Psychology and Public Health: Exploring the Dynamics of Subjective Well-being

doi: 10.56294/hl2024.405

ORIGINAL

Psychology and Public Health: Exploring the Dynamics of Subjective Well-being

Psicología y Salud Pública: Explorando la dinámica del bienestar subjetivo

Rishabh Bhardwaj¹ , Ajab Singh Choudhary², Devanshu J. Patel³, Basudev Biswal⁴, Lovish Dhingra⁵, Tulsidas A. Patil⁶

¹Centre of Research Impact and Outcome, Chitkara University. Rajpura, Punjab, India

²School of Allied Health Sciences, Noida International University. Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India.

³Parul University, PO Limda, Tal. Waghodia, Department of Pharmacology. District Vadodara, Gujarat, India.

⁴IMS and SUM Hospital, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (Deemed to be University), Department of Paediatrics. Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.

⁵Chitkara Centre for Research and Development, Chitkara University. Himachal Pradesh, India.

⁶Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences, Krishna Vishwa Vidyapeeth “Deemed to be University”, Dept. of Preventive and Social Medicine. Taluka-Karad, Dist-Satara, Maharashtra, India.

Cite as: Bhardwaj R, Singh Choudhary A, Patel DJ, Biswal B, Lovish D, et al. Psychology and Public Health: Exploring the Dynamics of Subjective Well-being. Health Leadership and Quality of Life. 2024; 3:.405. https://doi.org/10.56294/hl2024.405

Submitted: 15-03-2024 Revised: 03-08-2024 Accepted: 11-11-2024 Published: 12-11-2024

Editor: PhD. Prof. Neela Satheesh

ABSTRACT

The study of psychology examines human thought and behaviour, which are essential for understanding public health, as many health outcomes are closely tied to human activities. Poor habits such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, unhealthy eating, and lack of exercise significantly affect health. This research employed a combination of online academic databases and search engines to gather articles that explore the connection between public health psychology and subjective well-being (SWB). Key sources included Google Scholar and PsycINFO, focusing on literature relevant to SWB factors and theories. Selection criteria emphasized relevance, interdisciplinary approaches, journal impact, research location, and accuracy. Over 50 research publications were analysed, with 20 summarized for this study, centring on SWB empirical literature. Four broad theoretical categories were identified: evaluative theories, fulfilment and commitment theories, emotional theories, and personal orientation theories. Analysis revealed inconsistencies in theoretical and procedural frameworks, complicating systematic comparison of empirical findings. The research identified seven key factors influencing SWB: personality, socioeconomic status (SES), community support, faith and social norms, basic participant characteristics, and geography and infrastructure. These determinants highlight opportunities to strengthen the link between theory and empirical research. Furthermore, overlaps among determinants and theoretical categories suggest the potential for simultaneously testing multiple theories. This integrative approach could advance our understanding of SWB and its impact on public health.

Keywords: Psychology; Happiness; Public Health; Determinants; Correlates and Subjective Well-Being; Theories.

RESUMEN

El estudio de la psicología examina el pensamiento y el comportamiento humanos, que son esenciales para comprender la salud pública, ya que muchos resultados sanitarios están estrechamente ligados a las actividades humanas. Los malos hábitos, como el tabaquismo, el consumo excesivo de alcohol, la alimentación poco saludable y la falta de ejercicio, afectan considerablemente a la salud.Esta investigación empleó una combinación de bases de datos académicas en línea y motores de búsqueda para recopilar artículos que exploran la conexión entre la psicología de la salud pública y el bienestar subjetivo (BS). Las fuentes clave fueron Google Scholar y PsycINFO, centrándose en la bibliografía relacionada con los factores y las teorías del bienestar subjetivo. Los criterios de selección hicieron hincapié en la relevancia, los enfoques interdisciplinarios, el impacto de la revista, la ubicación de la investigación y la precisión. Se analizaron más de 50 publicaciones de investigación, de las que se resumieron 20 para este estudio, centradas en la literatura empírica sobre el SWB. Se identificaron cuatro grandes categorías teóricas: teorías evaluativas, teorías de la realización y el compromiso, teorías emocionales y teorías de la orientación personal. El análisis reveló incoherencias en los marcos teóricos y procedimentales, lo que complicó la comparación sistemática de los resultados empíricos. La investigación identificó siete factores clave que influyen en el SWB: personalidad, estatus socioeconómico (SES), apoyo comunitario, fe y normas sociales, características básicas de los participantes, y geografía e infraestructura. Estos factores determinantes ponen de relieve las oportunidades de reforzar el vínculo entre la teoría y la investigación empírica. Además, los solapamientos entre los factores determinantes y las categorías teóricas sugieren la posibilidad de probar simultáneamente múltiples teorías. Este enfoque integrador podría hacer avanzar nuestra comprensión del SWB y su impacto en la salud pública.

