The thesis consists of three empirical essays on the topics of self-employment, happiness and international trade. Essay 1 studies how immigrant self-employment entry is affected by the local business cycle in Sweden. Using the unemployment rate at the local labour market level as a proxy for the local business cycle, our study shows that the self-employment entry behaviour for native men and immigrant men is negatively affected by the unemployment rate, except for immigrants from Middle East. However, such a negative effect is quantitatively weaker among the non-European immigrants. Further, the result shows that immigrants from the Middle East are positively affected by the unemployment rate, meaning they are more likely to be pushed into self-employment in recessions. For women, we also find the unemployment rate has a negative impact on the self-employment decision of native women and immigrant women, except for the Middle East group. However, compared with men, the quantitative size of the unemployment rate effect on self-employment is smaller among women, implying the less important role of business cycle in determining females’ entry into self-employment. Essay 2 investigates the non-pecuniary return of self-employment in China. The results show that the life satisfaction of self-employed men is significantly higher than that of wage-employed men; the life satisfaction of self-employed women is not statistically significant different from that of wage-employed women. Moreover, we show that the life satisfaction of self-employed men in the informal sector is significantly higher than that of wage-employed men in the formal sector. The life satisfaction of wage-employed men in the informal sector is not significantly different from that of wage-employed men in the formal sector. For women, we find that there is no significant life satisfaction disparity between workers in the formal and informal sector. Finally, our job satisfaction data also concludes that self-employment in China is not inferior to wage employment. Essay 3 evaluates how Swedish manufacturing employment is affected by the increasing import competition from China. The results show that the growth of manufacturing employment is not statistically significant affected by the increasing import competition from China. Moreover, in general, the increasing import exposure from China does not significantly affect the employment growth of non-manufacturing sector either. Regarding the earnings, the analysis shows that the low wage earners in the manufacturing sector is not significantly affected by the increasing import penetration from China while median and high wage earners are positively affected.

De senaste årtiondena har forskning visat att det finns flera fördelar med att ha en välutvecklad emotionell intelligens. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka vilken effekt den emotionella intelligensen har på människors subjektiva välbefinnande med samtidig kontroll för effekten av personlighet. Syftet var också att studera om den emotionella intelligensen kan påverka sambandet mellan personlighet och subjektivt välbefinnande. I en tvärsnittsstudie samlades data in via en enkät som mätte deltagarnas emotionella intelligens, personlighet samt subjektiva välbefinnande via delkomponenterna livstillfredsställelse och lycka. Totalt deltog 275 svenska respondenter i åldrarna 18-70 år. Resultatet visade att emotionell intelligens positivt förutspådde både subjektivt välbefinnande samt delkomponenterna livstillfredsställelse och lycka. Dessutom var den emotionella intelligensen en starkare prediktor än personlighet för det subjektiva välbefinnandet. Däremot modererade inte emotionell intelligens sambandet mellan respektive personlighetsdrag och subjektivt välbefinnande. Slutsatsen för studien är att en hög grad av emotionell intelligens förutspår ett högt subjektivt välbefinnande och ett lyckligt liv. / A well-developed emotional intelligence has shown to have many benefits. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of emotional intelligence on subjective well-being, while controlling for the effect of personality. The study also examined whether the association between personality and subjective well-being changes depending on the level of emotional intelligence. In a survey with a cross-sectional design, trait emotional intelligence, personality and subjective well-being, measured by its two components lifesatisfaction and happiness, were measured. 275 Swedish respondents in the age range of 18-70 years participated in the study. The results showed that emotional intelligence was a strong positive predictor of subjective well-being as well as for life satisfaction and happiness. Moreover, emotional intelligence was a stronger predictor of subjective well-being than personality was. However, emotional intelligence did not moderate the association between personality traits and subjective well-being. The conclusion is that a high level of emotional intelligence predicts high subjective well-being and a happy life.

The European Commission has declared 2012 The European year for active aging and solidarity between generations. This issue calls each society to analyze the process of population aging and it's social and economic consequences. Currently active aging can be the key to solve the demographic trends, because Europe is the continent with the slowest population growth. The present study follows the issue of seniors from a demographic and socio-economic point of view, as well as social attitudes towards seniors. Process of demographic aging in the Czech Republic is characterized by using literature and statistical sources, as well as the position of society to activity of the post-productive population in the labor market, to health, social security and pension, as well as the relationship within the family and society. Attention is given to life satisfaction and quality of life of older people. The submitted diploma thesis has a theoretical-empirical nature. The theoretical part consists of five chapters. The first chapter defines the basic concepts associated with the process of aging. The following chapters are dealing with life satisfaction and quality of life of older people, as well as with social and intergenerational relationships in the family and in society as a whole. The socio-economic impact of demographic aging on society and the measures needed to deal with the unfavorable consequences are also presented. The thesis also includes a questionnaire and evaluation of life satisfaction and quality of life of seniors, addressed to two groups of people at retirement age. The aim of work is reflecting the period of old age and life satisfaction of the elderly. Another aim of this thesis is to characterize the evolution of aging in the Czech Republic, highlighting its likely future development. The results are dedicated for those who seek to understand this issue of the elderly in our society.

