Applying the international wellbeing index to investigate subjective wellbeing of New Zealanders with European and with Maori heritage

Abstract

The International Wellbeing Index (IWI), a global measure for investigating subjective wellbeing, consists of a Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) and a National Wellbeing Index (NWI). The index is applied to the two largest ethnic populations in New Zealand—New Zealanders with European heritage and New Zealanders with Maori heritage. Psychometric characteristics of the IWI for both subsamples compare favourably to those found in other countries. However, for both subsamples, the absolute value of reported subjective wellbeing is lower than expected. Consistent with other social indicators, New Zealanders with Maori heritage show even lower values of PWI and NWI than New Zealanders with European heritage.     

The good life for children: Do we really care about the trends?

How do we know if Australian children and young people are having a ‘good life‘? What about their lives compared to children and young people in other countries? To answer these questions, the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ARACY) produced a Report Card to compare Australian average, Indigenous Australian average, and international or Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) average for a number of measures of child and youth wellbeing. The ARACY Report Card shows that Australian results are average when compared to other OECD countries in most areas of child and youth wellbeing. Most importantly for nearly all indicators, Indigenous Australian children fare substantially less well than the Australian average and the majority of children in other countries. It is argued that community attitudes and behaviours toward children and young people, and our society's focus on wealth creation, are detrimental to children's and young people's wellbeing. The need for a better balance between economic progress and a socially and environmentally sustainable society is discussed, along with a strategy to better meet the emotional needs of children and young people.     

Reform priorities for prosperity of nations: The Legatum Index

We apply a four-stage methodology (i.e., cluster analysis, data mining, partial least square path modeling, and importance-performance analysis) to identify the critical paths to multi-dimensional prosperity of nations. Using the Legatum Prosperity Index across 142 countries as a proxy for prosperity, we find strong evidence of the positive causal mechanisms among dimensions of prosperity. This implies that individual dimensions of prosperity should not be weighted equally in designing policies that support prosperity of nations. In line with human capital theory, we find that education and the pupil to teacher ratio are the key policy drivers of prosperity enhancement.     

Pathways to happiness: From personality to social networks and perceived support

The present study attempts to incorporate individual personality into a social network account of subjective wellbeing (SWB) by proposing and testing a path model in which social relationships (egocentric social networks and perceived social support, PSS) mediate the relationship between personality and SWB. We found that network characteristics (including network size, emotional closeness, and proportion of new contacts) are related to SWB largely via the mediation of PSS. Additionally, network size and proportion of new contacts function as important mediating mechanisms linking extraversion, agreeableness and openness to PSS and SWB.     

Parental spanking and subsequent risk for child aggression in father-involved families of young children

This study examined separate and combined maternal and paternal use of spanking with children at age 3 and children's subsequent aggressive behavior at age 5. The sample was derived from a birth cohort study and included families (n = 923) in which both parents lived with the child at age 3. In this sample, 44% of 3-year-olds were spanked 2 times or more in the past month by either parent or both parents. In separate analyses, being spanked more than twice in the prior month at age 3, by either mother or father, was associated with increased child aggression at 5 years. In combined analyses, there was a dose–response association; the greatest risk for child aggression was reported when both parents spanked more than twice in the prior month (adjusted odds ratio: 2.01; [confidence interval: 1.03–3.94]). Violence prevention initiatives should target and engage mothers and fathers in anticipatory guidance efforts aimed at increasing the use of effective and non-aggressive child discipline techniques and reducing the use of spanking.     

Developing Wellbeing as a Critical Tool in Social Work Education: An Example from the Field of Learning Disability

This paper will explore how ‘wellbeing’ is used in social work education to develop a critical understanding of the current English personalisation agenda, in relation to people with ‘moderate to severe’ learning disabilities. Drawing upon a short thematic analysis of policy for Learning Disability and Social Work Education, the paper will develop the argument that social wellbeing is an important factor for critical engagement and practice with this service-user group. Based upon teaching – incorporating service user and care views, as well as current research-in-progress, Schalock's (2004) taxonomy of wellbeing is developed to focus upon three themes: friendships and relationships; community engagement and structural factors. The importance for social workers of exploring aspects of community, in its widest sense, is emphasised, contrasting with a narrower view presented in policy implementation. The application of wellbeing as a practice and analytical concept therefore provides a framework for a critically reflective and engaged practice.     

Reimagining the General Health Questionnaire as a measure of emotional wellbeing: A study of postpartum women in Malta

BackgroundPostpartum health has been subject to a focus on psychological morbidity, despite positive associations between postpartum recovery and maternal emotional wellbeing. There are currently many validated tools to measure wellbeing and related concepts, including non-psychiatric morbidity. The General Health Questionnaire, 12 items (GHQ-12) is one such instrument, widely used and validated in several languages. Its use in postpartum settings has been documented with disagreement about the instrument's utility in this population, particularly in relation to scoring method and threshold. The GHQ-12 has never been translated into Maltese. This study explored the psychometric properties of the GHQ-12 in a Maltese postpartum population to consider if the use of a different scoring method (visual analogue scale) in the GHQ-12 can determine postpartum wellbeing.MethodsOne hundred and twenty-four postpartum women recruited from one hospital in Malta completed the translated and adapted GHQ-12 as a wellbeing measure (GHQ-12(WB)) at four postpartum time points. The psychometric properties of the GHQ-12(WB) were explored using confirmatory factor analysis, discriminant and divergent validity and reliability analysis.ResultsThe GHQ-12(WB) demonstrated good divergent and known-groups validity and internal consistency. No models offered a good fit to the data. The overall consistent best-fit to the data was an eight item, two factor model (GHQ-8). Model fit improved across all models in terms of CFI at 13 weeks.ConclusionFindings generally support the reliability and validity of the Maltese version of the GHQ-12(WB). Model fit changes over time reflect the dynamic nature of postpartum recovery. Further evaluation of the GHQ-8(WB) is recommended.     

Who Lacks Support and Why? An Examination of Mothers' Personal Safety Nets

We use data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 12,140 person-waves) to identify characteristics associated with mothers' having or lacking "personal safety net" support from family and friends. We focus on characteristics that are likely to increase the importance of having support available but may also interfere with the maintenance of supportive ties: poverty, poor physical and mental health, and challenging child rearing responsibilities. By capitalizing on distinctions among these types of personal disadvantages and among types of personal safety nets (financial, housing, child care, and emotional), we help to explain why personal disadvantages are associated with weaker support. Our paper contributes to the literature emphasizing the importance of reciprocity in support relationships and introduces the idea that families that are more difficult to help will have less support available.     

"Couples as Partners and Parents over Children's Early Years"

We used data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine how couple relationship quality and parental engagement are linked over children's early years-when they are infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Our sample included 1,630 couples that were coresident over years 1 to 3 and 1,376 couples that were coresident over years 3 to 5 (1,196 over both periods). Overall, we found that better relationship quality predicted greater parental engagement for both mothers and fathers-especially in the infant to toddler years; in contrast, we found little evidence that parental engagement predicted future relationship quality. Married and cohabiting couples were generally similar in how relationship quality and parenting were linked.