The Negative Association of Obesity with Subjective Well-Being: Is it All About Health?

Petri Böckerman (), Edvard Johansson (), Samuli Saarni () and Suoma Saarni ()

Journal of Happiness Studies, 2014, vol. 15, issue 4, 857-867

Abstract: In this paper we examine whether health status and functional capacity explain the fact that obese individuals report significantly lower levels of subjective well-being. We use comprehensive measures of body composition such as waist circumference, body fat percentage, and lean body mass along with body mass index. All these are measured by health professionals in a population-based sample. When controlling for health and functional status, we find very limited evidence for any independent influence of obesity on subjective well-being. This implies that the adverse effects of obesity on health and functioning are the primary explanation for the observed negative relationship between obesity and subjective well-being. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Keywords: Subjective well-being; Obesity; Body composition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10902-013-9453-8

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