Palabras clave: Psicología; Felicidad; Salud Pública; Determinantes; Correlatos y Bienestar Subjetivo; Teorías.

INTRODUCTION

Psychology is the study of how people think and behave. Since many health outcomes are closely related to human activities, this knowledge is essential for public health. Habits like smoking, drinking alcohol, eating poorly, and exercising seldom all have a big effect on health. Public health experts may create treatments to encourage healthy habits by comprehending these behaviors and their underlying motivations.⁽¹⁾ Psychology has a direct impact on mental health, which is a crucial component of total health. Depression, anxiety, and stress are all serious problems for the public's health and may be helped by psychologists. Public health information dissemination may benefit from the consideration of psychology. People's attitudes, convictions, and actions about their health may be affected by effective communication. Persuasive and effective health messages may be developed using psychological ideas.⁽²⁾ Health inequalities, or variations in health outcomes across various populations, are a topic covered by both areas. The causes of these discrepancies, which often entail social, economic, and behavioral aspects, may be understood with the aid of psychology.⁽³⁾ Effective health policies may be established with the aid of knowledge about human behavior. For instance, understanding the psychological factors that contribute to smoking may be used to build a policy that successfully combats the practice. By assisting patients in coping with their conditions, adhering to treatment regimens, and maintaining a good quality of life, psychology may support the management of chronic illnesses.⁽⁴⁾ Numerous public health initiatives emphasize prevention and intervention. These programs may be created using psychological theories and methodologies, increasing their effectiveness. A public health crisis affects people's mental health, while public health researchers might utilize psychological ideas to help them understand how people behave when it comes to their health.⁽⁵⁾ Psychologists may contribute to larger health promotion programs. They could contribute to the creation of messages that urge vaccination, safe sex, or routine checkups for health. Health habits and the efficacy of public health initiatives may also be done by psychologists.⁽⁶⁾ Emotional responses, domain satisfactions, and overall ratings of life satisfaction are all part of the complex and comprehensive concept of SWB. They must investigate the many aspects of SWB, the variables that affect it, and how it might vary through time if they are to comprehend its dynamics.⁽⁷⁾ Three elements make up the majority of SWB components: The cognitive element, life satisfaction, reflects a person's overall evaluation of the quality of their existence. Positive feelings and moods, such as happiness, interest, and pride, are referred to as positive affect. The existence of unpleasant emotions and moods, such as melancholy, rage, and anxiety, is referred to as a negative effect.⁽⁸⁾ Factors Affecting SWB includes many variables that might affect someone's SWB, such as SWB may be greatly influenced by personality qualities (such as extraversion and neuroticism), self-esteem, optimism, and resilience. Additionally, social support, a feeling of community, and social ties may affect one's SWB. Wealth alone does not ensure high SWB, although it may be impacted by financial stability and the capacity to satisfy essential demands. The state of one's physical and mental health might affect SWB. For instance, having a chronic sickness or mental health issues might make you feel less happy. SWB may also be impacted by a person's living situation, safety, access to nature, and other features of the physical environment.⁽⁹⁾ Subjective health is dynamic and subject to change throughout time. Even while individuals often adjust to these changes over time, main existence events like getting married lose a job, or going through a health crisis may have a large negative influence on SWB. This pattern, called "hedonic adaptation," implies that after going through happy or unhappy life experiences, individuals often return to a relatively consistent degree of happiness. Interventions that may raise SWB are also of great interest. These might include anything from individual counselling and mindfulness exercises to societal measures meant to combat injustice and poverty. SWB is increasingly acknowledged as a component that may affect physical health, productivity, and social welfare in addition to being a significant effect.⁽¹⁰⁾

