The literature on subjective well-being (SWB), including happiness, life satisfaction, and positive affect, is reviewed in three areas: measurement, causal factors, and theory. Psychometric data on single-item and multi-item subjective well-being scales are presented, and the measures are compared. Measuring various components of subjective well-being is discussed. In terms of causal influences, research findings on the demographic correlates of SWB are evaluated, as well as the findings on other influences such as health, social contact, activity, and personality. A number of theoretical approaches to happiness are presented and discussed: telic theories, associationistic models, activity theories, judgment approaches, and top-down versus bottom-up conceptions.

Subjective Well-Being

https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2651&context=soss_research

Subjective Well-being

An examination of the literature on conflict between work and family roles suggests that work-family conflict exists when: (a) time devoted to the requirements of one role makes it difficult to fulfill requirements of another; (b) strain from participation in one role makes it difficult to fulfill requirements of another; and (c) specific behaviors required by one role make it difficult to fulfill the requirements of another. A model of work-family conflict is proposed, and a series of research propositions is presented.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/258214.pdf

Sources of Conflict Between Work and Family Roles

Well-being : the foundations of hedonic psychology

The Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) was developed to assess satisfaction with the respondent’s life as a whole. The scale does not assess satisfaction with life domains such as health or ﬁnances but allows subjects to integrate and weight these domains in whatever way they choose. Normative data are presented for the scale, which shows good convergent validity with other scales and with other types of assessments of subjective well-being. Life satisfaction as assessed by the SWLS shows a degree of temporal stability (e.g., 0.54 for 4 years), yet the SWLS has shown sufﬁcient sensitivity to be potentially valuable to detect change in life satisfaction during the course of clinical intervention. Further, the scale shows discriminant validity from emotional well-being measures. The SWLS is recommended as a complement to scales that focus on psychopathology or emotional well-being because it assesses an individuals’ conscious evaluative judgment of his or her life by using the person’s own criteria.

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm/SSRN_ID2199194_code1909335.pdf?abstractid=2199194&mirid=1

Review of the Satisfaction with Life Scale

A field study assessed disturbance by office noise in relation to environmental satisfaction, job satisfaction, and jot performance ratings among 2,391 employees at 58 sites before and/or after off...

Office noise, satisfaction, and performance.

From additive models of overall quality of life, two hypotheses were derived about the relationships among work—family conflict, work—leisure conflict, job satisfaction, family satisfaction, leisure satisfaction and global life satisfaction. In supporting these two hypotheses, path analyses of survey data from a national probability sample of United States workers (n = 823) showed: (1) the direct paths between work—nonwork conflict and global life satisfaction were nonsignificant; and (2) the indirect paths between work—nonwork conflict and global life satisfaction, which are mediated by job satisfaction and nonwork satisfaction, were all significant. Further analyses indicated that, in general, the magnitude of these path coefficients was not significantly moderated by sociodemographic variables. Discussion considered the role of additive models as conceptual frameworks for studies concerned with the effects of work experiences on the overall quality of life.

Work—nonwork conflict and the perceived quality of life

In this paper we review empirical studies that relate aspects of work life to aspects of life outside of work. Specifically, we examine studies pertaining to two broad issues: (1) the association between social structures of the workplace (i.e., working conditions) and behaviors and attitudes of the worker toward life a way from work; and (2) the association between social structures outside the workplace (i.e., living conditions) and behaviors and attitudes toward work. We conclude that the research reviewed supports the finding that moderate correlations exist between both pairs of variables. However, further research is needed to assess the strength and direction of these relationships, and to answer basic questions about the nature of these relationships.

The Relationship Between Work and Nonwork Domains: A Review of Empirical Research

After a brief discussion of the nature and importance of work, this article reviews empirical research that relates satisfaction with work to satisfaction with life. The review covers more than 350 job-satisfaction/life-satisfaction relationships reported in 23 studies that vary widely in terms of the sample, instrumentation, and date of survey. For more than 90% of the cases, the direction of this relationship is positive; and none of the scattered negative relationships is statistically reliable. The magnitude of the reported zero-order relationship between job satisfaction and overall life satisfaction is typically modest, with correlations mostly in the mid-.30's for males and mid-.20's for females. The typical job-satisfaction/life-satisfaction correlation drops to the low teens when specific facets of life satisfaction, such as marital or leisure satisfaction, are used instead of overall life satisfaction. Discussion of these findings focuses on conceptual and methodological concerns at the more gen...

The Job-Satisfaction/ Life-Satisfaction Relationship: A Review of Empirical Research

Two hypotheses concerning the moderating effects of facet importance were derived from Locke's (1969,1976) theory of job satisfaction. Questionnaire data concerning 12 job facets were collected from 97 working college students holding diverse jobs in different organizations. Moderated regression analyses of facet satisfaction showed facet importance to be a significant moderator for 9 of the 12 job facets. As hypothesized, the relationship between facet amount and facet satisfaction was generally stronger among respondents placing high importance on the job facet than among respondents placing low importance on it. Moderated regression analyses of overall job satisfaction showed facet importance to be a nonsignificant moderator for 11 job facets. As hypothesized, the relationship between facet satisfaction and overall job satisfaction generally did not change significantly as a function of facet importance. Discussion is focused on the need to recognize when facet importance plays a moderator role and when it does not. Also discussed is the relative usefulness of seven self-report procedures for measuring facet importance.

https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/apl/76/1/31.pdf

Robert W. Rice

Papers

Office noise, satisfaction, and performance.

Work—nonwork conflict and the perceived quality of life

The Relationship Between Work and Nonwork Domains: A Review of Empirical Research

The Job-Satisfaction/ Life-Satisfaction Relationship: A Review of Empirical Research

Facet importance and job satisfaction.