Examining the impacts of urban, work and social environments on residents’ subjective wellbeing: a cross-regional analysis in China

Abstract

Introduction: Urbanization has affected the quality of the living environments. It is important to improve residents’ living environments and promote their happiness.Methods: We use a national and representative dataset targeting the labor force in China, collecting basic information about the work environments, the social environments, and the urban environments. This work employed a linear regression model to investigate the influencing factors of residents’ SWB.Results: The three major findings are as follows: 1) At the national level, residents’ SWB exhibits a notable spatial variability, being higher in the northern regions and lower in the southern areas. 2) The dimensions of the urban environments (housing prices, POI density, NPP, land development intensity and the number of tertiary hospitals), the work environments (work pressure and job satisfaction), and the social environments (community trust, social justice and sense of security), along with sociodemographic characteristics, significantly influence SWB. 3) In China, the impacts on SWB exhibit pronounced regional heterogeneity. The relationship between environmental pollution and SWB is characterized by an inverted U-shaped pattern. Intriguingly, while housing prices negatively affect SWB in the eastern and central regions, the enforcement of housing purchase limits has been observed to enhance residents’ SWB in the western region.Discussion: First, this work show the overall spatial level of SWB in China geographically. And second, this research found the SWB heterogeneity on a regional level (eastern, central, and western regions). Furthermore, this methodological framework provides a novel perspective among the urban, work and social environments on SWB. This work also contributes to inform policy to improve residents’ SWB in China.