Благополучието на отделния човек в България и Румъния
Subjective Well-Being in Bulgaria and Romania

Summary/Abstract: This paper describes subjective well-being in Bulgaria and Romania as compared with other European countries, based on data from European Quality of Life Survey, 2003. Indicators used include life satisfaction, motivating factors of life satisfaction, and satisfactions with life domains, as well as expectations about the future. In terms of life satisfaction, the data show that Bulgaria has the most dissatisfied population in Europe, while Romania is situated next to Poland and Czech Republic, with similar levels of satisfaction. The two countries in focus are both characterised by lower levels of life satisfaction in comparison with the old members of EU; this can mainly be explained by the difference in living conditions. When analysing life satisfaction by social groups we found more important differences in Bulgaria and Romania in comparison with EU25, which indicates greater polarisation in subjective evaluations of life. Looking at satisfaction with life domains, we find that the standard of living in the two countries is the lowest in the EU, which indicates this as the most problematic aspect of people’s lives. Another pattern revealed by research data for Bulgaria and Romania is that social life gets the lowest evaluation, while family life gets the highest (apart from standard of living). In regard to expectations about the future, Bulgaria displays low levels of optimism, showing that people in this country see the future in a rather negative perspective. Romanians are moderately optimistic; as in the case of life satisfaction, this might be a result of a general good mood and a certain positive attitude that characterised society at the time of the survey.

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