Junu Shrestha, Belinda A Creighton-Smith, Thomas M Flack, Theodora Merle Jn Baptiste

Intersectionality between Happiness and Well-being: A Pilot Study Project in a Midwestern University

Introduction

Intersectionality between happiness and well-being: a pilot study project in a midwestern university. Pilot study explores happiness & well-being intersectionality in university students. Discover questionnaire items showing measurable overlap between these vital concepts.

Abstract

This pilot study measures the possible intersectionality of happiness and well-being. Items were used from the Oxford Happiness and Well-Being Questionnaire, designed to independently measure the constructs of happiness and well-being. 42 items were combined from which 10 items were randomly selected and converted to a six-point Likert scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree” and administered to 28 college students at a Midwestern University taking a leisure studies course. The instrument yielded a significant alpha value of α (27) = 0.835. Factor analysis was conducted to find which variable loaded on each factor (happiness and well-being). Items having a value greater than 0.30 on both happiness and well-being factors were considered to represent the intersectionality of the latent variables. The results indicated that three of the ten items loaded on both factors with a value greater than 0.30, indicating some degree of intersectionality between happiness and well-being.

Review

This pilot study ventures into an interesting and relevant area, exploring the potential intersectionality between happiness and well-being, two constructs often discussed in tandem but rarely analyzed for their empirical overlap. The initiative to develop a concise instrument and conduct preliminary psychometric checks, evidenced by a respectable alpha value of 0.835, is a commendable first step in assessing the internal consistency of the chosen items. The focus on a university student population, while limited, offers a specific context for initial exploration, and the acknowledgment of this as a pilot project rightly sets expectations for its scope and generalizability. However, several methodological concerns significantly temper the interpretation of the reported findings. The sample size of 28 participants is notably small, even for a pilot, which severely constrains the statistical power and the reliability of any inferential analyses, particularly factor analysis. Factor analysis typically requires a substantially larger sample (often 5-10 participants per item, or N > 100-200) to yield stable and meaningful factor structures. Applying it to only 10 items with 28 participants makes the resulting factor loadings highly susceptible to sampling error and raises questions about the validity of the identified factors and their cross-loadings. Furthermore, the random selection of 10 items from a larger 42-item pool, followed by conversion to a Likert scale, could introduce biases or fail to adequately represent the full breadth and original psychometric properties of the constructs as intended by the Oxford Happiness and Well-Being Questionnaire. Despite the intriguing premise and the initial indication of some shared variance across three items, the methodological limitations necessitate a cautious interpretation of the claim of "some degree of intersectionality." While this pilot serves as an exploratory exercise, the findings related to factor structure and specific item loadings cannot be considered robust or generalizable without substantial refinement. Future research should prioritize a significantly larger and more diverse sample, a more systematic approach to item selection and instrument adaptation, and potentially alternative statistical methods if factor analysis remains unfeasible with a larger, yet still limited, sample size. This study offers a preliminary glimpse into a complex relationship, highlighting the need for rigorous future investigation to truly unpack the nuances of happiness and well-being intersectionality.

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