Religion and other Correlates of Happiness for Chinese Employed in the United States
Qingwei Wang, Tracy Henley, and Bernadette Gadzella
Citation: Wang, Q., Henley, T., & Gadzella, B. (2021). Religion and other Correlates of Happiness for Chinese Employed in the United States. European Journal of Applied Positive Psychology, 5, 18, 1-11. https://www.nationalwellbeingservice.org/volumes/volume-5-2021/volume-5-article-18
Processing dates: Submitted 15th March 2021; Resubmitted 23rd July 2021; Accepted 11th August 2021; Published 8th December 2021
Abstract
Background/Aims/Objectives: This study investigates some previously established correlates of happiness within a sample of Chinese individuals employed in the United States. Although there is a literature on happiness among Chinese people, it has tended to be either comparative at a national and cultural level, or has drawn on university students. As such, the happiness of established Chinese workers within the US is largely unexplored. Additionally, holding employment status constant allows for further consideration of more personal variables such as optimism, locus of control, self-efficacy,
and religion.
Methods/Methodology: A total of 112 working Chinese individuals participated in the study. All of the participants were provided a package that included a consent form, a demographic information inventory, and the instruments for each of the constructs studied in this paper.
Results: Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient results indicated that happiness was correlated positively with optimism, internality, and self-efficacy. Partial correlation coefficient results indicated that happiness was also correlated positively with religion. Hierarchical multiple regression showed that optimism, religion, and internality were the better predictors of happiness among these variables within this sample.
Discussion: In the United States, immigrants continue to play important roles in various aspects of the
labor force. A large body of research has shown that a happier person will perceive the world as a safer
place, tend to be healthier, and be more productive in workplace.
Conclusions: It is important to understand immigrants’ quality of life and investigate the correlates of happiness for various cultural groups living in the United States, including the Chinese.
Keywords: Chinese adults, happiness, locus of control, optimism, religion, self-efficacy.
Biographies
Dr. Qingwei Wang is with the Department of Psychology and Special Education, Texas A & M University – Commerce,
TX, 75429, USA
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1780-4975
Dr. Tracy Henley is with the Department of Psychology and Special Education, Texas A & M University – Commerce, TX,
75429. USA
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1612-0501
Dr. Bernadette Gadzella (deceased)