TY  - JOUR
AU  - Helliwell,John
TI  - Well-Being, Social Capital and Public Policy: What's New?
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 11807
PY  - 2005
Y2  - December 2005
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w11807
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w11807.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
John F. Helliwell
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
and Department of Economics
University of British Columbia
997-1873 East Mall
Vancouver BC V6T 1Z1
CANADA
Tel: 604/822-4953
Fax: 604/822-5915
E-Mail: john.helliwell@ubc.ca
AB  - This paper summarizes recent empirical research on the determinants of subjective well-being. Results from national and international samples suggest that measures of social capital, including especially the corollary measures of specific and general trust, have substantial effects on well-being beyond those flowing through economic channels. Cross-national samples (supported by parallel analysis of suicide data) show large well-being effects from social capital and from the quality of government. Finally, Canadian life-satisfaction data show that several non-financial job characteristics, and especially the climate of workplace trust, have very large income-equivalent effects.
ER  -