Can the Level of Well-Being Buy Happiness?

Abstract

Mental health remains a significant concern, particularly in developing countries, where a multitude of factors, such as well-being, education, smoking habits, marital status, employment status, and gender, contribute to mental health problems. This study’s primary objective is to dissect the key factors, with a focus on well-being, that adversely impact an individual’s mental health. Employing survey data from IFLS encompassing approximately
17,000 observations, this research employs OLS, Logit, and Probit methodologies to forecast the likelihood of
socioeconomic variables influencing depression symptoms. The findings reveal that education, marital status,
occupational type, year (indicating happiness level), and expenditure exhibit a positive correlation with happiness.
Remarkably, there is a coherent pattern across the OLS, Logit, and Probit models, indicating that variables such as cigarette consumption, female gender, and residing in urban or rural areas are inversely related to happiness. In conclusion, socioeconomic factors wield a discernible influence on happiness, underscoring the imperative for government intervention through policy measures, especially in bolstering well-being, to enhance individual
happiness levels.