Related works

Research⁽¹¹⁾ proposed a model in which the connection between entrepreneurship (ES) and SWB is mediated by the degree to which one's inherent needs, such as autonomy and competence, are met via meaningful life involvement. The results indicate that there are significant advantages to ES in terms of personal and social-psychological functioning, which mediate the connection between ES and SWB. These results stress the importance of psychological functioning as a link between ES and happiness. Research⁽¹²⁾ analyzed the connection between material hardships experienced by middle-aged and older persons in Europe (aged 50+) and institutional trust, as well as their SWB and mental health. Self-rated health, Life satisfaction, mental health index, happiness, and psychological distress were strongly associated with respondents' perceptions of job and housing instability, deteriorating finances, and difficulty affording basic requirements in a regression study. Paper⁽¹³⁾ were to examine the hypothesis from goal contents theory that putting one's focus on one's own intrinsic goals rather than those of others increases one's sense of well-being by allowing one to better meet their own fundamental psychological needs and exercise control over their behavior. They pooled data from four prospective studies, each with the same five-wave design, to assess how aspirations affected year-to-year shifts in need fulfilment, goal motivation, and well-being among more than 1,400 college freshmen. Research⁽¹⁴⁾ examined the connections between spirituality, health-related behaviors, and mental health as they relate to formal education. Modeling the connection between the investigated components included using linear regression and path analysis. The results show that health-related activities and spirituality moderate the beneficial relationship between spirituality and psychological well-being. Using data from a pan-Canadian online survey of 932 children/youth and their parents, the research⁽¹⁵⁾ investigates children and youths' self-reported subjective well-being (SWB) during the pandemic and gives fresh insights into the predictors of possible decrease. Research⁽¹⁶⁾ provided a theoretical foundation for understanding well-being by separating apart objective and subjective methods, important dimensions, and new data sources utilized in measuring well-being, as well as highlighting significant findings. They also want to throw light on data sources and aspects that have seldom been studied but may hold the key to improving public safety and social development. Four academic databases were used in⁽¹⁷⁾ to perform a scoping review and a thematic analysis. Just City was searched together, drawing on current literature, and yielding 1481 search results, of which 52 satisfied the inclusion requirements. The research revealed three overarching themes, each of which had areas that needed further attention. Research⁽¹⁸⁾ analyzed data from four hundred and ninety-three rural Chinese households to determine the effect that smart phone usage (SU) has on their SWB using ordinary least squares, conditional quantile, and instrumental variable methods. After controlling for potential endogeneity, findings show that SU is associated with greater levels of both life satisfaction and happiness. The data also shows that when SU intensity is over 3 hours per day, both SWB measurements decrease. Research⁽¹⁹⁾ were to determine how meeting fundamental psychological requirements affected people's happiness levels throughout the epidemic. They looked at how the fulfilment or lack thereof with fundamental psychological demands (for autonomy, competence, and relatedness) might lead to either increased or decreased levels of well-being (life satisfaction or overall discomfort). Consistent with the tenets of Self-Determination Theory, these findings expand their knowledge of how people cope under extreme conditions, such as a pandemic, by pointing to the potential importance of the satisfaction and frustration of basic psychological needs. Research⁽²⁰⁾ were to examine the connection between excessive and normal smart phone use and several aspects of participants' mental health and happiness utilizing in-depth, theory-driven instruments. The findings revealed that problematic smart phone use was linked to decreased well-being across almost all scales. Disruptive smart phone use was most strongly correlated with a lack of concern for others, autonomy, and environmental mastery.

METHOD

The usage of subject-specific search engines with online education article libraries combined to find relevant papers. Both SWB theories and determinants were investigated throughout the search process. Articles were found using, PsycINFO, and Google Scholar. Titles, abstracts, and keywords were used to first filter the articles. Criteria for SWB theories were variations of the terms "SWB" and "SWB theories." Determinants were considered if they included terms like "SWB predictors" or "SWB determinants." Determinants were determined by formulating a second query using terms that appeared often in the first set of results. For instance, a search for "SWB determinants" yielded several results on the relationship between age and SWB, prompting a second search using the terms "age and SWB." Relevance, unique points of view, avoiding duplication, journal influence, research location, and subject area were some of the criteria used to evaluate the abstracts. From these results, for in-depth examination 50 articles dealing with determinants and correlates was selected. The chosen articles span the years 1968-2018. Importantly, this review is not meant to be a comprehensive study of the literature on SWB. To help shape the development of a paradigm that would make empirical research comparable and ease future systematic assessments, this study tries to identify areas of agreement and disagreement between theoretical and empirical bodies of prose.

RESULTS

Conceptual Framework of SWB

According to our research, most SWB theories are grounded in psychology and center on the underlying processes from end to end which an individual's SWB is influenced by both interior (e.g., genetic) and exterior (e.g., environmental) variables. Personal orientation, evaluative, emotional theories, Fulfilment, and engagement, are the four main types of SWB-related theories classified here. The various theories' underlying processes and intermediary constructions for what causes and influences SWB are summarized in figure 1 have attempted a first pass at integrating or synthesizing ideas by classifying them and the relationships between them.

