, the factor most contributing to an increase in SWB is family self-concept, while the one most contributing to its decrease is satisfaction with the family. When HOL is taken as the dependent variable, the most important factor in predicting an increase in SWB is being valued in the future according to the amount of money I have, with life optimism being the most important factor in predicting its decrease. Only three indicators (the importance of being valued in the future according to the amount of money I have, feeling happy at home and satisfaction with myself) contribute to explaining both boys' and girls' models when OLS is taken as the dependent variable, while only one indicator (satisfaction with standard of living) is shared in both boys' and girls' models when HOL is the dependent variable. The resulting implications for adolescent SWB are discussed.

Changes in Self‐Reported Well‐Being: A Follow‐Up Study of Children Aged 12–14 in Algeria

“…Nonetheless, unlike González‐Carrasco, Casas, Vinas, et al. (), satisfaction with family and friends at one point in time do not have much apparent effect in predicting SWB at a later point in time in Algeria.…”

“…Using the same sample González‐Carrasco, Casas, Vinas, et al. () observed that the decrease of SWB (using a single‐time measure of overall life satisfaction) in a 1 year period was shared by 40.2% of the children in the sample (41.5% of the boys and 39.2% of the girls); however, 38.3% remained with the same scores and 21.5% increased their SWB over the same time period. They also found evidence of differences in the factors that contributed to increases and decreases in SWB.…”

Subjective Well‐Being Decreasing With Age: New Research on Children Over 8

“…In another study using the same sample (González‐Carrasco, Casas, Viñas, et al., ) and the single‐item OLS scale, these authors observed a decrease in SWB over 1 year (from the first to the second data collection) among 40.2% of the children in the sample (41.5% of the boys and 39.2% of the girls); however, 38.3% retained the same scores and 21.5% increased their SWB over the year. Last but not least, these authors demonstrated that patterns in the SWB decreasing‐with‐age tendency differ among boys and girls.…”

The moderating role of age and gender differences in the relation between subjective well-being, psychopathology and substance use in Uruguayan adolescents

“…We expect that high levels of psychopathology and substance use will be related to low levels of SWB (Huebner et al, 2004). In addition, we expect to fi nd age and gender differences regarding SWB and its relationship with the other concepts of interest (Brann et al, 2017;Gonzalez-Carrasco et al, 2017). Our hypothesis, based on the available literature, is that the girls in our sample will present lower level of SWB in comparison with boys.…”