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This study draws on socio-economic accounting research and the concept of Balanced Scorecards to develop a scorecard that evaluates a government's performance. Citizens' well-being is used as a government's primary outcome suggested by utilitarianism and economics of happiness theories. Based on the development literature, human development (income, health, and education) is used as an intermediate outcome of government. Economic factors, governmental factors, national resources, and national system are used as the performance drivers. The governmental scorecard's validity is evaluated using both international and U.S. regional data. Citizens' well-being in both settings is driven only by income, not by health and education. However, health and education, along with economic factors, governmental factors, national resources, and national systems, contribute to income. Gender is also studied to determine: 1) if there are gender difference in well-being; 2) whether gender has a moderating role in the relationship between well-being and personal, social, and economic characteristics of individual; 3) whether the gender effect changes over time. The results show that gender has a different effect on the relationship between well-being and individual characteristics (i.e., race, degree obtained, working status, frequency of attending religious service, and income). / Business Administration/Accounting

This paper examines the relative influence of family stressors and the family’s socioeconomic circumstances on children’s happiness. Data from the 9 year old cohort of the national Growing Up in Ireland study (GUI) was used to examine these relationships. The sample consisted of 8,568 children and their families. The stressors considered were a conflictual parent–child relationship; children with emotional and social problems; parental depression; low parental self-efficacy and child isolation. A group of families and children who were experiencing a higher level of these stressors was identified. This constituted 16 % of the sample. Although socioeconomic disadvantage contributed significantly to the vulnerability of this group, it was by no means the sole or dominant issue. Using the Piers-Harris Happiness and Satisfaction Subscale, children’s self-assessed happiness in this identified group was found to be significantly lower than in the other groups, irrespective of socioeconomic and demographic variables. The family stressors were found to explain more than twice the variance in the children’s happiness than explained by the measures of socioeconomic status. Nonetheless, most of the variance remains unexplained. Future research directions to explore this are indicated.

y / This study examined economic well-being of sub-national units in India since the economic reforms. For this purpose, the study constructed well-being index for 17 major states of India for the period 1981–2011 based on five broad dimensions. Our results showed that the economic well-being of states has declined since the reforms. The interstate disparities have increased and the states (except Punjab and West Bengal) which performed well prior to the reforms continued to perform well in the post-reform years too. In addition, our regression results for the high well-being and low well-being states revealed that the reforms have benefited more developed high well-being states, rather than low well-being states. While human capital was found significantly and positively related to per capita incomes in both groups of the states, financial development was positively related in high well-being states, but a negative association was visible in the low well-being states.

The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of workplace financial education on workers' personal finances and work outcomes and determine relationships among financial management (attitudes, knowledge and behaviors), financial well-being, personal finance-work conflict, and work outcomes with data of white-collar workers in an insurance company in mid-western states. Research questions were (1) What are the profiles of financial attitudes, financial knowledge, financial behaviors, financial well-being, personal finance-work conflict, productivity, absenteeism, work time use, organizational commitment, pay satisfaction, loyalty, and intention to leave?, (2) Do the profiles of financial attitudes, financial knowledge, financial behaviors, and financial well-being differ by the individual characteristics?, (3) Do the profiles of personal finance-work conflict, productivity, absenteeism, work time use, organizational commitment, and pay satisfaction differ by the individual characteristics?, (4) What are the relationships among financial attitudes, financial knowledge, financial behaviors, financial well-being, and work outcomes (productivity, absenteeism, organizational commitment, and pay satisfaction)?, (5) What are the effects of workplace financial education on financial attitudes, financial knowledge, financial behaviors, financial well-being, and work outcomes?, and (6) What are the individual profiles of workplace financial education including participation, value of workplace financial education, reasons for participation and non-participation, desire for financial check-up, and desired topics of workplace financial education? The research design was a pre- and post-assessment survey. A pre-assessment survey was conducted in February and March 1999 before workplace financial education was provided during March 1999. One-and one-half hour workplace financial education workshops were provided at no cost to employer or employees in March 1999. Three months after the workplace financial education was provided, a post-assessment survey was conducted from June through August 1999. A pre-assessment questionnaire was mailed to all 476 workers (five were undeliverable) and 262 responses were utilized for data analysis. In the post-assessment, 482 questionnaires were mailed to workers and five were undeliverable. Usable return rates for the data analysis were 56.0% in the pre-assessment (262/471) and 40.0% in the post-assessment (189/477). Overall, the respondents in this study were somewhat positive toward financial management, were not knowledgeable on financial matters, and were practicing their financial behaviors fairly well. Objective financial well-being measures showed that workers were in fairly good financial condition but the levels of subjective financial well-being were about the mid-point on a scale, when each score was converted into a percentage. The workers reported that they were very productive, did not miss work days frequently, were highly committed to their organization, and they showed fairly high levels of pay satisfaction. Workers were very hesitant to admit to direct questions asking about whether or not their financial concerns interfered with their responsibilities at the workplace while they were not always able to do normal work even though they were present in the office and spent some work time handling financial matters. Some of individual characteristics influenced financial attitude, financial knowledge, financial behavior, financial well-being, personal finance-work outcomes, and work outcomes. The tests of the structural equation model showed that worker's personal finances had direct and indirect effects on work outcomes. The financial well-being had a negative effect on personal finance-work conflict. The financial well-being had direct effects on negative work time use and pay satisfaction. The financial well-being had indirect effects through personal finance-work conflict on absenteeism, negative work time use, and organizational commitment. The t-test results did not show the significant effects of workplace financial education on personal finances and work outcomes between the pre- and the post-assessment. / Ph. D.