Figure 1. Relationships between SWB theories

Expect that number to drastically shift when researchers devote time and energy to creating comprehensive testable hypotheses that can be concurrent to possible causes and correlates of SWB in the existing literature. According to these models, SWB is determined by a person's worldview, priorities, needs, activities, assessments, and emotions. Different hypotheses classify various mechanisms that may influence SWB. Goals, needs, and actions all play a role in how fulfilment and engagement theories describe SWB. Theories of personal orientation seek to explain how temperament impacts SWB by modifying the dynamic process of satisfaction and engagement, as well as how this readjustment of personal orientation leads to new goals and values. Personal assessments of one's life (the cognitive component of SWB) and their relationship to the experience of contentment and positive emotions are the primary focus of evaluative theories. Theories of emotion investigate the relationships between emotional experiences, satisfaction, and judgment.

Foundations of Personal Orientation

Looking at the relationship between SWB and individual temperament in pursuit of improved predictors. Many of these models postulate that our innate traits are the primary determinants of SWB. Although SWB has been linked to achieving certain goals, personal orientation theories suggest that other factors, such as a person's unique character and the context in which they live, maybe just as crucial. Situations might cause fluctuations above or below this mean, but they always find their way back to it.

Others have hypothesized that a person's SWB is affected not just by the events they face (such as marriage or job), but also by the emotional reactions they have to such situations. Among the Big 5 personality traits which also include agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism extroversion and neuroticism stand out as particularly related to SWB. Negative feelings including anxiety, frustration, wrath, loneliness, fear, and despair have all been connected to neuroticism. Some of the traits associated with extroversion include sociability, gregariousness, optimism, and a desire for novel experiences. Personal orientation plays an important part in SWB since it may influence one's starting point for SWB, level of activity participation, life experiences, and outlook on life.

Models of Employee Fulfilment and Productivity

Telic theories make up the first group, which includes fulfilment and engagement theories. According to these ideas, SWB rises when certain requirements or objectives are satisfied. The works emphasize these ideas. According to this theory, "the persistence of unmet needs cause unhappiness and the satisfaction of needs causes’ happiness." There are two types of telic theories: need- and goal-focused. The focus of need-based theories is on the satisfaction of wants, both innate and acquired, that a person may or may not be aware of but that, if satisfied, contribute to SWB. According to goal-based theories, SWB results from an individual's successful pursuit of their own self-defined goals. Emotions are the topic of yet another category of ideas about satisfaction and engagement. Both pleasure and pain are linked to the satisfaction of needs and the attainment of goals, as these ideas point out. Thus, the ideas of pleasure and pain are interrelated, since they both depend on the individual's level of psychological investment in the satisfaction of a particular want or need. The more someone is emotionally invested, the greater their sense of fulfilment (or disappointment) when their goal is attained. While most of these theories focus on the pleasant and bad feelings one may experience as a result of engaging in actions taken in pursuit of one's objectives and goals, others go so far as to incorporate actual material resources. Some researchers have proposed that one must first experience material hardship before one's mind can fully commit to a cause. According to the postulates of process theory, feel pain when lose something good and pleasure when lose something unpleasant. The third category of ideas on happiness and engagement is concerned with the experience of living, as opposed to the assessments and feelings that may follow from an event. Some ideas, some of which can be traced, claim that SWB is a result of human activity, with more involvement leading to greater SWB when the activity is executed well and is a good match for the individual's skill set. According to the theory of flow, a person will get the maximum enjoyment out of their activities when the difficulty of those activities is just right for them. Scholars have suggested that concentrating on goals leads to SWB as a result, rather than actively seeking it out. Despite their pervasiveness in academic writing, ideas of satisfaction and engagement are seldom systematically defined or experimentally evaluated. Several contentious universal human wants have been presented and debated in telic theories. However, testing these hypotheses is challenging due to the fuzziness around the definition of worldwide needs or objectives. However, it's important to remember that eudemonic and hedonic conceptions of SWB may be reconciled with the help of fulfilment and engagement theories. Earlier, established that the hedonic and eudemonic perspectives on SWB diverge in their emphasis on the importance of a person's actualization of potential and the presence of desirable traits, respectively. The psychological community has been at odds for quite some time over whether or not eudemonic and hedonic SWB are separate phenomena. Important points of convergence and overlap between these two concepts are shown by the theories of fulfilment and engagement.