The concepts of well-being and life satisfaction are explored in this study of the experiences and psychological traits of highly-gifted students who have been radically accelerated into an early-college-entrance program. The study was conducted after participation in the early-college-entrance program. The primary focus of the study is on personal well-being and life satisfaction including the variables of subjective well-being, efficacy, and the dispositional traits of cheerfulness, seriousness, and bad mood. These variables are gathered as the initial phase of a longitudinal study of the early-college entrants' personal and professional experiences, their life satisfaction, and dispositions. The subjects for this study were participants in the Texas Academy of Math and Science (TAMS). TAMS is a state run early-college-entrance program at the University of North Texas in Denton.

Perfektionism blir allt vanligare i västvärlden. Parallellt ökar psykisk ohälsa bland ungdomar. Därmed är det av intresse att undersöka huruvida de parallella ökningarna i perfektionism och psykisk ohälsa hänger ihop. Utbrändhet är en form av psykisk ohälsa som har visat sig vara förknippat med perfektionism. Statistik visar att psykologer rapporterar fler sjukskrivningar på grund av utbrändhet jämfört med andra yrkesgrupper. I denna studie undersöktes samband mellan perfektionism, psykisk hälsa och livskvalitet bland psykologstudenter i Sverige. Data samlades in genom en webbaserad enkätundersökning, (N = 270, M = 26.4, SD = 5.67). Enkäten bestod av tre skattningsformulär; Clinical Perfectionism Questionnaire (CPQ), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) och Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). Korrelationsanalyser gjordes för att undersöka samband mellan perfektionism, psykisk hälsa och livskvalitet. Variansanalyser gjordes för att undersöka huruvida dessa samband skiljer sig i styrka beroende på antalet rapporterade livsdomäner inom perfektionism. Resultatet visade att det finns ett signifikant positivt samband mellan perfektionism och psykisk ohälsa samt ett signifikant negativt samband mellan perfektionism och livskvalitet. Vidare framkom det att deltagare som rapporterade perfektionism inom flera livsdomäner skattade högre grad av psykisk ohälsa jämfört med deltagare som rapporterade inga eller en livsdomäner. Däremot fanns det ingen skillnad mellan grupperna i skattad livskvalitet. / Perfectionism is becoming more and more common in the Western world. Parallel to that, mental ill-health is increasing among young people. It is therefore of interest to investigate whether the parallel increases in perfectionism and mental ill-health are related. Burnout is a form of mental ill-health that has been found to be associated with perfectionism. Statistics show that psychologists report more sick leave due to burnout than other occupational groups. This study investigated the relationship between perfectionism, mental health and quality of life among psychology students in Sweden. Data was collected through an online survey, (N = 270, M = 26.4, SD = 5.67). The survey consisted of three questionnaires; Clinical Perfectionism Questionnaire (CPQ), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) and Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). Correlational analyzes were conducted to investigate the relationship between perfectionism, mental health and quality of life. Analysis of variance was conducted to investigate whether these relationships differ in strength depending on the number of reported life domains within perfectionism. The result showed that there is a significant positive relationship between perfectionism and mental ill-health as well as a significant negative relationship between perfectionism and quality of life. Furthermore, it was found that participants who reported perfectionism in multiple life domains estimated a higher degree of mental ill-health compared to participants who reported none or one life domain. However, there was no difference between the groups in estimated quality of life.

Die vorliegende Arbeit untersucht die Ausprägung von Angst, Depressivität und Körperbeschwerden bei Studierenden der Humanmedizin und deren Lebenszufriedenheit im Vergleich zu einer altersgleichen Repräsentativstichprobe und Studierenden anderer Studienrichtungen. Gesellschaftlicher Hintergrund ist die weite Verbreitung von Angst und Depressivität in der Gesamtbevölkerung und deren zunehmende Bedeutung für Arbeitsunfähigkeit und Frühberentung. Gleichzeitig haben psychische Erkrankungen einen stark negativen Einfluss auf die Lebenszufriedenheit der Betroffenen. Die Untersuchung zeigt, dass Angst, Depressivität und Körperbeschwerden bei Studierenden der Humanmedizin signifikant häufiger auftreten und sie mit einzelnen Bereichen des Lebens unzufriedener sind als die gleichaltrige Gesamtbevölkerung. Sie zeigen im Vergleich zu anderen Studierenden keine erhöhten Werte hinsichtlich Angst, Depressivität und Körperbeschwerden und sind nur in einzelnen Bereichen des Lebens signifikant unzufriedener als Studierende anderer Fachrichtungen. Germanistikstudierende leiden gegenüber den verglichenen Studierendengruppen signifikant stärker unter Angst, Depressivität und Körperbeschwerden und ihre Lebenszufriedenheit ist von allen befragten Studierenden am geringsten. Die Befragungen von Studierenden zum Thema psychische Gesundheit und Lebenszufriedenheit sollten ausgeweitet werden, um repräsentative Stichproben zu erhalten und weitere Studierendengruppen in die Untersuchungen einzubeziehen.

