Ambition and jealousy. Income interactions in the "Old" Europe versus the "New" Europe and the United States

Claudia Senik ()

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Abstract: Using individual-level data from a large number of countries, this paper examines how self-reported subjective well-being depends on own income and reference income, where reference income is defined as the income of professional peers. It uncovers a divide between "old" -low mobility- European countries versus "new" European post-Transition countries and the United States. Whereas in the old Europe, the income of my reference group exerts a negative effect on my individual welfare, it has a positive impact in the new Europe and the United States. This finding is interpreted as reflecting the relative importance of comparisons ("jealousy") versus information ("ambition"), which in turn depends on the degree of mobility and uncertainty in the economy.

Keywords: subjective well-being; comparison income; income distribution; Transition; European Union; panel data; revenu relatif; bien-être subjectif; données de panel; Union Européenne; inégalités (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2007-03
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00590828v1
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Ambition and Jealousy: Income Interactions in the ‘Old’ Europe versus the ‘New’ Europe and the United States (2008)
Working Paper: Ambition and jealousy: Income interactions in the 'Old Europe versus the 'New' Europe and the United States (2008)
Working Paper: Ambition and Jealousy: Income Interactions in the "Old" Europe versus the "New" Europe and the United States (2006)
Working Paper: Ambition and jealousy. Income Interactions in the "old" Europe versus The "New" Europe and the United States (2005)
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