Theory and methods in China's population policy]

Before 1949, China's population development was noted for its high birth rate, high death rate, and low natural growth rate. After 1949, the death rate showed a large-scale decline, the birth rate was maintained at a high level, and natural growth rate also remained high. Between 1949 and 1973, the natural growth rate was kept above a 2% annual rate. Since then, the need for population control has become increasingly obvious. The theory and methods of China's population policy can be summarized in the following points: (1) material production has to keep up with the pace of population growth, and that means the quantity and quality of the population have to match athe production of materials needed for life and consumption; (2) in a Socialist society, material production and population growth have to develop with well-designed plans; (3) the population question has a direct impact on social and economic development; (4) through enforcement of a national policy, cooperation from different individuals, and ideological education, family planning will gradually be accepted by the general public for the well-being of the country.     

Subjective Well-Being and Social Production Functions

Recent reviews of scientific work on subjective well-being (SWB) reveal disagreements in conceptualization, measurement, and explanation of the concept. We propose Social Production Function theory as a framework to resolve them. Social Production Function (SPF) theory integrates strengths of relevant psychological theories and economic consumer/household production theories, without their limitations (namely, tradeoffs between satisfaction of different needs are not in the first, and goals or needs are not in the second). SPF theory identifies two ultimate goals that all humans seek to optimize (physical well-being and social well-being) and five instrumental goals by which they are achieved (stimulation, comfort, status, behavioural confirmation, affection). The core notion of SPF theory is that people choose and substitute instrumental goals so as to optimize the production of their well-being, subject to constraints in available means of production. SPF theory guides research measurement and explanatory models, and it integrates features of contemporary subjective well-being theories.     

The Contextual Effects of Political Trust on Happiness: Evidence from China

Political trust is often considered as legitimacy enhancing, but whether political trust is well-being enhancing is still underexplored. Using micro data from the East Asian Social Survey 2012, this study investigates the association between province-level/aggregate political trust and individual happiness in China, and explores the role of economic development in influencing individual political trust after the period of rapid growth in 1990–2010. Results show a positive and significant contextual effect of political trust on individual happiness in China, with the endogeneity problem addressed by an instrument variables method. Currently in China, it is a higher provincial rate of GDP growth rather than GDP per capita that predicts a higher level of political trust. Economic growth still significantly reinforces the level of individual political trust and even helps to raise individual political trust among economically disadvantaged populations. The “critical citizens” phenomenon has not yet grown into a nationwide trend. Since the positive contextual effect of political trust on individual subjective well-being, policy makers are encouraged to maintain the stock of political trust through good governance.     

Determinants of out-migration in rural China: effects of payments for ecosystem services

Rural-to-urban migration has been a hallmark of economic development in China and other developing countries and can have profound socio-economic and ecological implications. This study seeks to understand the impacts on this migration of two large payments for ecosystem services (PES) programs implemented by the Chinese Government: the Conversion of Cropland to Forest Program (CCFP) and the Ecological Welfare Forest Program (EWFP). The primary goal of these PES programs is environmental conservation with poverty alleviation as the secondary goal. We use a full model of the factors affecting rural out-migration at the individual, household, and community levels to investigate how these PES programs have influenced out-migration in a mountainous rural area of Anhui, China. Results show that the CCFP facilitates out-migration, while the EWFP overall discourages it, thereby somewhat offsetting the effects of the CCFP. Out-migration is also shown to be affected by a number of other individual, household, and community characteristics. The results are useful for designing concurrent PES programs in the future aiming at both environmental conservation and livelihood improvement in not only China but also other developing countries.     

