| By: |
Harvey, James S. Jr. |
| Abstract: |
In this paper I consider the question of whether ethical decision-making
affects a personâs happiness. Using cross-country data from the World Values
Survey, I find that people who agree that it is never justifiable to engage in
ethically-questionable behaviors report that they are more satisfied with
their life than people who are more tolerant of unethical conduct, even after
controlling for other factors known to affect self-reported happiness. The
size of the ethics effect is roughly similar to that of a modest increase in
income, being married and attending church, while the effect is smaller than
that of having poor health or being dissatisfied with oneâs personal finances.
These results are robust across the four countries studied (the US, Canada,
Mexico and Brazil), although there is variation in the ethics and happiness
relationship across countries. One implication of this study is that a
consideration of a societyâs ethical norms will improve our understanding of
the subjective well-being of people. |
| Keywords: |
Happiness, subjective well-being, ethics, World Values Survey, Labor and Human Capital, D63, D99, Z13, |
| Date: |
2009–12–02 |
| URL: |
http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:umcowp:92617&r=ltv |