Democratic Institutions and Subjective Well-Being

@article{Altman2017DemocraticIA,
  title={Democratic Institutions and Subjective Well-Being},
  author={David Altman and Patrick Flavin and Benjamin Radcliff},
  journal={Political Studies},
  year={2017},
  volume={65},
  pages={685 - 704}
}
We examine how differences in how democracy is institutionalized affect life satisfaction across nations. To our knowledge, this is the first rigorous, systematic study of this subject. Using data for 21 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries from 1981 to 2008, we find robust evidence that citizens report living more satisfying lives in countries with a parliamentary (rather than presidential) executive, a proportional representation electoral system (as opposed… 
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