Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-23-2024
Abstract
Subjective well-being (SWB) is often described as being U-shaped over adulthood, declining to a midlife slump and then improving thereafter. Improved SWB in later adulthood has been considered a paradox given age-related declines in health and social losses. While SWB has mostly been studied in high-income countries, it remains largely unexplored in rural subsistence populations lacking formal institutions that reliably promote social welfare. Here, we evaluate the age profile of SWB among three small-scale subsistence societies (n = 468; study 1), forest users from 23 low-income countries (n = 6987; study 2), and Tsimane’ horticulturalists (n = 1872; study 3). Across multiple specifications, we find variability in SWB age profiles. In some cases, we find no age-related differences in SWB or even inverted U-shapes. Adjusting for confounders reduces observed age effects. Our findings highlight variability in average well-being trajectories over the life course. Ensuring successful aging will require a greater focus on cultural and socioecological determinants of individual trajectories.
Recommended Citation
Gurven, M., Buoro, Y., Rodriguez, D. E., Sayre, K., Trumble, B., Pyhälä, A., Kaplan, H., Angelsen, A., Stieglitz, J., & Reyes-García, V. (2024). Subjective well-being across the life course among non-industrialized populations. Science Advances, 10(43), eado0952. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ado0952
Supplementary Materials
Peer Reviewed
1
Copyright
The authors
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
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Comments
This article was originally published in Science Advances, volume 10, issue 43, in 2024. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.ado0952