The determinants of perceived overall security

This paper deals with what we believe is an important component of human well being, which has been traditionally neglected by economic discourse: the individual’s perception of his/her life’s overall security. Our aim is to study this feature within the framework of the economics of happiness approach. Here we investigate the determinants of subjective security, while the influence of security in traditional measures of happiness and subjective well-being will be the object of a companion paper.