Çağlar Yurtseven

Bahçeşehir University, 

Istanbul, Turkey

E-mail: caglar.yurtseven@bau.edu.tr

ORCID 0000-0002-8397-6740

Environmental quality and happiness: Evidence from Eastern Europe

Abstract. Happiness economics has recently emerged as a significant academic discipline of economics and sociology. Recent studies in the literature have examined the correlates of happiness, including environmental quality. This study is the first to examine the relationship between environmental quality and happiness in the context of Eastern European countries. In order to analyze happiness, which is a socio-economic phenomenon, it is very important that Eastern Europe, with its unique geographical, cultural, social and economic characteristics, is specifically examined. Panel data methods were employed, and the analysis was enhanced by dividing the countries into different sub-segments. Within lower-middle income Eastern European countries, a distinct pattern emerged. Environmental quality appeared to have a minimal effect on reported happiness. This suggests that economic concerns, such as unemployment and inflation, may hold a more dominant influence on subjective well-being in this specific economic development context. 

Received: February, 2025

1st Revision: September, 2025

Accepted: December, 2025

DOI: 10.14254/2071-789X.2025/18-4/12

JEL Classification: Z18, Q50, Q51

Keywords: environmental quality, happiness, Eastern Europe, panel data, development