Models of Emotional Response

Emotion theories investigate the several pathways via which good and negative emotions influence SWB. Although there is some overlap between this deposit of theories and fulfilment and engagement theories, which highlight the connection between positive and negative emotions and the achievement of needs and goals, respectively, emotion theories are nonetheless significant extensions because they show other mechanisms by which emotion concerns actions and reinforce SWB. One such development is the expansion and building idea of pleasant feelings.

The theory investigates the structure and utility of a group of encouraging emotions, including delight, curiosity, contentment, and love. One's repertory of fleeting thoughts and actions may be expanded, according to this hypothesis. The second basic idea of this theory is that pleasant emotions have long-lasting effects, contributing to the development of an individual's physical, intellectual, social, and psychological capital. Long-term SWB is reinforced by a positive feedback loop that includes newly constructed resources and expanded activities. Affective experiences are analyzed in other theories by the use of associative memory networks. Higher SWB is a result of the happy memories triggered by positive events. Memory retrieval is influenced by the emotional state of the remembering person. Affective conditioning occurs as a result of repeated emotional experiences and may be very difficult to erase. Individuals who have experienced plenty of good feelings evoked by consistently favorable stimuli may be the happiest. The conditioned approach to happiness is consistent with the fact that emotional responses occur quickly and independently of the cognitive appraisal of inputs.

Assessment Frameworks

According to the many theories of evaluation, SWB consists of an internal comparison of one's life, situations, or circumstances to some kind of objective or subjective norm. If one's personal circumstances improve to the point that SWB increases, the converse is also true. These evaluations and SWB levels might be deliberate, as in life assessment, or automatic, as in emotional processing. For this reason, evaluative theories see assessments as crucial to and drivers of SWB. The formulation of the criterion employed for comparison allows us to further categorize evaluative theories into two distinct categories. In social constructionism, comparability is often established about one's contemporaries. An individual's SWB increases when they believe they are better off than the average person. A person's history is often utilized as a benchmark in the fields of adaptation and range frequency theory. A higher standard of living SWB is a result of living above and above this norm. The concept of what SWB is drives the comparison standard rather than experience, event, or sensation. Particular attention should be paid to adaptation theory because of its relevance to the process of norm formation. Everyone has their own unique SWB baseline that may change for the better or the worse depending on their current circumstances. It is distinct from the aforementioned attribute primary significance to a person's unique quirks and preferences in establishing a comfortable settling in period. According to the notion of adaptation, events may have either a positive or negative effect on SWB in the short term. A person's SWB becomes less affected by traumatic experiences as they become more familiar and are dealt with over time. Exceptional personal life experiences will boost SWB, but if they persist, the individual will eventually adjust to the new norm and the improvement in SWB will be lost.

Divergences and Convergences Among Theoretical Frameworks

The study identifies three major problems in happiness and engagement theory: a lack of conceptual development into quantifiable and testable frameworks, debates on personality dimensions, and few efforts to combine theoretical/conceptual frameworks. This results in theories being competing and overlapping, reducing cross-disciplinary comparison and synthesis. Knowledge gaps exist on how culture, standards of comparison and personal orientation affect the degree of SWB required to complete goals and needs. Eudemonic theories may overlap with these ideas, as they explore the function of emotion in developing strengths and buffers.

Factors Influencing Subjective Well-Being

The literature on SWB has been categorized into four groups for evaluating comparability. The dimensions of SWB studied, the measurement of SWB used, the design of the study, the study population, and the determinants or correlates used are all crucial factors in determining the comparability of studies. The literature presents a wide range of SWB conceptualizations, with most studies ignoring the evaluative/cognitive dimension (EVA) and emotional/affective dimension (EMO) aspects. The use of different instruments to evaluate different aspects of SWB can lead to inconsistencies across studies. The study population requires similar samples for broad conclusions and meaningful comparisons. The determinants or correlates used are also critical for systematic comparisons, as consistent model definitions are essential for comparing possible effect sizes.

Aspects of SWB Investigated

It looked at potential predictors examined both EVA and EMO. More research in psychology than in public health used both components of SWB. In both the psychological and public health fields, EVA was the most often examined SWB dimension.

Evaluation of SWB used

Measures of SWB typically fall into one of two categories: single-item and multi-item. Multi-item questions were used more often than single-item questions (in the studies that were analyzed. Both EVA and EMO had very equal distributions of psychological and public health investigations. There were 139 different ways that EMO and EVA were measured in the studies that were analyzed. For EVA, the most widely used instrument was the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), whereas for EMO, the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) was the gold standard. Twenty-two percent of the public health studies and forty percent of the psychological research utilized the SWLS (figure 2).

