Bonheur, bien-être subjectif et sentiment de justice sociale au Québec

Abstract

This article presents the main findings of a study on subjective wellbeing, happiness and social inequalities in the province of Quebec. The study demonstrates that subjective measures of happiness and life satisfaction are not completely interchangeable, although highly correlated. As a case in point, the category of respondents who are happy but unsatisfied characterises a fraction of the middle class and immigrants. It also appears that the well-established relationship between income and wellbeing, which is also observed in this study, cannot be analysed without taking into account the social representations that actors make of their situation. The level of income does not solely determine happiness since its effect is influenced by the sentiment of deprivation as well as personal aspirations. Finally, the study confirms the importance of taking into consideration the sentiment of justice in wellbeing studies, distinguishing between the evaluation of one's personal situation and one's judgement of society as a whole. It shows the pertinence of distinguishing the principles of equity and of equalization of resources. The results of this Quebec study reinforces observations made in France and supports the necessity of taking into account the sentiment of social justice in analyses of wellbeing in developed societies.