God and Gold: The Moderating Role of Countries’ Historical Religious Heritage in the Income–Life Satisfaction Relationship

Abstract

Household income is an important predictor of that individual’s satisfaction with life, but the ecological-cultural context of one’s society can qualify the strength of this relationship. In this research, we examine the extent to which qualitative differences in a country’s religious heritage moderate the strength of the relationship between household income and life satisfaction. In exploring this question, we used data from 86 countries, grouped into five main religious traditions, that is, Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Buddhist, and Muslim. Multilevel interactions showed that the positive association between household income and life satisfaction was stronger than average in Protestant countries, but weaker than average in Catholic and Orthodox countries. We also found main effects of religious heritage on life satisfaction, indicating that countries with Catholic and Orthodox religious traditions reported higher average life satisfaction than the average of all countries, Buddhist countries showed average levels, whereas Muslim and Protestant countries reported lower life satisfaction. Even after accounting for potential confounders—including national income, economic inequality, religiosity, democracy, and environmental variables—most effects remain statistically significant. We discuss these findings in terms of possible institutional developments found in countries with different religious ideologies concerning household income and how those ideologies may support socialization processes relating material prosperity to personal life satisfaction.