Figure 2. An outline of the examined literature's breakdown by study duration, SWB dimension, and predictors and correlations

Figure 3. Partial correlations between VIA character strengths and a variety of health-related behaviors

Table 1. Various health-related behavior (5 factors), and the character traits emphasized by the VIA categorization
Factors	Total	R²
Emotional	0,29	0,3
Interpersonal	0,28	0,14
Restraint	0,26	0,08
Intellectual	0,3	0,16
Theological	0,05	0,15

Figure 3 and table 1 shows cross-sectional relationships between VIA character qualities and a range of health-related activities.

Research Methodology and Sample Characteristics

Eighty-three (or almost all) of the studies were cross-sectional, 15 was longitudinal, and 7 used methods from both. The percentage of cross-sectional studies in psychology was higher than that in public health. Not a single study used any kind of experimental or quasi-experimental methodology. The distribution of study populations, with 24 focusing on adults, 23 on seniors, 17 on patients with a medical condition, nine on only college students, and only 4 using geographically representative samples. While college students have only really been the subject of psychological research, public health studies tend to centre on patients with a specific ailment.

Factors Considered

Found seven major areas of SWB determinants/correlations: socioeconomic status, personality, social support, religious affiliation and cultural norms, physical environment, and institutional support. Ninety-one included basic demographics, sixty-five included socioeconomic status, seventy-four included health and functioning, twenty-seven included personality, thirty-five included social supports, seventeen Public health research was more likely to center on socioeconomic status, health, and function, whereas psychology research was more likely to center on individual differences. Only 58 of the studies looked at three or more factors. In addition to the problems encountered, discovered that only 22 percent of the examined research discussed SWB ideas (without necessarily testing them) when assessed prior studies using our comparability criteria. Higher rates of theory incorporation were seen while studying EMO compared to EVA, and when studying psychology (28 % vs. 18 %) compared to studying public health. The word "determinant" suggests a causal relationship between all of the factors and SWB, which may not always be the case. Even though set out to investigate what factors may influence SWB, soon found that the studies that often used the phrase "determinants of SWB" were, at best, only correlational.

Basic Participant Characteristics

A person's age, gender, and race/ethnicity are the cornerstones of basic demographics. Discovered that in the majority of the research looked at, simple demographic factors were utilized as a kind of bias control. Discovered that studies that focused on age and race/ethnicity paid more attention to evaluative/cognitive dimension (EVA), whereas those that focused on gender paid more attention to EMO. Generally, EVA has been the focus of research on the direct effect of aging on SWB, and the findings have been mixed. U-shaped relationships, which tend to flatten out around age 40, were seen in some research, while others found positive associations, negative associations, or no associations at all. The effects of aging on seniors' SWB have been connected to a variety of factors, including physical decline, continued personal development, changing family responsibilities, retirement, and social loss. Research focusing on gender has also shown contradictory findings. For instance, studies have linked being a woman to SWB both favourably and adversely. However, there is widespread consensus that women are more prone to powerful emotional reactions than males, with both sexes reporting higher levels of negative and positive feelings when exposed to the same stimuli. In addition to biological differences, studies have shown that variations in self-efficacy, self-esteem, thankfulness, optimism, and susceptibility to disorders like depression and anxiety contribute to gender-based disparities in emotional experience.

Faith and Societal Norms

Both religious and cultural factors are considered important in the sources used for this analysis, and they are often intermingled. Subjective measures (such as religiosity or individualist vs. communal culture) and objective measures (such as the frequency of church attendance) are often used to assess them. The majority of these reports centred on EVA. Given the small sample size of available research, it may be too soon to draw firm conclusions on the reliability of the results. The current body of literature reveals that religion and culture influence SWB in many ways. These methods include psychological effects, coping strategies, and SWB conception. Active religiosity (what most people mean when they say they are religious) and regular church attendance are strongly correlated with EVA. Through their effects on SWB (whether seen as an individual or communal notion), comparison criteria for EVA, optimism, religion, and culture also affect EVA. Optimism, methods of dealing with stress and difficult situations, and a sense of belonging all play a role in EMO, and they are all influenced by religious and cultural norms.

