Workplace well-being,happiness and their relationship with psychological capital: A comparative study of five nations

Abstract

This cross-cultural study investigates workplace well-being and happiness across five countries– Australia, China, Hungary, Japan, and Singapore – and examines how dimensions of Psychological Capital (PsyCap) predict global well-being at work. A total of 1749 working adults completed validated measures of workplace well-being (PERMA), subjective happiness, and PsyCap components (hope, optimism, self-efficacy, resilience). Using non-parametric comparisons and regression analyses, we found significant national differences: Japanese employees scored lowest and Hungarian employees highest on workplace well-being, while happiness at work was highest in China and lowest in Japan. Our hierarchical regression analyses identified four key predictors—agency (hope), optimism, self-efficacy, and happiness—which together explained nearly 59% of the variance in workplace well-being (ΔR² = 0.588). These predictors consistently explained well-being across countries, although with varying explanatory power (ΔR² = 0.401–0.626). Notably, resilience and the pathway subscale of hope were not significant predictors. These findings highlight the universal and culturally nuanced aspects of well-being, underscoring the need for culturally sensitive measurement tools in global psychological research. The study contributes to the third wave of positive psychology by integrating cross-cultural perspectives with robust statistical evidence, and it informs both organizational well-being initiatives and future international well-being assessments.