What makes people happy?
Measuring politically sensitive attitudes in authoritarian settings is difficult because expressions of political support may reflect repression and social pressure as much as genuine belief. We propose a complementary approach: using responses to questions that are not themselves politically sensitive to provide indirect evidence about politically sensitive attitudes. Using subjective well-being…
Examining politically charged attitudes in authoritarian environments proves challenging due to the potential influence of political repression and social pressure on expressed support. To gain indirect insight into such attitudes, researchers propose analyzing responses to non-politically sensitive questions. By examining subjective well-being (SWB), specifically life satisfaction, and adjusting for shifts in material and personal circumstances, researchers can infer evidence of individuals becoming integrated into a wartime national project.
Utilizing over a decade's worth of data from the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (2013-2024), researchers discovered that life satisfaction notably increased following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Initial gains were larger among ethnic Russians, smaller in Moscow and St. Petersburg, consistently higher in military-industrial regions, and notably lower for those closest to the frontlines.
This pattern of heterogeneity is difficult to attribute to widespread social-desirability bias, suggesting a differentiated response to the wartime effort. By 2024, as non-response rates rose and subgroup differences attenuated, the utility of SWB as a source of information appears to wane.
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