SES

Income, education, occupation, immigrant status, and family structure are all factors in SES. Discovered that socioeconomic status correlates were utilized as control variables in the majority of research, much like basic demographics. Income was the primary focus of SES research, followed by family composition, professional standing, level of education, and citizenship. Objective indicators of socioeconomic status (SES) included things like income, marital status, and employment status; subjective measures included things like wealth satisfaction, income adequacy, and marital contentment. EVA has received greater attention in SES research than EMO. Most research on socioeconomic status determinants and correlations has focused on EMO as it pertains to the family unit. The link between financial stability and SWB is well accepted. However, the mechanism through which this occurs is hotly contested. The effects of negative emotions like fear may be mitigated by a greater income, but this does not prove that a higher income leads to a higher SWB. At very low incomes, income may have a more significant impact on SWB, although this effect may diminish as fundamental requirements are fulfilled. The extent to which one's material, social, health, accomplishment, and future security needs are met, as well as other factors, may be correlated with one's income. While research has indicated a small correlation between education and EVA, which correlation is heavily impacted by wealth and other socioeconomic factors. The desire for integration and the scarcity of resources, according to the little research that exists, may also explain why immigrants, on average, have a lower SWB than less recently arrived inhabitants. When it comes to the composition of one's family, marriage or cohabitation that is both permanent and happy has a beneficial effect on SWB. However, the impact is different for people of different ages and sexes. Few and inconsistent research have looked at the effects of having children, with some suggesting that raising a family might increase stress and unpleasant emotions. When the care recipient is handicapped or when the care giver has full-time work in addition to caring for the disabled person, child, parent, relative, or other family member, the caregiver's SWB suffers. It has been observed that a person's anxieties and confidence in their ability to handle those issues are influenced emotionally by a mix of family structure and economic satisfaction.

Community Support

Objective (such as the number of friends or interactions) and subjective measures were used in the studies that fell into this category. Both the EVA and EMO sides of SWB were examined in these types of investigations. Perceived social support from family, friends, acquaintances, and the community has repeatedly been proven to have a favorable influence on SWB. There is evidence to suggest that a person's EVA is affected by their social network's size, quality of connections, and frequency of interactions. EMO is also impacted by factors such as a lack of social support and prejudice. Moreover, these results point to loneliness, low self-esteem, and stress as possible intermediaries between social support and SWB. The importance of social support to EVA may also be higher for the elderly or those with health issues or impairments than it is for the general population.

Geography and infrastructure

In this kind of research, researchers measured geography and infrastructure using both objective and subjective indicators. There was a major emphasis on EVA. Again, the small sample size of available research makes it difficult to draw firm conclusions on the reliability of the results. In most cases, the research compared the EVA of people living in various areas, such as different neighborhood or towns. Residents in economically depressed regions and city dwellers have been shown to have lower EVA compared to their rural and city-dwelling counterparts. A person's expected value of life may be affected by the values and expectations of their community. Evidence from the few available research suggests that inequalities in the availability of food, water, and sanitation; home living circumstances; recreational and transit options may all affect SWB. This study only included research from the fields of public health and psychology; studies from the fields of geography and infrastructure were excluded. However, to propose possible study areas for public health and psychology, it is helpful to highlight certain discoveries from other disciplines. Different SWB determinants/correlates have been observed to emerge at various spatial scales. Studies back the claim that higher SWB is associated with better economic growth and prosperity, greater protection of individual liberties and political rights, less corruption, more efficient government operations, fairer taxation, greater job, and income security, fewer political rights violations, lower unemployment rates, better health, and greater income equality. It has been shown that pollution; crime, living expenses, congestion, traffic, isolation, and a lack of green places all contribute to lower EVA for city dwellers, particularly those in bigger counties and metropolitan regions. Similarly, the states of the local job market, the cost of living, and the availability of recreational opportunities all have a role in shaping SWB. It has also been discovered that people's subjective evaluations of their local surroundings affect SWB. However, global and local SWB are negatively impacted by climate change and environmental deterioration. Loss of biodiversity, tainted food, invading species, and pollution all contribute to a decrease in SWB as a result of climate change. The research discussed here provides insight into the factors that may play a role in shaping SWB and how they could interact with one another.

Personality

Research on personality can be divided into two categories: studies that focused on the Big Five personality traits (openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, neuroticism, and agreeableness) and those that examined more complex personalities. Usually, subjective personality measures were used to assess personality. Many studies have shown that SWB is influenced by characteristics outside the Big Five. The Big Five theory proposes that conscientiousness, extroversion, and positive emotions are all linked to EVA, whereas neuroticism and negative emotions are linked to introversion and depression. People who are more extroverted have a more intense emotional response to happy occurrences, whereas those who are more neurotic have the opposite reaction. Self-esteem, optimism and self-efficacy are three elements that may mitigate the result of personality on EVA. The values of EVA and EMO might change as a result of adaptation. There seems to be a two-way connection between SWB and character traits; those who are more extroverted, pleasant, conscientious, and emotionally stable also report higher levels of EVA.

