Energy Prices, Energy Poverty, and Well-Being: Evidence for European Countries

Heinz Welsch and Philipp Biermann

No V-369-14, Working Papers from University of Oldenburg, Department of Economics

Abstract: This paper uses data on the life satisfaction of more than 100,000 individuals in 21 European countries, 2002-2011, to study the relationship between subjective well-being and the prices for households of electricity, oil and gas. We find that energy prices have statistically and economically significant effects on subjective well-being. The effect sizes are smaller than but comparable to the effects of important personal factors of well-being. Effects above average are found in individuals from the lowest income quartile. In addition, effects are strongest at times when required energy expenditures can be expected to be high. The empirical results are consistent with the prediction that greater energy poverty implies a greater effect of energy prices on well-being.

Keywords: energy price; energy poverty; fuel poverty, consumer welfare; subjective well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D12 I31 Q41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014-09, Revised 2014-09
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene, nep-eur, nep-hap, nep-ltv and nep-reg
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Published in Oldenburg Working Papers V-369-14

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.uni-oldenburg.de/fileadmin/user_upload/ ... ete/vwl/V-369-14.pdf First version, 2014 (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:old:dpaper:369

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Working Papers from University of Oldenburg, Department of Economics Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catharina Schramm ().