Using Capabilities as an Alternative Indicator for Well-being

This paper examines the potential of self-reported information on capabilities as an alternative indicator and aggregator for well-being. We survey a population of 18 year old first-year Bachelor students in applied economics and business studies and demonstrate a way in which capabilities can be measured on the level of life domains as well as on the general level of ‘life as a whole’. The data confirm the theoretical hypothesis that the set of capabilities is larger than the achieved functionings. We investigate and compare which variables influence general capabilities and satisfaction with life. We find that both concepts are equally depending on the ‘mood of the day’. On the other hand, we find some diverging influences that call for a debate on the (policy) relevance of different well-being concepts and their determining variables. The capabilities interpretation of well-being points to an important role of the parents (especially when they are divorced or rather strict) while the information on satisfaction is more related to personal and situational characteristics (such as not being single or the number of family visits).     

Economic Theory and Subjective Well-being: Mexico

Several studies have been conducted on the topic of well-being. Most of them, however, have been done in industrialized countries where income is distributed relatively more equitatively and the population tends to be more homogeneous. This paper studies the relationship between subjective and economic well-being in Mexico, a country where the economic differences among the population are more clearly marked.

According to the economic definition of well-being, higher levels of income are associated with higher levels of well-being through greater levels of material consumption. Taking into consideration this definition, it is worth asking just how important income is for an individual's happiness?Existing studies in psychology have found a positive correlation between economic well-being (socioeconomic status) and subjective well-being (happiness). However, this positive relationship is weak and a large percentage of human happiness remains unexplained.

Although the mentioned studies make a good approximation of the existing relationship between income and happiness, the characteristics or specification of the function that generates the relationship between these two variables is often assumed to be linear and positive. The main objective of this paper is to investigate further the relationship between subjective and economic well-being. In this study different specifications and approaches are used to approximate the relationship between these variables.

An empirical analysis is made from the results of a survey conducted in two Mexican cities. The investigation studies the impact of demographic, social, and economic variables on subjective well-being in Mexico. Several hypotheses are tested to identify the relationship between household income and individual well-being. It is found that income does not have a strong influence on neither well-being nor on the probability of happiness. However, people tend to overstress the impact that additional income would have on their subjective well-being. This fact could explain the importance that people place on increasing their income level, and it could possibly explain the relative sense of dissatisfaction once a higher income level is achieved.

The relationship between income and the sense of basic need satisfaction is also explored. A main assumption in economic theory suggests the existence of a direct relationship between these variables; however, empirical results show this relationship to be extremely weak. Results indicate that subjective well-being is positively related to the sense of basic need satisfaction but not to income.

     

Is it Pleasure or Health from Leisure that We Benefit from Most? An Analysis of Well-Being Alternatives and Implications for Policy

International policy now constantly advocates a need for populations to engage in more physical activity to promote health and to reduce society’s health care costs. Such policy has developed guidelines on recommended levels and intensity of physical activity and implicitly equates health with well-being. It is assumed that individual, and hence social welfare will be enhanced if the activity guidelines are met. This paper challenges that claim and raises questions for public policy priorities. Using an instrumental variable analysis to value the well-being from active leisure, it is shown that the well-being experienced from active leisure that is not of a recommended intensity to generate health benefits, perhaps due to its social, recreational or fun purpose, has a higher value of well-being than active leisure that does meet the guidelines. This suggests rethinking the motivation and foundation of existing policy and perhaps a realignment of priorities towards activity that has a greater contribution to social welfare through its intrinsic fun and possibly social interaction.     

An economic model of subjective well-being: Integrating economic and psychological theories

This paper compares theories of well-being/welfare in economics and psychology. It suggests that economists have an appropriate conceptual framework but the wrong variables for explaining well-being, whereas psychologists have a confusing framework but appropriate variables. A framework derived from “the new home economics” (Becker, 1965, 1973, 1977; Lancaster, 1966; Justeret al., 1985; Pollak and Wachter, 1975), and especially from the work of F. Thomas Juster and his colleagues, is proposed for the purpose of integrating economic and psychological variables into an account of human well-being. Essentially the framework calls for investigation of the impact of a household's economic and psychological stocks (capital account) on the psychic income flows (current account) and overall well-being of its members. It is suggested that this framework is valuable for clarifying individual and household decisions as well as for explaining variance in well-being. Empirical assessment of existing frameworks and an illustration of how the proposed framework could be implemented are made with data drawn from a 5-wave Australian Quality of Life Panel Survey.     

