One Size Does Not Fit All: Alternative Values-Based ‘Recipes’ for Life Satisfaction

Abstract

In most previous research on the determinants of Life Satisfaction (LS), there has been an implicit assumption that ‘one size fits all’. That is, it has usually been assumed that the covariates of LS are the same for everyone, or at least everyone in the Western world. In this paper, using data from the long-running German Socio-Economic Panel (1984-), we estimate statistical models to assess the effects of commitment to differing personal values on LS. The personal values in question are: traditional family values, pro-social altruistic values and materialistic (money and career) values. These values are linked to differing behavioural choices with substantial effects on domain satisfaction..