What makes cities happy? Factors contributing to life satisfaction in European cities

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify the main factors of city life satisfaction across Europe. Data come from the recent fifth survey on quality of life in European cities and cover 83 cities located in the European Union, the European Free Trade Association countries, the United Kingdom, the Western Balkan Region and Turkey. In addition to running classical econometric analysis, we quantify the relative importance of the various determinants of overall satisfaction with life in cities, thus offering novel insights to shape evidence-based urban policies. The results highlight that two main policy-relevant areas contribute to the satisfaction with city life: the presence of amenities, on the one hand, and the inclusiveness and safety feeling, on the other hand. Socio-economic characteristics are generally not relevant, with the exception of economic insecurity. JEL Codes: R10, R58, I31

The intuitionistic fuzzy synthetic measure in a dynamic analysis of the subjective quality of life of citizens of European cities

“…smarter, greener, more connected, and more social Europe and a Europe closer to citizens -will mobilise substantial investment in urban areas. In addition, 8% of the resources of the European Regional Development Fund in each Member State will be allocated to the implementation of projects and investments that will be identified by the cities themselves based on their sustainable development strategies (Castelli et al, 2022). Strategic planning, which results in various types of public policy documents, including local, sustainable development strategies, allows us to accurately determine the most important directions and goals of city development and plan activities, projects, and investments aimed at improving the quality of life of city residents.…”