Linking residential relocation desires and behaviour with life domain satisfaction

Abstract

Life satisfaction and motives for moving home are complex entanglements, reflecting multiple desires and experiences. The aim of this paper is to show that a focused analysis of satisfaction with particular life domains can prove that changing a place of residence is not only a life stressor, but also a positive means leading to enduring improvements in individual satisfaction. Using the British Household Panel Survey we examine overall life satisfaction and satisfaction in various life domains such as housing, job, social life, household income, spouse/partner and health, both prior to and after moving. A temporal pattern of movers' satisfaction for a number of years before and after the move is derived employing a fixed-effects panel data model. Our results reveal that residential relocation increases housing satisfaction considerably. The positive effect of moving on housing satisfaction is much stronger and endures longer for those with a sustained desire to relocate ahead of movement. Despite some decrease over time, five years after moving survey respondents still had significantly higher housing satisfaction than before their move. Changes in satisfaction with other life domains are much less pronounced and no lasting improvements in satisfaction are observed for them.

Quantitative Models of Well-Being to Inform Policy: Problems and Opportunities

“…The first round of objections to the validity of the SWB approach focused on questioning whether respondents all interpret the subjective scale in the same manner. However, although measurement of SWB appears to rely on an assumption of individual rationality (which a large literature on cognitive bias tells us is unwarranted), SWB has been demonstrated to correlate reliably with many objective measures, such as age [17], income [18], genetics [19], relationships, discrimination against sexual minorities [20], parenting [21], employment and health [22][23][24], innovation [25], living arrangements [26,27], migration [28,29], empowerment [30], environment [31] and mixtures of all the above [32] (although a reviewer of this paper notes a research gap in the meta-analysis of studies of this nature). SWB is also less susceptible than might be thought to measurement bias caused by differences between nations and cultures [33].…”

“…If high well-being people are intrinsically more likely to move to the Outer Hebrides, then we can argue that the place is irrelevant; conversely, if the well-being of people who moved to the Outer Hebrides was contingent on them moving there, then the place is important after all. Generalizing from this example, although research exists on the well-being effects of (motivations for) relocation [29,59], spatial models of well-being are likely to be incomplete unless we first succeed in modeling residential location choice-based on factors that likely include aspirations and age-and then ensure these same factors are included in the well-being model. Established agent-based residential location choice models may be suited to this task (http://silo.zone/hhRelocation.html; http://www.urbansim.com/urbansim/) and, as people typically also spend time in places other than their home location, time use models may also be suitable [60,61].…”

The Chinese Socio-Cultural Sustainability Approach: The Impact of Conservation Planning on Local Population and Residential Mobility

“…For instance, the distribution of public facilities, housing prices, and job opportunities are decisive in the residential choice of a person or family [44,45]. However, before the act of relocation, the living quality of present housing, sense of community, and changes in age, income, marriage status, or family structure might affect residential satisfaction and fuel a subjective desire to move [46][47][48].…”

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“…According to Amerigo and Aragones (1997) residential satisfaction is defined as the positive emotional state an individual feels towards his or her living environment and which will influence his or her behaviour to maintain or increase the link with that environment. It is often associated with the migration intentions of residents (Frijters et al 2011) and especially within neighbourhoods in the same city (Nowok et al 2018). Previous research has proved the relationship: the less satisfied a person is with residence, the greater is his desire to move (Fang 2006;Nowok et al 2018).…”

“…It is often associated with the migration intentions of residents (Frijters et al 2011) and especially within neighbourhoods in the same city (Nowok et al 2018). Previous research has proved the relationship: the less satisfied a person is with residence, the greater is his desire to move (Fang 2006;Nowok et al 2018).…”