Migration policy for whom? A case study of the political context of migration in Sweden

The current debate on Swedish policy for rural-urban migration involves disagreements concerning its economic and social impact on the migrant. From one point of view, rural-urban movement is seen as "economically rational": a natural, efficient adaptation of the population to a centralized economy. Migrant economic and social betterment is seen to follow from such a population movement. Another point of view questions the assumed economic and social benefits of a city movement. Instead, the policy is accused of not taking human social and economic needs into account. It argues that migration policy needs to be decentralized, allowing migrants to preserve social ties to home areas.Both viewpoints are examined from the subjective perspective of the migrant. A pattern of intensive interviews were conducted with people who have moved to Stockholm from a village north of the city as well as with others who had returned to their village after a stay in Stockholm.The case study revealed that moves were not made for economic reasons alone, but the the motivation for the structure of opportunity surrounding the move was complex. Migrants were seeking to attain differing interests, many of which were associated with life-cycle situations such as leaving school and marrying. Migration instead becomes one of several means by which individuals search for well-being and a desirable "quality of life." There is no necessary correspondence between the set of moves which will maximize labor-market efficiency and set of moves which will maximize individual satisfactions.Sharlene J. Hesse is affiliated with the Department of Sociology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02167. Requests for reprints should be directed to her.     

Is Personality Fixed? Personality Changes as Much as “Variable” Economic Factors and More Strongly Predicts Changes to Life Satisfaction

Personality is the strongest and most consistent cross-sectional predictor of high subjective well-being. Less predictive economic factors, such as higher income or improved job status, are often the focus of applied subjective well-being research due to a perception that they can change whereas personality cannot. As such there has been limited investigation into personality change and how such changes might bring about higher well-being. In a longitudinal analysis of 8625 individuals we examine Big Five personality measures at two time points to determine whether an individual’s personality changes and also the extent to which such changes in personality can predict changes in life satisfaction. We find that personality changes at least as much as economic factors and relates much more strongly to changes in life satisfaction. Our results therefore suggest that personality can change and that such change is important and meaningful. Our findings may help inform policy debate over how best to help individuals and nations improve their well-being.     

The Multiple Uses of Subjective Well-Being Indicators

There are barriers to the significant use of subjective well-being indicators in policy making. These barriers can be overcome, but this will take a co-ordinated effort. These indicators can play multiple roles. They can stimulate public debate, inform the development of formal or informal economic models, influence the choice of other indicators more directly related to policy outcomes, draw attention to important issues which might otherwise be ignored, input into a new form of cost benefit analysis, be used in before and after appraisal, and be used by the public to hold politicians to account. Subjective indicators are better placed to play these roles than either dashboards or indexes based on objective indicators. It is not clear whether they will play these roles and two scenarios are possible. In the first, the relatively marginal role the indicators are beginning to play in policy will be expand, but they will not move centre stage, or in any way challenge existing headline indicators such as gross domestic product. In the second, a set of tools is developed which politicians and journalists find useful, both for communicating and for developing their ideas. In this scenario, the ideas implicit in subjective well-being indicators find their way into public debate and thus drive policy change. As a result they do challenge existing headline indicators.     

The Economic Effects of Immigration into the United Kingdom

This article is concerned with the economic effects of immigration. The emphasis is on Britain, but extensive material is also provided on other countries. Since 1997 a new British immigration policy has displaced previous policy aims, which were focused on minimizing settlement. Large-scale immigration is now seen as essential for Britain's economic well-being, and measures have been introduced to increase inflows. The benefits claimed include fiscal advantages, increased prosperity, a ready supply of labor, and improvements to the age structure. Fears that large-scale immigration might damage the interests of unskilled workers are discounted. This article examines these claims. It concludes that the economic consequences of large-scale immigration are mostly minor, negative, or transient, that the interests of more vulnerable sections of the domestic population may well be damaged, and that any economic benefits are unlikely to bear comparison with immigration's probable substantial and permanent demographic and environmental impact. Our claims are in line with those from other developed countries.     

