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Linking Perceived Social Mobility to Health and Happiness in China:Insights from Inter- and Intra-Generational and Prospective Perspectives
Title / Series / Name
Social Science & Medicine
Publication Volume
383
Publication Issue
Pages
Author
Editors
Keywords
Health (social science)
History and Philosophy of Science
History and Philosophy of Science
Files
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Wu-Miranda2_2025.pdf
Adobe PDF, 973 KB
URI
https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14018/27828
Abstract
Numerous studies have primarily concentrated on the disparities in health and well-being based on objective measures of social mobility across various countries with conflicting views. Recent focus and debate have been directed toward the subjective dimension of social mobility. Beyond the conventional focus on intergenerational and intragenerational mobility, I incorporate a third form of prospective mobility while differentiating between their upward and downward trajectories as well as varying degrees of change in social status. This study analyzes subjective perceptions of social mobility by different forms, directions, and distances in contemporary China and investigates their relationships with health outcomes and happiness. Using pooled data from eight waves of the Chinese General Social Survey, this study employs multiple scales to assess perceived social mobility, distinguishing it from previous research that typically depends on a singular survey question. Results support the theories of “Falling from Grace” and “Rising from Rags” on the role of intergenerational mobility on health and happiness, as well as the influence of prospective mobility on health alone. However, the detrimental impacts of intragenerational upward and downward mobility on health are consistent with the dissociative thesis. The findings on varying degrees of mobility among the three forms of perceived social mobility further shed light on the significance of distance in connection to mobility. The findings also advance the state of knowledge in intergenerational mobility by comparing its effect with that of intragenerational and prospective mobility on health and happiness.
Topic
Publisher
Place of Publication
Type
Journal article
Date
2025-10
Language
ISBN
Identifiers
10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118430