Abstract
Many studies have examined the effect of life events, education, and income on well-being. Conversely, research concerning
well-being as a predictor of life course outcomes is sparse. Diener’s suggestion “to inquire about the effects of well-being
on future behavior and success” has, with some exceptions, not yet come to fruition. This article contributes to this body
of research. We conceptualize and analyze the interplay between educational achievement, occupational success, and well-being
as a complex process. The relationship between these domains is examined drawing on a structure-agency framework derived from
Bourdieu and Social Comparison Theory. Social comparison between adolescents and their parents is suggested to be the mechanism
explaining the effects of successful and unsuccessful intergenerational transmission of educational achievement and occupational
success on well-being. It is further argued that well-being may serve as an individual resource by fostering educational and
occupational outcomes. Panel data from the Transition from Education to Employment (TREE) project, a Swiss PISA 2000 follow-up
study, was used. The interplay between well-being and successful and unsuccessful intergenerational transfer of educational
attainment was analyzed in an autoregressive cross-lagged mixture model framework. Social comparison was found to be related
to well-being, while well-being proved to significantly increase the probability of successful intergenerational transfer
of educational attainment.
well-being as a predictor of life course outcomes is sparse. Diener’s suggestion “to inquire about the effects of well-being
on future behavior and success” has, with some exceptions, not yet come to fruition. This article contributes to this body
of research. We conceptualize and analyze the interplay between educational achievement, occupational success, and well-being
as a complex process. The relationship between these domains is examined drawing on a structure-agency framework derived from
Bourdieu and Social Comparison Theory. Social comparison between adolescents and their parents is suggested to be the mechanism
explaining the effects of successful and unsuccessful intergenerational transmission of educational achievement and occupational
success on well-being. It is further argued that well-being may serve as an individual resource by fostering educational and
occupational outcomes. Panel data from the Transition from Education to Employment (TREE) project, a Swiss PISA 2000 follow-up
study, was used. The interplay between well-being and successful and unsuccessful intergenerational transfer of educational
attainment was analyzed in an autoregressive cross-lagged mixture model framework. Social comparison was found to be related
to well-being, while well-being proved to significantly increase the probability of successful intergenerational transfer
of educational attainment.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Pages 1-22
- DOI 10.1007/s11205-011-9984-5
- Authors
- Robin Samuel, Chair of Social Research and Methodology, Department of the Social Sciences, University of Basel, Petersgraben 27, 4051 Basel, Switzerland
- Manfred Max Bergman, Chair of Social Research and Methodology, Department of the Social Sciences, University of Basel, Petersgraben 27, 4051 Basel, Switzerland
- Sandra Hupka-Brunner, Chair of Social Research and Methodology, Department of the Social Sciences, TREE—Transition from Education to Employment, University of Basel, Petersgraben 27, 4051 Basel, Switzerland
- Journal Social Indicators Research
- Online ISSN 1573-0921
- Print ISSN 0303-8300