The Effect of Fear of Crime and Crime Victimization on Subjective Well-Being in Africa
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined how fear of crime and crime victimization affect the well-being of people in Africa using data from the Round 4 of the Afrobarometer Surveys conducted in 20 countries.
Abstract: A relatively limited number of studies have examined the effect of fear of crime and crime victimization on subjective well-being. This paper examines how fear of crime and crime victimization affect the well-being of people in Africa using data from the Round 4 of the Afrobarometer Surveys conducted in 20 countries. Consistent with the findings of previous studies, results from ordered probit and OLS regressions indicate that, each of fear of crime, theft victimization, and physical assault negatively influences well-being. In addition, the paper compares men and women on the basis of these effects, and finds that while fear of crime and theft victimization are significantly correlated with the well-being of women, neither has an effect on the well-being of men. However, physical assault significantly diminishes well-being for both men and women. The paper recommends that African governments pursue public policies that would improve labor market conditions, as lower unemployment could reduce crime, and increase well-being.
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TL;DR: As an example of how the current "war on terrorism" could generate a durable civic renewal, Putnam points to the burst in civic practices that occurred during and after World War II, which he says "permanently marked" the generation that lived through it and had a "terrific effect on American public life over the last half-century."
Abstract: The present historical moment may seem a particularly inopportune time to review Bowling Alone, Robert Putnam's latest exploration of civic decline in America. After all, the outpouring of volunteerism, solidarity, patriotism, and self-sacrifice displayed by Americans in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks appears to fly in the face of Putnam's central argument: that \"social capital\" -defined as \"social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them\" (p. 19)'has declined to dangerously low levels in America over the last three decades. However, Putnam is not fazed in the least by the recent effusion of solidarity. Quite the contrary, he sees in it the potential to \"reverse what has been a 30to 40-year steady decline in most measures of connectedness or community.\"' As an example of how the current \"war on terrorism\" could generate a durable civic renewal, Putnam points to the burst in civic practices that occurred during and after World War II, which he says \"permanently marked\" the generation that lived through it and had a \"terrific effect on American public life over the last half-century.\" 3 If Americans can follow this example and channel their current civic
5,309 citations
Posted Content•
TL;DR: This paper revisited the findings from recent cross-country studies on the institutions-happiness association and found that the conclusions reached by previous studies are fairly sensitive to the specific measure of "happiness" used.
Abstract: A long tradition in economics explores the association between the quality of formal institutions and economic performance. The literature on the relationship between such institutions and happiness is, however, rather limited. In this paper, we revisit the findings from recent cross-country studies on the institutions-happiness association. Our findings suggest that the conclusions reached by previous studies are fairly sensitive to the specific measure of ‘happiness’ used. In addition, the results indicate that the welfare effects of policies may differ across phases of a country’s economic development. This bears important policy implications which we discuss in the concluding section of the paper.
232 citations
TL;DR: The U-shape of the curve is forcefully confirmed, with an age minimum, or nadir, in midlife around age 50 in separate analyses for developing and advanced countries as well as for the continent of Africa.
Abstract: A large empirical literature has debated the existence of a U-shaped happiness-age curve. This paper re-examines the relationship between various measures of well-being and age in 145 countries, including 109 developing countries, controlling for education and marital and labor force status, among others, on samples of individuals under the age of 70. The U-shape of the curve is forcefully confirmed, with an age minimum, or nadir, in midlife around age 50 in separate analyses for developing and advanced countries as well as for the continent of Africa. The happiness curve seems to be everywhere. While panel data are largely unavailable for this issue, and the findings using such data largely confirm the cross-section results, the paper discusses insights on why cohort effects do not drive the findings. I find the age of the minima has risen over time in Europe and the USA.
116 citations
Cites methods from "The Effect of Fear of Crime and Cri..."
...Sulemana (2015a) in a study of the impact of crime on well-being in Africa used data from the 4th sweep of the Afro Barometer for 2008....
