Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Domain-Specific and General Life Satisfaction: A Study in Iran and Serbia

  • Published:
Applied Research in Quality of Life Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Although the associations between satisfaction with life domains (DS) and global life satisfaction (GLS) are well-documented, the roles of culture and gender in this relationship remain largely unknown. The main aim of the present study was to examine the relationships between DS and GLS among women and men in Iran and Serbia, after establishing measurement invariance across groups. In addition, we investigated gender and country differences in DS and GLS. The sample was comprised of 623 undergraduate students from Iran and Serbia. Participants completed measures of GLS and satisfaction with the following seven domains: standard of living, health, achieving in life, relationships, safety, community-connectedness, and future security. Satisfaction with achieving in life and standard of living had similar unique contributions to GLS among Iranian women and men, whereas satisfaction with achieving in life was a stronger predictor of GLS than satisfaction with standard of living among Serbian women and men. These two domains were the only significant predictors of GLS in Serbian women and men, whereas gender-specific predictors of GLS were found in Iran. The results demonstrated that students in Serbia reported higher GLS and DS than Iranian students. Furthermore, we found that women reported higher GLS and DS than men did, with the exception of satisfaction with standard of living for which no significant gender differences were found. The present study provides new insights into the role of gender in the relationship between DS and GLS across cultures.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bonini, A. (2008). Cross-national variation in individual life satisfaction: Effects of national wealth, human development, and environmental conditions. Social Indicators Research, 87, 223–236.

  • Browne, M. W., & Cudeck, R. (1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K. A. Bollen & J. S. Long (Eds.), Testing Structural Equation Models (pp. 136–162). Beverly Hills: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Byrne, B. M., & van de Vijver, F. (2010). Testing for measurement and structural equivalence in large-scale cross-cultural studies: Addressing the issue of nonequivalence. International Journal of Testing, 10, 107–132.

  • Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Segerstrom, S. C. (2010). Optimism. Clinical Psychology Review, 30, 879–889.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, F. F. (2007). Sensitivity of goodness of fit indexes to lack of measurement invariance. Structural Equation Modeling, 14, 464–504.

  • Clench-Aas, J., Nes, R. B., Dalgard, O. S., & Aaro, L. E. (2011). Dimensionality and measurement invariance in the Satisfaction with Life Scale in Norway. Quality of Life Research, 20, 1307–1317.

  • Cummins, R. A. (1996). The domains of life satisfaction: An attempt to order chaos. Social Indicators Research, 38, 303–328.

  • Cummins, R. A. (1997). Comprehensive Quality of Life Scale – Adult. Manual (5th ed.). Melbourne: School of Psychology, Deakin University.

  • Cummins, R. A., Eckersley, R., Pallant, J., Van Vugt, J., & Misajon, R. (2003). Developing a national index of subjective wellbeing: The Australian Unity Wellbeing Index. Social Indicators Research, 64, 159–190.

  • Daig, I., Herschbach, P., Lehmann, A., Knoll, N., & Decker, O. (2009). Gender and age differences in domain-specific life satisfaction and the impact of depressive and anxiety symptoms: A general population survey from Germany. Quality of Life Research, 18, 669–678.

  • Davidov, E., Dülmer, H., Schlüter, E., Schmidt, P., & Meuleman, B. (2012). Using a multilevel structural equation modeling approach to explain cross-cultural measurement noninvariance. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 43, 558–575.

    Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 542–575.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E. (2009). Culture and well-being: The collected works of Ed Diener (Social Indicators Research Series, Vol. 38). The Netherlands: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., & Diener, M. (1995). Cross-cultural correlates of life satisfaction and self-esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 653–663.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., & Fujita, F. (1995). Resources, personal strivings, and subjective well-being: A nomothetic and idiographic approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 926–935.

  • Diener, E., & Tay, L. (2015). Subjective well‐being and human welfare around the world as reflected in the Gallup World Poll. International Journal of Psychology, 50, 135–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., Emmons, R., Larsen, R., & Griffin, S. (1985). The Satisfaction With Life Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, 71–75.

  • Diener, E., Inglehart, R., & Tay, L. (2013). Theory and validity of life satisfaction scales. Social Indicators Research, 112, 497–527.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gallagher, M. W., Lopez, S. J., & Pressman, S. D. (2013). Optimism is universal: Exploring the presence and benefits of optimism in a representative sample of the world. Journal of Personality, 81, 429–440.

  • Gallup, Inc. (2014). State of global well-being: Results of the Gallup-Healthways Global Well-being Index. Retrieved Jun 10, 2015, from:http://info.healthways.com/hs-fs/hub/162029/file-1634508606-pdf/WBI2013/Gallup-Healthways_State_of_Global_Well-Being_vFINAL.pdf.

