Happiness and Poverty in Developing Countries: A Global Perspective

330 Pages·2013·1.939 MB·English

by  John Malcolm Dowling, Chin-Fang Yap (auth.)

Happiness and Poverty in Developing Countries
Also by John Malcolm Dowling
FUTURE PERSPECTIVES ON THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF ASIA
ASIA AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS: Challenges in a Financially
Integrated World (with Pradumna B. Rana)
SOUTH ASIA – RISING TO THE CHALLENGE OF GLOBALIZATION (with
Pradumna B. Rana)
CURRENT ISSUES IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: An Asian Perspective
(co-edited with M.G. Quibria)
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF ASIA (with Rebecca Valenzuela)
Also by John Malcolm Dowling and Yap Chin Fang
CHRONIC POVERTY IN ASIA: Causes, Consequences and Policy
MODERN DEVELOPMENTS IN BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS
Happiness and Poverty in
Developing Countries
A Global Perspective
John Malcolm Dowling
Department of Economics, University of Hawaii
Chin-Fang Yap
Palgrave
macmillan
© John Malcolm Dowling and Chin-Fang Yap 2013
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2013 978-0-230-28575-0
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First published 2013 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN
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ISBN 978-1-349-33076-8 ISBN 978-1-137-29229-2(eBook)
DOI 10.1057/9781137292292
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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13
Contents
List of Tables vi
List of Figures ix
Acknowledgments x
1 Introduction 1
2 Analysis for Asia 33
3 Analysis for Africa 125
4 Analysis for Latin America 205
5 Conclusions from the Analysis of Probit
Analysis for Asia, Africa and Latin America 273
Notes 302
Bibliography 303
Index 311
v
List of Tables
1.1 Definitions of selected WVS indicators 26
1.2 Correlations between WVS measure of happiness
and life satisfaction 29
2.1 Health indicators for Asia 34
2.2 Education indicators for Asian economies 38
2.3 P overty, income distribution and Human
Development Index (HDI) 41
2.4 A verage well-being from WVS of selected
Asian economies 44
2.5 Well-being, job and life satisfaction from Human
Development Report 46
2.6 Sample size for the Asian region by country
and poverty group 54
2.7 Overlap in poverty groups in Asia 58
2.8 Definitions of selected WVS indicators 59
2.9 Probit results for Asia – state of health 61
2.10 Probit results for Asia – income level 65
2.11 Probit results for Asia – education level 67
2.12 Differential impact of variations in health, education
and income on well-being of three poverty groups 71
2.13 Probit results for Asia – gender 72
2.14 Probit results for Asia – age 74
2.15 Probit results for Asia – age squared 76
2.16 Probit results for Asia – marital status 78
2.17 Probit results for Asia – importance of family 80
2.18 Probit results for Asia – importance of friends 82
2.19 Probit results for Asia – importance of work 86
2.20 Probit results for Asia – importance of religion 88
2.21 Probit results for Asia – trust 90
2.22 Probit results for Asia – confidence in civil services 92
2.23 Aggregated probit results for Asia 106
2.24 Effect of age on life satisfaction and well-being in Asia 115
2.25 Significance of coefficient on chance to escape
from poverty 119
2.26 Probit results for Asia – rural–urban 123
3.1 Human development 130
vi
List of Tables vii
3.2 Health indicators for Africa – life expectancy
and infant mortality 132
3.3 Education indicators for Africa – literacy
and school completion rate 137
3.4 Life satisfaction, life purpose and satisfaction 140
3.5 Average well-being from WVS of African economies 142
3.6 C orrelations between WVS measure of happiness
and life satisfaction 144
3.7 Correlations between WVS measure of happiness
and income 144
3.8 S ample size for Africa region by country
and poverty group 147
3.9 Definitions of selected WVS indicators 152
3.10 Probit results for Africa – state of health 154
3.11 Probit results for Africa – income level 156
3.12 Probit results for Africa – education level 158
3.13 S ignificant differences between poverty coefficients
and full sample coefficients in 13 African countries
for probit analysis of determinants of well-being –
scale of 1 to 10 for well-being 161
3.14 Probit results for Africa – gender 162
3.15 Probit results for Africa – age 164
3.16 Probit results for Africa – age squared 166
3.17 Probit results for Africa – marital status 168
3.18 Probit results for Africa – importance of family 170
3.19 Probit results for Africa – importance of friends 172
3.20 Probit results for Africa – importance of work 176
3.21 Probit results for Africa – importance of religion 178
3.22 Probit results for Africa – trust 180
3.23 Probit results for Africa – confidence in civil services 182
3.24 Aggregated probit results for Africa 188
3.25 Significant differences between poverty coefficients
and full sample coefficients in four African regions
for probit analysis of determinants of well-being – scale
of 1 to 10 for well-being 198
3.26 Effect of age on life satisfaction and well-being in Africa 198
3.27 Significance of coefficient on chance to escape
from poverty 201
3.28 Probit results for Africa – rural–urban 202
4.1 Human development for Latin America 206
4.2 Health indicators in Latin American countries 207
viii List of Tables
4.3 Education indicators for Latin American countries 211
4.4 Life satisfaction, life purpose and satisfaction 215
4.5 S ample size by country and poverty group
in Latin America 219
4.6 Correlations for Latin America 220
4.7 Definitions of selected WVS indicators 223
4.8 Probit results for Latin America – state of health 224
4.9 Probit results for Latin America – income level 226
4.10 Probit results for Latin America – education level 228
4.11 Significant differences between poverty coefficients
and full sample coefficients in 13 Latin American
countries for probit analysis of determinants
of well-being – scale of 1 to 10 for well-being 231
4.12 Probit results for Latin America – gender 232
4.13 Probit results for Latin America – age 234
4.14 Probit results for Latin America – age squared 236
4.15 Effect of age on life satisfaction and well-being
in Latin America 238
4.16 Probit results for Latin America – marital status 239
4.17 Probit results for Latin America – importance
of family 241
4.18 Probit results for Latin America – importance
of friends 243
4.19 Probit results for Latin America – importance of work 246
4.20 Probit results for Latin America – importance
of religion 248
4.21 Probit results for Latin America – trust 250
4.22 Probit results for Latin America – confidence
in civil services 252
4.23 Aggregated probit results for Latin America 262
4.24 Significance of coefficient on chance to escape
from poverty for Latin America 270
4.25 Probit results for Latin America – rural–urban 272
5.1 Probit analysis 274
5.2 Summary of life satisfaction and well-being
in the three regions 277
5.3 Probit results for the three regions with
interaction effects 286
List of Figures
1.1 Global estimates of life satisfaction and income 17
2.1 Well-being data from WVS and Gallup 48
2.2 Correlation between Gallup and WVS well-being
data for Asian countries 49
2.3 Life satisfaction in Asia 51
2.4 Venn diagrams for selected Asian countries 56
3.1 Life satisfaction in Africa 145
3.2 Venn diagrams for selected African countries 149
4.1 Life satisfaction in Latin America 216
4.2 Venn diagrams for selected Latin American countries 221
ix