Is There a Bright Side to the China Syndrome? Rising Export Opportunities and Life Satisfaction in China

Matthieu Crozet, Laura Hering and Sandra Poncet
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Sandra Poncet: PSE - Paris School of Economics - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS-PSL - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École nationale des ponts et chaussées - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement

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Abstract: Abstract Export growth affects individuals through numerous and contradictory channels. In China, the development of exports has promoted economic development and income growth, but it has also disrupted social structures and work environments. This paper explores the overall effect of exports on perceived well-being by combining responses from a large longitudinal survey covering over 45,000 Chinese with a shift-share measure of local export opportunities. Results show that individuals' perceived life satisfaction increases significantly in prefectures that benefited from greater export opportunities, despite a negative effect on self-reported health. The positive well-being gains go beyond a simple income effect. These non-monetary gains are related to the individuals' professional life: export-related well-being gains are stronger for working-age individuals (especially men and low-skilled workers), are largest for workers in the manufacturing sector (which produces the vast majority of China's exports), and are found when the satisfaction indicator focuses on work but not on other aspects of daily life.

Keywords: Happiness Export opportunities Globalization China. JEL codes: F61 F66 I31 J28; Happiness; Export opportunities; Globalization; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cna, nep-hap, nep-int and nep-lma
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Published in World Bank Economic Review, 2024, ⟨10.1093/wber/lhae006⟩

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Journal Article: Is There a Bright Side to the China Syndrome? Rising Export Opportunities and Life Satisfaction in China (2024)
Working Paper: Is There a Bright Side to the China Syndrome? Rising Export Opportunities and Life Satisfaction in China (2024)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04505684

DOI: 10.1093/wber/lhae006

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