  • Graham, C., & Chattopadhyay, S. (2013). Gender and well-being around the world. International Journal of Happiness and Development, 1, 212–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helliwell, J., Layard, R., & Sachs, J. (2015). World Happiness Report. New York: Earth Institute, Columbia University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G., Hofstede, G. J., & Minkov, M. (2010). Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind (3rd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55.

  • International Wellbeing Group. (2006). Personal Wellbeing Index–Adult (PWI–A). Melbourne: Australian Centre on Quality of Life, Deakin University.

    Google Scholar 

  • International Wellbeing Group. (2013). Personal Wellbeing Index (5th ed.). Melbourne: Australian Centre on Quality of Life, Deakin University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Joshanloo, M. (2013). The influence of fear of happiness beliefs on responses to the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Personality and Individual Differences, 54, 647–651.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Joshanloo, M., & Afshari, S. (2011). Big five personality traits and self-esteem as predictors of life satisfaction in Iranian Muslim university students. Journal of Happiness Studies, 12, 105–113.

  • Kaliterna, Lj., & Burusic, J. (2014). Age and gender differences in well-being in Croatia. Social Indicators Research Series, 53, 249–262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kapteyn, A., Smith, J. P., & Van Soest, A. (2010). Life satisfaction. In E. Diener, J. E. Helliwell, & D. Kahneman (Eds.), International differences in well-being (pp. 70–104). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practices of structural equation modeling (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lau, A. L. D., Cummins, R. A., & McPherson, W. (2005). An investigation into the cross-cultural equivalence of the Personal Wellbeing Index. Social Indicators Research, 72, 403–430.

  • Legatum Institute. (2014). The 2014 Legatum Prosperity Index. Retrieved May 5, 2015, from http://media.prosperity.com/2014/pdf/publications/PI2014Brochure_WEB.pdf.

  • Loewe, N., Bagherzadeh, M., Araya-Castillo, L., Thieme, C., & Batista-Foguet, J. M. (2014). Life domain satisfactions as predictors of overall life satisfaction among workers: Evidence from Chile. Social Indicators Research, 118, 71–86.

  • Looney, R. (2012). The Iranian economy: The glass half empty. London: The Legatum Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lorenzo-Seva, U., Ferrando, P. J., & Chico, E. (2010). Two SPSS programs for interpreting multiple regression results. Behavior Research Methods, 42, 29–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lucas, R. E., & Gohm, C. L. (2000). Age and sex differences in subjective well-being across cultures. In E. Diener & E. M. Suh (Eds.), Culture and subjective well-being (pp. 291–318). Massachusetts: Bradford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meisenberg, G., & Woodley, M. A. (2015). Gender differences in subjective well-being and their relationships with gender equality. Journal of Happiness Studies, 16, 1539–1555.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morrison, M., Tay, L., & Diener, E. (2011). Subjective well-being and national satisfaction: Findings from a worldwide survey. Psychological Science, 22, 166–171.

  • Ng, W., & Diener, E. (2014). What matters to the rich and the poor? Subjective well-being, financial satisfaction, and post-materialistic needs across the world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107, 326–338.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nimon, K. F., & Oswald, F. L. (2013). Understanding the results of multiple linear regression: Beyond standardized regression coefficients. Organizational Research Methods, 16, 650–674.

  • Oishi, S., Diener, E. F., Lucas, R. E., & Suh, E. M. (1999). Cross-cultural variations in predictors of life satisfaction: Perspectives from needs and values. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 25, 980–990.

  • Pavot, W., & Diener, E. (2009). Review of the Satisfaction With Life Scale. Assessing well-being. Social Indicators Research Series, 39, 101–117.

  • Pinquart, M., & Sorensen, S. (2000). Influences of socioeconomic status, social network, and competence on subjective well-being in later life: A meta-analysis. Psychology and Aging, 15, 187–224.

  • Renn, D., Pfaffenberger, N., Platter, M., Mitmansgruber, H., Cummins, R. A., & Hofer, S. (2009). International well-being index: The Austrian version. Social Indicators Research, 90, 243–256.

  • Rojas, M. (2006). Life satisfaction and satisfaction in domains of life: Is it a simple relationship? Journal of Happiness Studies, 7, 467–497.

