Influence of Living with Parents on Marrieds’ Happiness

Abstract

To enrich literature, this paper investigates influence of living with parents on marrieds’ happiness. It is an important issue in Chinese filial piety culture but rarely discussed. Data are drawn from Taiwan Social Change Survey in year 1995, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2005. Empirical findings from ordered probit models show various associations between living with own/spouse’s parents and happiness of married women/men. Living with mother-in-law degrades married women’s happiness but it promotes married men’s happiness. Living with own mother lowers down married daughter’s happiness but married men’s happiness increases when living with own parents. These results echo to theoretical backgrounds about altruism, demonstration effect, and good/bad relation between married children and parents.