Urbanisation, natural amenities and subjective well-being: Evidence from US counties

John Winters and Yu Li
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Yu Li: Oklahoma State University, USA

Urban Studies, 2017, vol. 54, issue 8, 1956-1973

Abstract: This paper examines the relationships between county-level urbanisation, natural amenities and subjective well-being (SWB) in the US. SWB is measured using individual-level data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) which asks respondents to rate their overall life satisfaction. Using individual-level SWB data allows us to control for several important individual characteristics. The results suggest that urbanisation lowers SWB, with relatively large negative coefficients for residents in dense counties and large metropolitan areas. Natural amenities also affect SWB, with warmer winters having a significant positive relationship with self-reported life-satisfaction. Implications for researchers and policymakers are discussed.

Keywords: amenities; population density; quality of life; subjective well-being; urbanisation; 环境舒适度ã€; äººå £å¯†åº¦ã€; ç”Ÿæ´»å“ è´¨ã€; ä¸»è§‚å¹¸ç¦ æ„Ÿã€; 城市化 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (28)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Urbanization, Natural Amenities, and Subjective Well-Being: Evidence from U.S. Counties (2015)
Working Paper: Urbanization, Natural Amenities, and Subjective Well-Being: Evidence from U.S. Counties (2015)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:54:y:2017:i:8:p:1956-1973

DOI: 10.1177/0042098016631918

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