A Comparison of the Well-Being of Agricultural and Non Agricultural Households Using a Multicriterial Approach

The territorial approach of rural development requires taking into account economic, social and environmental features. Therefore, among the goals of the rural development policy the well-being of the target population cannot be disregarded. However, well-being is a multidimensional phenomenon and its measure could be complicated since many indicators (with different scale, units of measure, burden, trends) have to be estimated and analyzed. With a composite indicator which summarizes a bulk of information this concern can be overcome. A multicriteria approach of aggregation is proposed because cardinal aggregation involving in undesirable compensatory property.     

The integration and coordination of strategies for population growth and economic development]

Strategies on population growth are the guiding principles for population reproduction and activity. A strategy for economic development is the fundamental policy directing all the economic activities of the nation. These 2 strategies are closely related and support each other. They share some common grounds: 1) with a large population and a high percentage of the population being peasant, the labor productivity remains rather low, and population pressure on the economy is intense; 2) when a country has large territory and rich natural resources, the average arable land for each individual is still not much, and some available resources for each individual are also limited; and 3) the distribution of the population is out of balance. The areas with a higher population density receive more pressure on their economy. This situation explains the need to improve the population distribution. Labor resources should match reasonable with natural resources in order to reduce the pressure on areas with a high population density. Because of the labor's low level professional skill and poor management, modernized constructions have met with serious troubles. Moreover, the traditional view on population and population growth also needs correction. In order to integrate and coordinate these 2 strategies, one needs to understand correctly the connection between the two, and also understand the effects of the economy on the population. In the 2nd step, we need to pay attention to how to control the size of population and improve quality in order to match modernized production patterns. The balance between the two should be achieved with constant efforts. In population growth strategy, efforts are needed to limit quantity, improve quality, adjust the population structure, and redesign the geographical distribution of the population. In the economic development strategy, efforts are needed to promote economic effectiveness, a balanced development and a sustained growth for the national economy, in order to increase industrial and agricultural production and provide more income for each individual.     

Some fundamental problems concerning the relationship between population growth and economic development]

The population growth rate is closely related to the quality of economic life, available funds for individual and social consumption, national income to be used for reproduction, and the labor employment situation. Since liberation, socialism has not been able to show its superiority, mainly because of China's large population figure, low economic productivity, low national income, and poor management in the relationship between consumption and accumulation. In order to solve these problems, we need to adequately control the pace of the population growth and match the rate of population growth with the pace of economic development. A way to increase national income is through saving and avoiding unnecessary waste. Social expenditures on education, culture, science, health and medical care, social welfare, and investment in the promotion of people's wisdom should all be increased. Meanwhile, the living standard of the people needs to be raised, and capital accumulation should also be managed so that funds will be available for industrial and economic enterprises. Existing inefficient production enterprises should be properly reorganized so that full employment may be achieved. In this way, the national economy will have more prosperity, and the people will benefit more from the Socialist policy.     

Disasters,migrations, and the unintended consequences of urbanization: What’s the harm in getting out of harm’s way?

Under many circumstances, the global rural-to-urban migration trend may be increasingly adopted as a short-term coping strategy to shifting ecologies and natural disasters. While offering certain benefits from macro-level economic and public health perspectives, these migrations may also have unintended psychological consequences that are not easily understood through traditional disaster studies or cost–benefit analyses. If the goal of disaster and climate change research is to promote successful adaptation, then the long-term psychological well-being of people who have survived disaster and either adapted in situ or migrated into urban environments, is paramount. This article integrates research on disasters and climate change-induced migration with emerging perspectives from environmental psychology and the psychology of natural disasters to consider the potential costs of particular migration scenarios. We apply this analysis to the case of Shishmaref, Alaska, a rural Iñupiat community on the northwest coast of Alaska facing habitual flooding disasters linked to climate change. Findings from Shishmaref illustrate the cultural vitality of subsistence landscapes and the potential health risks of compromised human–ecological relationships due to migration and/or displacement. Recommendations for policy makers and researchers are offered for promoting long-term well-being among affected individuals and communities.     