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...Deutsch et al. (2016) used this variable from the 2008 Afro Barometer as did Pokimica et al. (2012) and Sulemana (2015b) in their studies of well-being in Ghana....
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TL;DR: The authors found evidence of a well-being U-shape in age in one hundred and thirty-two countries, including ninety-five developing countries, controlling for education, marital and labor force status.
Abstract: I draw systematic comparisons across 109 data files and 132 countries of the relationship between well-being, variously defined, and age. I produce 444 significant country estimates with controls, so these are ceteris paribus effects, and find evidence of a well-being U-shape in age in one hundred and thirty-two countries, including ninety-five developing countries, controlling for education, marital and labor force status. I also frequently find it without any controls at all. There is additional evidence from an array of attitudinal questions that were worded slightly differently than standard happiness or life satisfaction questions such as satisfaction with an individual's financial situation. Averaging across the 257 individual country estimates from developing countries gives an age minimum of 48.2 for well-being and doing the same across the 187 country estimates for advanced countries gives a similar minimum of 47.2. The happiness curve is everywhere.
Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.
84 citations
Cites methods from "The Effect of Fear of Crime and Cri..."
...It was used by Sulemana, Doabil and Anarfo (2019) for a study of well-being in Sub-Saharan Africa. They justified its use arguing that "the question taps into the individual’s evaluations of their life we used this construct as a suitable measure of subjective wellbeing." The authors argued that "many other studies have constructed well-being measures in the same way," which turns out to be correct. Deutsch et al (2016) used this variable from the 2008 Afro Barometer as did Pokimica et al (2012) and Sulemana (2015b) in their studies of well-being in Ghana....
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...It was used by Sulemana, Doabil and Anarfo (2019) for a study of well-being in Sub-Saharan Africa....
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...It was used by Sulemana, Doabil and Anarfo (2019) for a study of well-being in Sub-Saharan Africa. They justified its use arguing that "the question taps into the individual’s evaluations of their life we used this construct as a suitable measure of subjective wellbeing." The authors argued that "many other studies have constructed well-being measures in the same way," which turns out to be correct. Deutsch et al (2016) used this variable from the 2008 Afro Barometer as did Pokimica et al (2012) and Sulemana (2015b) in their studies of well-being in Ghana. Sulemana (2015a) in a study of the impact of crime on wellbeing in Africa used data from the 4th sweep of the Afro Barometer for 2008....
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...It was used by Sulemana, Doabil and Anarfo (2019) for a study of well-being in Sub-Saharan Africa. They justified its use arguing that "the question taps into the individual’s evaluations of their life we used this construct as a suitable measure of subjective wellbeing." The authors argued that "many other studies have constructed well-being measures in the same way," which turns out to be correct. Deutsch et al (2016) used this variable from the 2008 Afro Barometer as did Pokimica et al (2012) and Sulemana (2015b) in their studies of well-being in Ghana. Sulemana (2015a) in a study of the impact of crime on wellbeing in Africa used data from the 4th sweep of the Afro Barometer for 2008. Sulemana et al (2017) used this measure with the Afro Barometer data in their study of the relationship between corruption and well-being in Africa....
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TL;DR: Wang et al. as discussed by the authors examined the relationship between happiness, crime victimization and neighborhood safety in China and found that being a victim of crime and having an acquaintance who is a victim, have a negative effect on happiness, such that they are returned to the same position as if they had not been victimized.
39 citations
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01 Jan 2000TL;DR: Putnam as mentioned in this paper showed that changes in work, family structure, age, suburban life, television, computers, women's roles and other factors are isolating Americans from each other in a trend whose reflection can clearly be seen in British society.
