The relationship between gender and life satisfaction: analysis across demographic groups and global regions

Abstract

This study sought to examine gender differences in life satisfaction globally and across demographic groups. The grouping variables included age, global region, marital status, employment status, education, and income. A sample of 1,801,417 participants across 166 countries was drawn from the Gallup World Poll. Given the hierarchical nature of the data, multi-level modeling was used for data analysis. Gender differences in life satisfaction were found to be significant yet small. Women reported higher levels of life satisfaction than men across all income, education, and employment groups. The direction of gender differences in life satisfaction was inconsistent across age and regional group..