This work analyses the existence of asymmetric effects on the subjective well-being of the population of different countries in response to changes in the levels of aggregate income. Microdata from the Eurobarometer and the World Values Survey are used for the period 2000–2019. This period includes several economic changes, among which are the strong expansion at the beginning of the century, the Great Recession, and the subsequent recovery. Our study includes several groups of countries. In the broadest case, the study comprises a group of 83 countries and analyses the issue both from a global perspective as well as focusing particular attention on European countries. These asymmetric effects of economic activity are in line with behavioural economics and previous literature and allow us to determine a macroeconomic aversion to losses. The results obtained support the existence of asymmetric effects of changes in aggregate income on subjective well-being, and show that losses generated in recessions require a far more vigorous recovery if they are to be compensated for, and that they might even have permanent effects.

这项工作分析了对不同国家人口主观幸福感的不对称影响，以应对总收入水平的变化。欧洲晴雨表和世界价值观调查的微观数据用于 2000-2019 年期间。这一时期包括几个经济变化，其中包括本世纪初的强劲扩张、大萧条和随后的复苏。我们的研究包括几组国家。在最广泛的情况下，该研究包括一组 83 个国家，并从全球角度分析该问题，并特别关注欧洲国家。经济活动的这些不对称影响与行为经济学和以前的文献一致，使我们能够确定宏观经济对损失的厌恶。