Four Theories

Theories of Satisfaction and Involvement

Identification of goals and needs, involvement in various activities, and accessibility to resources all rely on the fundamental demographic, socioeconomic, and psychological traits of an individual. Furthermore, a person's personality may help or impede them in achieving their objectives and goals. The capacity to satisfy one's needs and accomplish one's objectives may be significantly impacted by one's health, in addition to acting as a resource and a coping mechanism. When faced with difficulty, a person's religious or cultural upbringing may help them cope. It can also help them recognize and meet their own needs and aspirations. Infrastructure and locational considerations, for example, have a further impact on the accessibility of resources and the chance that participants would engage in desired activities.

Personal orientation theories

Simple demographics may have a role in shaping one's perspective. Age and gender in particular may have an impact on more complex personality qualities like optimism and self-efficacy. Self-esteem and other subtler aspects of a person's character may be influenced by their socioeconomic status and the social support they get. Disability and the intrusiveness of medical issues are two examples of health and functional factors that might affect one's worldview. Self-efficacy, optimism, and Long-term self-esteem are all influenced by one's cultural background and religious beliefs. Finally, location and infrastructure impact individual perspective by encouraging healthful practices like exercise and providing access to restorative environments like the outdoors.

Analytical Theories

People's evaluations are impacted by factors such as their socioeconomic status, personality, health and functioning, religious beliefs, cultural norms, and physical environment. Personality factors into whether or how individuals compare themselves to more or less stringent criteria, as well as how they interpret the findings of such comparisons. Evaluation is influenced by social support since it serves as a safety net and means of dealing with stress. Religion and culture also shape how individuals place significance on the outcomes of comparisons and how they deal with those outcomes. Individuals consider to be close neighbours are influenced by geography and infrastructure.

Theoretical Perspectives on Emotion

One's socioeconomic status, health, and level of functioning all have a role in the kinds of challenges and opportunities one encounters in life, which in turn affects the likelihood that one will feel good about themselves. To a large extent, our personalities shape how react to and process the ups and downs of life (e.g., optimists vs pessimists). Having someone you can lean on through tough times is a valuable resource. Finally, localized experiences and pressures that impact emotions (such as crime and the economy) are influenced by location and infrastructure. These results are preliminary, but they do hint at the possibility of a full set of determinants against which to evaluate hypotheses. Future systematic studies may give further evidence for these possible relationships and assist develop more comprehensive frameworks on the determinants of SWB.

CONCLUSIONS

Understanding the factors that influence people's emotional states may be aided by research at the crossroads of psychology and public health. Have a better knowledge of the relationship between an individual's feeling of well-being and public health outcomes because to study and cooperation across these two sectors. The field of psychology has shed light on the individual differences that contribute to overall happiness, stress levels, and life satisfaction. The importance of mental qualities including confidence, resiliency, social support, and stress tolerance has been highlighted. To create successful public health interventions and policies that promote well-being, knowledge of these psychological variables is essential. Relevancy, interdisciplinary approaches, journal influence, research location, and correctness were all considered while selecting articles for the review. Future research efforts in numerous areas are highlighted that might make this possible. Furthermore, the relevance of preventative techniques in increasing SWB has been stressed as a result of the merging of psychology and public health. Successfully avoid mental health illnesses and enhance general well-being by addressing risk factors and encouraging protective factors, such as social connectivity, good mental health, and healthy lifestyle practices. An emphasis on prevention is crucial for improving the health of populations and lowering the strain on healthcare systems.

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FINANCING

The authors did not receive financing for the development of this research.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

AUTHORSHIP CONTRIBUTION

Data curation: Rishabh Bhardwaj, Ajab Singh Choudhary, Devanshu J. Patel, Basudev Biswal, Lovish Dhingra, Tulsidas A. Patil.

Formal analysis: Rishabh Bhardwaj, Ajab Singh Choudhary, Devanshu J. Patel, Basudev Biswal, Lovish Dhingra, Tulsidas A. Patil.

Drafting - original draft: Rishabh Bhardwaj, Ajab Singh Choudhary, Devanshu J. Patel, Basudev Biswal, Lovish Dhingra, Tulsidas A. Patil.

Writing - proofreading and editing: Rishabh Bhardwaj, Ajab Singh Choudhary, Devanshu J. Patel, Basudev Biswal, Lovish Dhingra, Tulsidas A. Patil.