This study explored multiple predictors of sexual well-being in a sample of 253 single, sexually active undergraduate females at a public Mid-Atlantic university. Several factors were identified from past research that might impact sexual well-being: casual sex, sexual agency, sexual attitudes, and sexual desire. Of the four factors, only sexual agency and sexual attitudes were found as significant predictors of sexual well-being. The results suggest that -- of single, sexually active undergraduate females -- those with a greater sense of agency and choice in their sexual interactions and those who maintain more open attitudes toward casual sex have a higher level of sexual well-being. Agency and openness may be important factors in the development of sexual well-being for young women. Limitations of the study, as well as implications for future research and psychoeducational and therapeutic interventions, are addressed. / Master of Science

This study focuses on the importance of activity as an intervention with persons with dementia. Continuity theory serves as a general guide, along with research on leisure in later life and the theory of personhood in dementia, to explain the importance of engaging persons with dementia in activities. Implementing purposeful activities with persons with dementia has been demonstrated to reduce boredom and agitated behavior and to maximize the functional abilities of the individual. The important role of task analysis and adaptation of the activity to personal needs (motor, psychological, social) and past interests of the individual is central to the study, which utilizes meaningful activities as suggested in the literature from the field of occupational therapy. The current study addresses specific principles of activity for persons with dementia and applies a well-established educational philosophy from the field of child development to this population. Previous research has demonstrated that Montessori activities, modified for use with persons with dementia, can facilitate positive engagement and affect. Montessori-based activities were incorporated in a model of well-being in dementia (Coppola, 1998; Hasselkus, 1998), conducted in small parallel group settings, (i.e., referred to a group of individuals situated together but individually completing the same task), included a verbal approach to facilitating meaning of the activities. The amount and type of engagement and affect were compared during Montessori-based activities and regularly scheduled activities of 10 older adults with dementia at a university-based adult day service. Significantly higher levels of constructive engagement (motor or verbal response to activity) and lower levels of non-engagement (sleeping, staring into space) were exhibited during Montessori-activities compared to regular activities. Principles of activities for persons with dementia along with principles of the Montessori-based program are presented. Methodological modifications are suggested, and implications for research and practice are discussed. / Master of Science

Yes / Research has suggested a fundamental connection between fairness and well-being at the individual, relational, and societal levels. Mattering is a multidimensional construct consisting of feeling valued by, and adding value to, self and others. Prior studies have attempted to connect mattering to both fairness and a variety of well-being outcomes. Based on these findings, we hypothesize that mattering acts as a mediator between fairness and well-being. This hypothesis was tested through Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling (CB-SEM) using multidimensional measures of fairness, mattering, and well-being. Results from a Latent Path Analysis conducted on a representative sample of 1,051U.S. adults provide support to our hypothesis by revealing a strong direct predictive effect of mattering onto well-being and a strong indirect effect of fairness onto well-being through mattering. Results also show that mattering is likely to fully mediate the relationship between fairness and multiple domains of well-being, except in one case, namely, economic well-being. These findings illustrate the value of a focus on mattering to understand the relationship between fairness and well-being and to provide future directions for theory, research, and practice. Theoretical implications for the experience of citizenship and participation, along with cross-cultural considerations, are also discussed. / Erwin and Barbara Mautner Endowed Chair in Community Well-Being at the University of Miami

