THE MODERATING EFFECT OF INCOME ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HAPPINESS AND TRUST IN PEOPLE

Abstract

Happiness has become an important factor in economics, public policy, and psychology. Many people try to work for happiness. There are many factors that influence happiness, including a good income, health, and life satisfaction. Trust, an important aspect of social relationships, plays a significant role in happiness, though its real-world impact can sometimes be limited. In this research, the World Values Survey Wave 7 dataset 2017–2022 including 51,580 respondents living in many countries around the world was used to show that higher levels of social trust are associated with better life evaluations, more positive feelings, and fewer negative emotions. This study proposes two hypotheses: (1): The trust in people is positively associated with the individual happiness, and (2) Income has a positive interaction effect on the relationship between trust in familiar people and Happiness; and (3): Income has a negative interaction effect on the relationship between trust in unfamiliar people and Happiness.