Abstract: BOWLING ALONE warns Americans that their stock of "social capital", the very fabric of their connections with each other, has been accelerating down. Putnam describes the resulting impoverishment of their lives and communities. Drawing on evidence that includes nearly half a million interviews conducted over a quarter of a century in America, Putnam shows how changes in work, family structure, age, suburban life, television, computers, women's roles and other factors are isolating Americans from each other in a trend whose reflection can clearly be seen in British society. We sign 30 percent fewer petitions than we did ten years ago. Membership in organisations- from the Boy Scouts to political parties and the Church is falling. Ties with friends and relatives are fraying: we're 35 percent less likely to visit our neighbours or have dinner with our families than we were thirty years ago. We watch sport alone instead of with our friends. A century ago, American citizens' means of connecting were at a low point after decades of urbanisation, industrialisation and immigration uprooted them from families and friends. That generation demonstrated a capacity for renewal by creating the organisations that pulled Americans together. Putnam shows how we can learn from them and reinvent common enterprises that will make us secure, productive, happy and hopeful.
24,532 citations
TL;DR: In fact, some common properties are shared by practically all legislation, and these properties form the subject matter of this essay as discussed by the authors, which is the basis for this essay. But, in spite of such diversity, some commonsense properties are not shared.
Abstract: Since the turn of the twentieth century, legislation in Western countries has expanded rapidly to reverse the brief dominance of laissez faire during the nineteenth century. The state no longer merely protects against violations of person and property through murder, rape, or burglary but also restricts ‘discrimination’ against certain minorities, collusive business arrangements, ‘jaywalking’, travel, the materials used in construction, and thousands of other activities. The activities restricted not only are numerous but also range widely, affecting persons in very different pursuits and of diverse social backgrounds, education levels, ages, races, etc. Moreover, the likelihood that an offender will be discovered and convicted and the nature and extent of punishments differ greatly from person to person and activity to activity. Yet, in spite of such diversity, some common properties are shared by practically all legislation, and these properties form the subject matter of this essay.
9,613 citations
TL;DR: Representative selection of respondents, naturalistic experience sampling measures, and other methodological refinements are now used to study subjective well-being and could be used to produce national indicators of happiness.
Abstract: One area of positive psychology analyzes subjective well-being (SWB), people's cognitive and affective evaluations of their lives. Progress has been made in understanding the components of SWB, the importance of adaptation and goals to feelings of well-being, the temperament underpinnings of SWB, and the cultural influences on well-being. Representative selection of respondents, naturalistic experience sampling measures, and other methodological refinements are now used to study SWB and could be used to produce national indicators of happiness.
5,508 citations
"The Effect of Fear of Crime and Cri..." refers background in this paper
...Moreover, SWB refers to ‘‘people’s cognitive and affective evaluations of their lives’’ (Diener 2000)....
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TL;DR: As an example of how the current "war on terrorism" could generate a durable civic renewal, Putnam points to the burst in civic practices that occurred during and after World War II, which he says "permanently marked" the generation that lived through it and had a "terrific effect on American public life over the last half-century."
Abstract: The present historical moment may seem a particularly inopportune time to review Bowling Alone, Robert Putnam's latest exploration of civic decline in America. After all, the outpouring of volunteerism, solidarity, patriotism, and self-sacrifice displayed by Americans in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks appears to fly in the face of Putnam's central argument: that \"social capital\" -defined as \"social networks and the norms of reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them\" (p. 19)'has declined to dangerously low levels in America over the last three decades. However, Putnam is not fazed in the least by the recent effusion of solidarity. Quite the contrary, he sees in it the potential to \"reverse what has been a 30to 40-year steady decline in most measures of connectedness or community.\"' As an example of how the current \"war on terrorism\" could generate a durable civic renewal, Putnam points to the burst in civic practices that occurred during and after World War II, which he says \"permanently marked\" the generation that lived through it and had a \"terrific effect on American public life over the last half-century.\" 3 If Americans can follow this example and channel their current civic
5,309 citations
"The Effect of Fear of Crime and Cri..." refers background in this paper
...Participation in voluntary organizations indicates social interconnectedness and civic engagement (Putnam 2000; Portela et al. 2013)....
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