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Marching toward a Harmonious Society: Happiness, Regime Satisfaction, and Government Performance in Contemporary Urban China
Author(s) -
Lou Diqing
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
asian politics and policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.193
H-Index - 12
eISSN - 1943-0787
pISSN - 1943-0779
DOI - 10.1111/j.1943-0787.2009.01137.x
Subject(s) - happiness , prosperity , china , harmonious society , government (linguistics) , life satisfaction , subjective well being , economic growth , empirical research , political science , economics , development economics , psychology , social psychology , law , linguistics , philosophy , epistemology
This study examined the happiness of citizens in urban China. Empirical measurements were made of the relationship of reported happiness to economic variables, as well as to citizens' satisfaction with government policies. Employing the 2002 Asian Barometer Survey and the Amelia statistical software package, I found that happiness is strongly correlated both to absolute economic conditions and to relative economic status. Furthermore, citizens who perceived government policies as being responsive to their needs were more likely to report a high level of personal well‐being. This empirical analysis confirms the direction of Chinese leader Hu Jintao's development strategy, which seeks to promote widespread economic prosperity among Chinese citizens. The study results indicate that a healthy and balanced economy is essential in improving urban happiness in China. Based on these results, I argue that the Chinese government can further improve citizen happiness by providing ample employment opportunities and promoting progressive housing policies.