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What predicts a successful life? A life-course model of well-being

Layard, R., Clark, Andrew E., Cornaglia, F., Powdthavee, N., Vernoit, J. (2014) What predicts a successful life? A life-course model of well-being. Economic Journal, 124 (580). F720-F738. ISSN 0013-0133. (doi:10.1111/ecoj.12170) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:69183)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ecoj.12170

Abstract

Policy makers who care about well-being need a recursive model of how adult life-satisfaction is predicted by childhood influences, acting both directly and (indirectly) through adult circumstances. We estimate such a model using the British Cohort Study (1970). We show that the most powerful childhood predictor of adult life-satisfaction is the child's emotional health, followed by the child's conduct. The least powerful predictor is the child's intellectual development. This may have implications for educational policy. Among adult circumstances, family income accounts for only 0.5 of the variance of life-satisfaction. Mental and physical health are much more important.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1111/ecoj.12170
Uncontrolled keywords: education policy; health status; income; quality of life; socioeconomic indicator
Subjects: H Social Sciences
Divisions: Divisions > Kent Business School - Division > Department of Leadership and Management
Depositing User: Andrew Clark
Date Deposited: 21 Sep 2018 11:19 UTC
Last Modified: 17 Aug 2022 11:02 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/69183 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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