People in historically rice-farming areas are less happy and socially compare more than people in wheat-farming areas

Bibliographic Data

ID10164240
AuthorsCheol-Sung Lee (0000-0003-3661-981X, University of Chicago, corresponding author), Thomas Talhelm (0000-0002-0954-5758, Booth University College), Xiawei Dong (0000-0002-0946-8596, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)
Year2022
Volume124
Issue5
Pages935-957
Publication date2022-11-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Personality and Social Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-3514 • E-ISSN: 1939-1315
PublisherAmerican Psychological Association (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1037/pspa0000324
PMID36326675
OpenAlexW4308058271
LanguageEN
Citations received6

Using two nationally representative surveys, we find that people in China's historically rice-farming areas are less happy than people in wheat areas. This is a puzzle because the rice area is more interdependent, and relationships are an important predictor of happiness. We explore how the interdependence of historical rice farming may have paradoxically undermined happiness by creating more social comparison than wheat farming. We build a framework in which rice farming leads to social comparison, which makes people unhappy (especially people who are worse off). If people in rice areas socially compare more, then people's happiness in rice areas should be more closely related to markers of social status like income. In two studies, national survey data show that income, self-reported social status, and occupational status predict people's happiness twice as strongly in rice areas than wheat areas. In Study 3, we use a unique natural experiment comparing two nearby state farms that effectively randomly assigned people to farm rice or wheat. The rice farmers socially compare more, and farmers who socially compare more are less happy. If interdependence breeds social comparison and erodes happiness, it could help explain the paradox of why the interdependent cultures of East Asia are less happy than similarly wealthy cultures. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Agriculture · China · Geography · Happiness · Interdependence · Life satisfaction · Political science · PsycINFO · Rice farming · Social science · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Cultural Differences and Values · Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction · Psychology · Social Psychology

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