Monthly income and subjective well-being of Croatian citizens.

AIM: To examine the differences in subjective well-being among people with different household income. METHOD: Data were obtained from the national survey conducted in June 2005, in which a representative sample of 896 participants were administered a questionnaire on several measures of subjective well-being as follows: happiness, life satisfaction, and satisfaction with different life domains (personal and national well-being index). One-way ANOVA was performed to test the differences in subjective well-being measures between participants grouped into six categories according to their monthly income. RESULTS: Happiness and life satisfaction ratings, as well as ratings of satisfaction with several life domains differed significantly between groups of people with different monthly income. Respondents with higher income felt happier (P<0.001), more satisfied with their life as a whole (P<0.001), more satisfied with their material status (P<0.001), health (P<0.001), achievement (P<0.001), future security (P=0.001), economic situation (P=0.001), state of the environment (P=0.003), and social conditions in Croatia (P=0.003). However, no significant differences were found between the two groups with the lowest income (0-70 euros and 71-130 euro per person per month), nor between the two groups with the highest income (401-530 euros and 531+ euros per person per month). CONCLUSION: Our study showed that income and material wealth had an influence on subjective well-being in contemporary Croatian society, which is undergoing major social and economical changes.

Tie--an accessory fashion detail or a symbol?

AIM: The first aim of this study was to establish the frequency of wearing a tie or business neckerchief on different occasions and in relation to age and educational level. The second aim was to establish whether men who frequently wear a tie were attributed certain characteristics more often than men who rarely wear a tie and to establish whether there were differences in the attribution of these characteristics according to sex, age, educational level, and the frequency of wearing a tie. METHOD: Data were collected in 2005 by a method of face to face interview on a national representative sample (n = 1007). Participants estimated how often they wore a tie or business neckerchief on 9 different occasions. They also estimated whether each of 14 characteristics was more pronounced in men who frequently wear a tie. RESULTS: Tie was most frequently worn on festive and formal occasions,such as weddings and festive gatherings, and least frequently on family gatherings and when traveling. On all occasions, tie was more often worn by men of higher educational level and of older and middle age. A relatively small proportion of Croatian citizens based their conclusions on men's characteristics on the frequency of wearing a tie. Men who frequently wear a tie were relatively most often attributed the characteristics of ambition, politeness, and respectability, with significant differences found between persons who attributed these characteristics according to sex, age, educational level, and the frequency of wearing a tie by the participants themselves. CONCLUSION: Wearing a tie or neckerchief is an exception rather than a rule for most of the Croatian population, and is associated only with specific, primarily festive and formal occasions. Such use of the tie suggests that people adapt their style of clothing to the expectations of others and use it as a specific symbol of the occasion.