The concept of resilience, which indicates people's capability of using resources in difficult circumstances in order to reduce or prevent negative effects and achieve positive outcomes, has given a new perspective to the scientific literature on the experience of late-life memory loss and the experience of caring for persons with memory loss. The current research was guided by incorporation of resilience into the stress process model for assessing personal and caregiver burden associated with mild and more severe memory loss. I conducted two studies to investigate the association of protective factors with the well-being of people with dementia or mild cognitive impairment and their caregivers. The first study focused on the well-being of older persons with dementia (PwDs). I employed data from a large national sample of older adults to examine how the perceived social cohesion of neighborhoods affects quality of life among people with and without cognitive impairment in conjunction with their engagement in valued leisure activities. Findings revealed that, regardless of cognitive health status, all participants who perceived high neighborhood social cohesion reported better quality of life along with more participation in valued activities. However, PwDs reported significantly lower perceived neighborhood social cohesion, less involvement in valued activities, and poorer quality of life than persons without cognitive impairment. The second study focused on the well-being of caregivers for older persons with mild cognitive impairment (PwMCIs). I used dyadic data from families dealing with mild cognitive impairment to examine how well-being of caregivers for PwMCIs differed according to whether PwMCI-caregiver dyads had similar or different perceptions of the PwMCIs' cognitive impairment severity. Caregivers reported lower caregiving burden when they and PwMCIs had a similar cognitive impairment representation, or when caregivers rated the PwMCIs’ cognitive functioning more positively than the PwMCIs rated themselves. Also, PwMCIs’ and caregivers' perceptions, and their concordance or discrepancy in those perceptions, varied across the multiple domains related to MCI symptoms. These findings demonstrate that care dyads' perception of MCI-related deficits is not a unitary construct, and that the context of PwMCIs’ and caregivers’ dyadic illness appraisals is significantly associated with the caregivers' well-being. Taken together, the results of these two studies illustrate the value of considering resilience processes in people with cognitive impairment and their caregivers. Examining dimensions of resilience, in association with assessment of the intersecting effects of personal, interpersonal, and environmental factors, provides additional information about the effects of cognitive impairment on older adults’ well-being and the effects of assisting someone with cognitive impairment on caregiver well-being. / Ph. D. / Resilience indicates people's ability to successfully adapt to or bounce back from life adversity by using personal, social, and environmental resources. Resilience helps explain what makes some people with dementia and their caregivers tolerant of changes in memory functioning and able to adapt to difficulties associated with dementia. I conducted two studies to investigate the role of protective resources in buffering negative effects of memory loss on people with dementia and their caregivers. The first study compared people with and without dementia to find out how their sense of belonging to the community and their participation in valued leisure activities influenced their quality of life. Regardless of whether they had memory loss or not, all the people with a stronger sense of belonging in the community participated in more leisure and valued activities and, in turn, had better quality of life. However, compared to cognitively healthy people, those with dementia had lower sense of belonging, less participation in leisure activities, and poorer quality of life. These findings indicate that people with dementia may feel excluded from their community and experience barriers to participation in valued activities. Nevertheless, feeling that one belongs in the neighborhood and participating in valued leisure activities is important for well-being of older adults both with and without cognitive impairment. The second study examined how the well-being of caregivers for persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) differed according to whether caregivers and their care recipients had similar or different views on the care recipients’ memory problems. When they both had similar views or the caregivers had a more positive view than their care recipients did, the caregivers reported higher well-being. This finding suggests that some caregivers for people with MCI understand how the person with MCI views their own memory loss, and others either are not aware of all the memory loss symptoms or choose to ignore some of them. In either case, these caregivers feel less burdened than those who think their loved one’s symptoms are worse than the person with memory loss believes. Support for these caregivers is needed to help them cope better with the memory loss in their loved one. The results from these two studies provided valuable evidence about resilience in older adults facing memory loss and their caregivers. Being resilient can help people with dementia and their caregivers manage or overcome the difficulties associated with dementia.

Yes / While much is known regarding the effects of immigration for objective outcomes, relatively little is known regarding the effects for perceived well-being. By exploiting spatial and temporal variation in the net-inflows of foreign-born individuals across local areas in England, we examine the relationship between immigration and natives’ subjective well-being as captured by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). We find small negative effects overall but that an analysis of the main effects masks significant differences across subgroups, with relatively older individuals, those with below-average household incomes, the unemployed and finally those without any formal educational qualifications experiencing much more substantive well-being losses than others. These observed well-being differentials are congruent with voting patterns evident in the recent UK referendum on EU membership. We put forward perceived as opposed to actual labour market competition and social identity as two potential explanations for the negative well-being impacts of immigration for natives. / Nuffield Foundation