The Role of Freedom in Shaping Happiness: Evidence from APEC Countries

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6463-831-8_2How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Economic Freedom; Democratic Freedom; Personal Freedom; Happiness

Abstract

This study investigates the impact of freedom and economic growth on happiness across 16 APEC member countries from 2012 to 2021, using a Panel ARDL model. The key variables include economic, democratic, and personal freedoms, along with GDP per capita. Results indicate that all three types of freedom significantly enhance happiness in the long run, underscoring the importance of individual autonomy, effective governance, and personal security. In the short run, economic freedom positively influences happiness, while democratic and personal freedoms have more delayed effects. Interestingly, GDP per capita increases happiness in the short run but reduces it in the long run. This may be due to rising inequality, work-life stress, or the diminishing marginal benefits of income. These findings suggest that economic growth alone is not enough to ensure sustained well-being. A more comprehensive approach that also prioritizes civil liberties and personal empowerment is necessary. The results provide important policy implications for APEC governments, highlighting the need to align economic development with political and social reforms. By fostering both prosperity and freedom, governments can help build a more resilient and inclusive foundation for long-run happiness.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Chiung-Ju Huang
AU  - Yuan-Hong Ho
AU  - Wen-Zhen Chen
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/08/31
TI  - The Role of Freedom in Shaping Happiness: Evidence from APEC Countries
BT  - Proceeding of the 1st International Conference on Lifespan Innovation (ICLI 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 7
EP  - 15
SN  - 2468-5739
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-831-8_2
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6463-831-8_2
ID  - Huang2025
ER  -