Life satisfaction and expectations for the future in a sample of university students: A research note

Abstract

The article reports on preliminary findings on current life satisfaction and expectations of future quality of life among a sample of 338 students studying mainly social science subjects at the University of Natal, Durban. The study forms part of an ongoing cross-national survey of student happiness in forty countries. The majority of University of Natal students scored on or below the midpoint of the delighted-terrible scale of life satisfaction. Subjective well-being of black students was depressed compared to that of white students. the majority of whom scored above the midpoint. A higher proportion of students were optimistic than pessimistic about the future; black students were optimistic to a higher degree than others. Life satisfaction correlated with income and also divided the sample along racial lines due to income differentials. Levels of life satisfaction were similar to ones observed in general adult samples prior to the April 1994 elections. It is argued that in a society striving to realise equal opportunity goals. crossover effects between present life satisfaction and future expectations hold important clues for race relations. An important task for quality of life studies in South Africa will be to monitor both current and projected future happiness.