COMBINING SOCIAL,ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS TO MEASURE SUSTAINABLE HUMAN WELL-BEING

In this paper an attempt is made to illustrate some ways in which social, economic and environmental indicators can be combined to tell a coherent story about the sustainability of human well-being. Using examples from the fields of health, the fishing industry and energy, it is argued that one's success at constructing a single comprehensive system of indicators of human well-being will always be limited by one's particular point of departure from social, economic or environmental indicators. If that is indeed the case, then it would be helpful for researchers to abandon attempts to construct single comprehensive utopian systems in favour of agreed upon lists of important goals, indicators and monitoring procedures that can be used to implement progressive social change.     

Does Intergenerational Educational Mobility Shape the Well-Being of Young Europeans? Evidence from the European Social Survey

The level of accessibility to basic services is an important issue because it is closely related to social inclusion and social capital, key aspects of societal well-being. There is a large and growing literature on access to health care in an era of dwindling public resources due to recent economic downturns. Health care is an essential service, but it is not the only basic service. The literature on access to basic services including, but not limited to, health care is relatively small. The paper aims at contributing to the literature by providing a new index to measure and monitor household accessibility to basic services. A study of Italian regions is presented. It is shown that northern regions have more accessible basic services than central, southern and island regions. A longitudinal comparison has been performed. The results are very worrying because show that policy makers have failed in reducing regional (and in particular north–south) disparities in basic service accessibility. Measuring and monitoring the level of accessibility is central for an adequate provision of basic services and for exploring how the delivery of basic services in the most problematic regions can be improved.     

The Measurement of Economic, Social and Environmental Performance of Countries: A Novel Approach

This paper presents a new analytical framework for assessing spatial disparities among countries. It takes for granted that the analysis of a country’s performance cannot be limited solely to either economic or social factors. The aim of the paper is to combine relevant economic and ‘non-economic’ (mainly social) aspects of a country’s performance in an integrated logical framework. Based on this idea, a structural simultaneous equation model will be presented and estimated in order to explore the direction of the causal relationship between economic and non-economic aspects of a country’s performance. Furthermore, an exploration of the trajectory that each country has registered over time along a virtuous path will be offered. By means of a matrix persistency/transition analysis, the countries will be classified in clusters of good/bad performance. One of the most interesting conclusions concerns the inability of most countries to turn the higher educational skills of the population into greater economic performance over time. In addition, our analysis also shows that making an accurate picture record and formulating related policy aiming at environmental care is highly desirable. It is surprising that only a few countries have reached a favourable economic and environmental performance simultaneously.     

Feelings of power in a corporate society

One aspect of the well-being of individuals in society is the extent to which they feel that they have the power to affect their well-being within the society. Coleman (1973b) specifies such a feeling of power as a function of the ability to control events in those arenas of action which are of high interest to the individual. In advanced societies, control of resources has shifted into the hands of corporate actors so that those arenas of action which are of interest to corporate actors are dominatd by corporate actors rather than individual persons. The following proposition can therefore be deduced: persons interested in the arenas of action of interest to corporate actors will have lower feelings of power over their well-being than will persons predominantly interested in arenas of action of little or no interest to corporate actors. Using a national probability sample of households in the United States, this proposition is assessed both directly and after controlling for confounding influences of exogenous concepts. The proposition can be rejected as erroneous unless respondent differences in socioeconomic states are controlled. Respondent differences in major demographic characteristics do not greatly affect the proposition.