Life Satisfaction and Subjective/Objective Socioeconomic Status in European Countries: Does Affluence Matter?

This paper addresses the links between life satisfaction, objective socioeconomic status (SES) (education, occupation, and income), and subjective status (self-perceived standing in a society’s social hierarchy). In particular, it explores cross-national variation according to countries’ wealth. Using 2012 European Social Survey (ESS) data from 28 countries, the study shows that the link between socioeconomic status and well-being is stronger in poorer countries. In the most affluent countries, by contrast, the link between objective SES and life satisfaction is fully explained by subjective perceptions of one’s standing. The association between life satisfaction and subjective status is also stronger in poorer societies. Notably, individuals who locate themselves at the top of their society’s social hierarchy enjoy similar levels of life satisfaction irrespective of where they live. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that the effect of the link between SES and well-being is moderated by subjective status. This moderating effect does not vary across societies.