  • Rojas, M. (2007). The complexity of wellbeing: A life-satisfaction conception and a domains-of-life approach. In I. Gough & J. A. McGregor (Eds.), Wellbeing in developing countries: From theory to research (pp. 259–280). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

  • Schafer, M. H., Mustillo, S. A., & Ferraro, K. F. (2013). Age and the tenses of life satisfaction. Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 68, 571–579.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schimmack, U. (2008). The structure of subjective wellbeing. In M. Eid & R. J. Larsen (Eds.), The science of subjective well-being (pp. 97–123). New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schimmack, U., Diener, E., & Oishi, S. (2002). Life-satisfaction is a momentary judgment and a stable personality characteristic: The use of chronically accessible and stable sources. Journal of Personality, 70, 345–384.

  • Scott, J., Plagnol, A. C., & Nolan, J. (2010). Perceptions of quality of life: Gender differences across the life course. In J. Scott, R. Crompton, & C. Lyonette (Eds.), Gender inequalities in the 21st century: New barriers and continuing constraints (pp. 193–214). Edward Elgar: Cheltenham.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Sirgy, M. J., Widgery, R. N., Lee, D., & Yu, G. B. (2010). Developing a measure of community well-being based on perceptions of impact in various life domains. Social Indicators Research, 96, 295–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smyth, R., Nielsen, I., & Zhai, Q. (2010). Personal wellbeing in urban China. Social Indicators Research, 95, 231–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tesch-Römer, C., Motel-Klingebiel, A., & Tomasik, M. J. (2008). Gender differences in subjective wellbeing: Comparing societies with respect to gender equality. Social Indicators Research, 85, 329–349.

  • Theuns, P., Baran, B., Van Vaerenberg, R., Hellenbosch, G., & Tiliouine, H. (2012). A cross-cultural experimental approach to the contribution of health, religion and personal relations to subjective satisfaction with life as a whole. Psicológica, 33, 591–608.

    Google Scholar 

  • Transparency International. (2014). Corruption Perceptions Index. Retrieved Jun 5, 2015, from: http://www.transparency.org/cpi2014/results.

  • Uchida, Y., & Ogihara, Y. (2012). Personal or interpersonal construal of happiness: A cultural psychological perspective. International Journal of Wellbeing, 2, 354–369.

  • Van Beuningen, J., & de Jonge, T. (2011). The Personal Wellbeing Index: Construct validity for the Netherlands. Discussion paper (201124). Statistics Netherlands: The Hague.

    Google Scholar 

  • van Praag, B. M. S., Frijters, P., & Ferrer-i-Carbonell, A. (2003). The anatomy of subjective well-being. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 51, 29–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vasić, A., Šarčević, D., & Trogrlić, A. (2011). Zadovoljstvo životom u Srbiji [Satisfaction with life in Serbia]. Primenjena Psihologija, 2, 151–177.

    Google Scholar 

  • Veenhoven, R. (2012). Cross-national differences in happiness: Cultural measurement bias or effect of culture? International Journal of Wellbeing, 2, 333–353.

  • Vieira Lima, S. (2011). A cross-country investigation of the determinants of the happiness gender gap. Mimeo.University of Milan-Bicocca, Department of Economics, Milan, Italy.

  • World Bank. (2015). World databank. [Custom cross-tabulation of data]. Retrieved July 3, 2015, from: http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.UEM.1524.ZS.

  • World Economic Forum (2014). The Global Gender Gap Report 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2015, from: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GGGR14/GGGR_CompleteReport_2014.pdf.

  • York, R., & Bell, S. E. (2014). Life satisfaction across nations: The effects of women’s political status and public priorities. Social Science Research, 48, 48–61.

  • Zweig, J. S. (2015). Are women happier than men? Evidence from the Gallup World Poll. Journal of Happiness Studies, 16, 515–541.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (Grant No. 179006).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Novi Sad, Dr Zorana Đinđića 2, 21 000, Novi Sad, Serbia

    Veljko Jovanović

  2. Department of Psychology, Keimyung University, Daegu, South Korea

    Mohsen Joshanloo

  3. Department of Psychology, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia

    Dragan Đunda

  4. Department of Psychology, Qazvin Islamic Azad University, Qazvin, Iran

    Ali Bakhshi

Authors
  1. Veljko Jovanović
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mohsen Joshanloo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Dragan Đunda
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ali Bakhshi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Veljko Jovanović.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Highlights

• Domain-satisfaction and global satisfaction (GLS) were examined in Iran and Serbia

• Gender differences in life satisfaction were examined across Iran and Serbia

• Standard of living and achieving in life contributed to GLS in both countries

• Gender-specific predictors of GLS were found in Iran

• Significant differences were found in life satisfaction across country and gender

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Jovanović, V., Joshanloo, M., Đunda, D. et al. Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Domain-Specific and General Life Satisfaction: A Study in Iran and Serbia. Applied Research Quality Life 12, 185–204 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-016-9461-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-016-9461-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation