Overview
- The autonomy–well-being link appeared in almost all countries studied, with no significant autonomy–happiness association in Nigeria and Lebanon and no autonomy–life satisfaction link in Iraq.
- National wealth explained a sizable share of between-country differences in the strength of the autonomy–happiness connection, with estimates around one third in the reported analysis.
- Cultural individualism amplified the autonomy effect as measured with the Global Collectivism Index, though its tight correlation with wealth makes the primary driver difficult to isolate.
- Researchers used World Values Survey data from 2017–2023 covering nearly 100,000 people in 66 countries, assessing autonomy via perceived freedom of choice and control and well-being via happiness and life satisfaction.
- The authors highlight policy implications that emphasize boosting broadly shared material security in poorer nations and expanding autonomy-supportive institutions in richer ones, while stressing the findings are associations rather than proof of causation.