Life Satisfaction during the Second Lockdown of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Germany: The Effects of Local Restrictions and Respondents’ Perceptions about the Pandemic

Lisa Schmid, Pablo Christmann (), Anne-Sophie Oehrlein, Annika Stein and Carolin Thönnissen
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Lisa Schmid: GESIS - Leibniz-Institute for the Social Sciences
Pablo Christmann: GESIS - Leibniz-Institute for the Social Sciences
Anne-Sophie Oehrlein: GESIS - Leibniz-Institute for the Social Sciences
Annika Stein: GESIS - Leibniz-Institute for the Social Sciences
Carolin Thönnissen: University of Cologne

Applied Research in Quality of Life, 2024, vol. 19, issue 2, No 3, 445-467

Abstract: Abstract This study examines the consequences of the pandemic on subjective well-being. First, we investigate to what extent regional and temporal differences in COVID-19 restrictions can explain individuals’ life satisfaction in Germany. Second, we examine to what extent “subjective” evaluations of the pandemic are related to life satisfaction. Third, we examine whether these relationships vary with gender, parenthood, and partnership status, or whether relationships changed regarding specific sub-populations (i.e., mothers, fathers, childless women/ men). Merging representative survey data from the German Family Demography Panel Study (FReDA) and contextual data on COVID-19 restrictions (i.e., the stringency index), we analyze a sample of 32,258 individuals living in Germany in their regional settings on the NUTS-3 level during the “second lockdown” in spring 2021. Furthermore, we use the FReDA field period between April and June 2021 to assess temporal variations in COVID-19 restrictions and their association with life satisfaction. To answer our research questions, we compare aggregated means and use variance decomposition and multivariate regression models. Our results show strong regional and temporal differences in COVID-19 restrictions, but neither temporal nor regional differences in “subjective” perceived pandemic burden or in life satisfaction at the aggregated level. At the individual level, we find substantive negative associations between perceived pandemic burden and life satisfaction, which are particularly strong among mothers. Our study shows that individuals’ negative perceptions of the pandemic are an important correlate to life satisfaction, whereas regional differences or temporal changes in COVID-19 restrictions appear to be irrelevant for the period under investigation.

Keywords: Life satisfaction; Subjective well-being (SWB); Corona; Non-pharmaceutical interventions; Parenting; Stringency index (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1007/s11482-023-10249-x

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