Public expenditures and life satisfaction: Evidence from Turkey

Acar Ü., Tirgil A.

Developing Economies, vol.61, no.1, pp.36-56, 2023 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 61 Issue: 1
  • Publication Date: 2023
  • Doi Number: 10.1111/deve.12343
  • Journal Name: Developing Economies
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, International Bibliography of Social Sciences, ABI/INFORM, Business Source Elite, Business Source Premier, CAB Abstracts, EconLit, Geobase, Index Islamicus, PAIS International, Political Science Complete, Sociological abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  • Page Numbers: pp.36-56
  • Keywords: Life satisfaction, Ordered probit model, Public expenditures, TurkStat Life Satisfaction Survey
  • Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

© 2022 Institute of Developing Economies.Gross domestic product has been the primary development indicator for nearly a century and has played an important role in designing and evaluating public policies and comparing countries' development levels. On the other hand, the last two decades have seen a growing trend toward alternative well-being indicators. One of these alternative indicators is life satisfaction. We study the relationship between public expenditures such as health, education, and recreation and people's life satisfaction. We employ the OLS and ordered probit models utilizing a large representative household survey with more than 196,000 observations from Turkey. Our findings indicate that health, education, and recreation expenditures are positively associated with individuals' life satisfaction. We also explore potential mechanisms underlying the significant effects of public expenditures on life satisfaction. These significant correlations may be driven by satisfaction with health services, educational services, and social life.