Affective Well-Being

Summary

Affective well-being describes the balance between positive and negative emotional experiences and is of interest for the research on well-being in psychology and economics as well as in the social sciences in general. The scale consists of four items and has been used in the SOEP since 2007.

Theoretical Background

In the psychological literature, subjective well-being is assumed to consist of two components: cognitive well-being and affective well-being (Schimmack et al., 2002). Here, affective well-being represents the emotional component of subjective well-being. In contrast to cognitive well-being, which is based on reflexive evaluation of subjective well-being, affective well-being hinges on the balance between positive and negative emotions (Sumner, 1996). The distinction between cognitive and affective well-being is important for the scientific investigation of subjective well-being and for policy considerations about public well-being. If the aim is to maximize subjective well-being on both the individual and the social level, and if the two are indeed separate components, it is crucial to measure their relative importance. Despite the importance of distinguishing between cognitive and affective well-being, their relationship has been researched little to date (Schimmack, 2009). Their relationship also highlights the need to examine factors such as unemployment that potentially influence subjective well-being (e.g., Schimmack et al., 2008). Conceptually, the relationship between affective well-being and other general personality characteristics is also of interest.

Scale Development

Theoretical considerations and results from the 2006 SOEP pretest led to the construction of a scale consisting of four items. One item deals with positive experiences (“happy”), while the other three items deal with negative experiences (annoyed, afraid, sad; Schimmack, 2009). In the pilot study, the measure constructed in this manner showed a high correlation with a longer measure of affective balance consisting of 10 items and produced results that are consistent with the previous results in the relevant psychological literature (Schimmack et al., 2008).

References

Schimmack, U. 2009. Measuring wellbeing in the SOEP. Schmollers Jahrbuch, 129, 241-249.

Schimmack, U. Diener, E., & Oishi, S. (2002). Life-Satisfaction is a momentary judgment and a stable personality characteristic: The use of chronically accessible and stable sources. Journal of Personality, 70, 345-384.

Schimmack, U., Schupp, J., & Wagner, G. G. (2008). The influence of environment and personality on the affective and cognitive component of subjective well-being. Social Indicators Research, 89, 41-60.

Sumner, L. W. (1996): Welfare, happiness, and ethics. Oxford: University Press.

Items

I will now read to you a number of feelings. Please indicate for each feeling how often or rarely you experienced this feeling in the last four weeks (Ich lese Ihnen eine Reihe von Gefühlen vor. Geben Sie bitte jeweils an, wie häufig oder selten Sie dieses Gefühl in den letzten vier Wochen erlebt haben):

1. Angry (ärgerlich gefühlt)?

2. Worried (ängstlich gefühlt)?

3. Happy (glücklich gefühlt)?

4. Sad (traurig gefühlt)?

Scale: 1 (Very rarely / Sehr selten) to 5 (Very often / Sehr oft)

Test-Retest Correlations

In 2009, this scale was included in a retest taken by a subsample (N = 164 completed the scale) within 30 to 49 days after the initial test. Test-retest correlations for the items were (in scale order) .46, .49, .51, and .46; scale scores correlated .54.

Items and Scale Statistics

year	variable	count	mean	sd	itemrestcorr	alpha
2007	plh0184	20829	2.89	1.03	0.40	0.66
2007	plh0185	20796	1.96	1.01	0.49	0.66
2007	plh0186R	20815	2.53	0.87	0.30	0.66
2007	plh0187	20819	2.39	1.04	0.57	0.66
2008	plh0184	19631	2.82	0.99	0.41	0.68
2008	plh0185	19602	1.94	0.98	0.50	0.68
2008	plh0186R	19605	2.52	0.86	0.36	0.68
2008	plh0187	19620	2.38	1.03	0.57	0.68
2009	plh0184	20722	2.78	1.00	0.39	0.65
2009	plh0185	20666	1.93	0.98	0.49	0.65
2009	plh0186R	20691	2.55	0.88	0.29	0.65
2009	plh0187	20689	2.37	1.02	0.56	0.65
2010	plh0184	18859	2.74	0.96	0.38	0.66
2010	plh0185	18844	1.95	0.96	0.49	0.66
2010	plh0186R	18850	2.52	0.86	0.33	0.66
2010	plh0187	18852	2.38	1.02	0.58	0.66
2011	plh0184	20969	2.75	1.01	0.40	0.65
2011	plh0185	20936	1.97	0.98	0.50	0.65
2011	plh0186R	20954	2.49	0.88	0.28	0.65
2011	plh0187	20965	2.41	1.02	0.57	0.65
2012	plh0184	20753	2.72	0.99	0.40	0.67
2012	plh0185	20741	1.91	0.96	0.50	0.67
2012	plh0186R	20739	2.45	0.85	0.35	0.67
2012	plh0187	20745	2.33	1.01	0.56	0.67
2013	plh0184	25919	2.81	1.00	0.42	0.68
2013	plh0185	25895	1.91	0.96	0.50	0.68
2013	plh0186R	25909	2.43	0.84	0.35	0.68
2013	plh0187	25921	2.35	1.01	0.58	0.68
2014	plh0184	27400	2.80	1.02	0.42	0.68
2014	plh0185	27379	1.90	0.97	0.50	0.68
2014	plh0186R	27384	2.39	0.84	0.35	0.68
2014	plh0187	27384	2.34	1.03	0.57	0.68
2015	plh0184	25338	2.79	1.00	0.42	0.67
2015	plh0185	25307	1.92	0.97	0.49	0.67
2015	plh0186R	25332	2.40	0.84	0.36	0.67
2015	plh0187	25320	2.33	1.02	0.56	0.67
2016	plh0184	24474	2.77	1.02	0.42	0.67
2016	plh0185	24451	1.96	0.98	0.49	0.67
2016	plh0186R	24464	2.40	0.84	0.32	0.67
2016	plh0187	24459	2.32	1.01	0.56	0.67
2017	plh0184	26742	2.75	1.00	0.41	0.67
2017	plh0185	26734	1.92	0.97	0.51	0.67
2017	plh0186R	26738	2.36	0.82	0.34	0.67
2017	plh0187	26733	2.31	1.01	0.55	0.67
2018	plh0184	25850	2.75	1.01	0.42	0.67
2018	plh0185	25836	1.90	0.97	0.50	0.67
2018	plh0186R	25845	2.37	0.83	0.36	0.67
2018	plh0187	25847	2.30	1.01	0.56	0.67
2019	plh0184	26013	2.72	1.02	0.42	0.67
2019	plh0185	25992	1.87	0.96	0.51	0.67
2019	plh0186R	26004	2.35	0.82	0.34	0.67
2019	plh0187	26009	2.28	1.00	0.56	0.67
2020	plh0184	26064	2.72	1.01	0.42	0.67
2020	plh0185	26063	2.06	1.03	0.49	0.67
2020	plh0186R	26062	2.38	0.84	0.36	0.67
2020	plh0187	26061	2.32	1.01	0.56	0.67