Die vorliegende Arbeit beschreibt, wie depressive und somatoforme Beschwerden auf die global konzeptualisierte Lebenszufriedenheit wirken. Anhand einer bevölkerungsrepräsentativen Stichprobe (N=2510) wird diese Fragestellung analysiert. Ziel ist es zum einen zu klären, ob bereits subklinische Beschwerden zu deutlichen Einschränkungen der Lebenszufriedenheit führen und zum anderen, wie sich die beiden Beschwerdegruppen im Zusammenspiel auf die Lebenszufriedenheit auswirken. Somatische und depressive Symptome werden dimensional (subklinische Symptome eingeschlossen) untersucht und somatoforme und depressive Syndrome kategorial (auf ICD-10 Diagnose-Ebene) analysiert – quantifiziert jeweils mit dem Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ). Lebenszufriedenheit wird mit den Fragen zur Lebenszufriedenheit (FLZ-M) gemessen. Univariate Kovarianzanalysen dienen zur statistischen Prüfung. Die Ergebnisse werden in einer Publikation dargestellt. Unter Berücksichtigung komorbider depressiver Symptome/Syndrome wirken sich somatische Symptome und somatoforme Syndrome nur auf einige Bereiche der Lebenszufriedenheit negativ aus. Eine dimensionale Auswertung ist sinnvoll, um den Einfluss subklinischer Symptome zu beschreiben.

Sibling contact (synchronous or asynchronous) in young adulthood may have implications for individual well-being (health, life satisfaction & depressive symptoms). This link may be moderated by each individuals' traits, specifically autistic characteristics. Current literature has examined sibling contact, mediums of contact, autism relationships, but has yet to consider sibling contact moderated by autistic traits. This study analyzed data from 390 young adults 61% female, mean age = 25.65) who gave self-reports over two collection waves. Structural Equation Models found that regardless of autistic traits, synchronous contact was linked with increased life satisfaction as well as lower depressive symptoms, and asynchronous contact was linked with increased life satisfaction. Interactions between each type of contact and autistic traits found that for those lower in autistic traits, increases in each type of contact was linked with greater life satisfaction, and higher levels of asynchronous contact was linked with lower depressive symptoms, for those with lower levels of autistic traits. Autistic traits do moderate the process of siblings communicating and create a neutral space for those who are higher in traits. Young adults should prioritize sibling contact to improve their life satisfaction and depressive symptoms, and clinicians should encourage sibling contact in young adulthood.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between previously experienced bullying with students’ current risk behaviors. The participants were 341 university students in Sweden and the data were collected with a web-based survey. The results showed that students with high experiences of previous bullying were less satisfied with their lives today than students with low experiences of bullying. In addition, male students who experienced bullying in childhood had higher levels of risk behaviors today, whereas female students who experienced bullying in adolescence had higher levels of risk behaviors today. This could be discussed by the fact that relational bullying, which is more common among females, occurs the most in adolescence, while physical bullying, which is more common among males, occurs mostly in childhood. Future research should control for sensation seeking and risk behaviors in adolescence, as well as the effects of cyberbullying. / Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka relationen mellan tidigare upplevd mobbning och studenters riskbeteenden idag. Deltagarna bestod av 341 universitetsstudenter i Sverige och datainsamlingen genomfördes via en webbaserad enkät. Resultatet visade att studenter som tidigare hade upplevt högre nivåer av mobbning var mindre nöjda med sina liv idag jämfört med studenter som hade upplevt lägre nivåer av mobbning. Dessutom hade manliga studenter som hade upplevt mobbning i barndomen högre riskbeteenden idag, medan kvinnliga studenter som hade upplevt mobbning i tonåren hade högre riskbeteenden idag. Detta kan diskuteras genom att indirekt mobbning, som är vanligare hos kvinnor, oftast uppstår under tonåren, medan fysisk mobbning, som är vanligare hos män, oftast uppstår under barndomen. Framtida forskning borde kontrollera för sensationssökande och riskbeteenden i tonåren, samt effekterna av nätmobbning.

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