Social gain or social pain: subjective socioeconomic status, income and attitudes towards social relations

Abstract

Social pain is usually defined as the experience of pain because of interpersonal rejection or loss. However, some research suggests that social pain could also arise from low income or subjective perceptions regarding socioeconomic status. To contribute to promoting effective public administration or social policy solutions, over the last few decades, many scientific studies were conducted worldwide. Many authors have investigated social wellbeing as it could create direct and indirect financial losses to the state. This study aimed to find out the peculiarities of attitudes towards social relations in different groups of income and perceived socio-economic status in a representative sample of Lithuanian population (n=1001). We have found that mean ranks in the lowest-income quintile, agreeing that "my relationships are supportive and rewarding", were almost twice lower than in the highest-income quintile. A similar tendency was observed with the statements "I actively contribute to the happiness and well-being of others" and “People respect me”. Mean ranks in the subjectively poorest group regarding perceived respect from people were almost three times lower than in the subjectively rich group. It appears that having low income and low subjective socioeconomic status may harm psychological wellbeing. Our study raises concern regarding societal wellbeing: we suggest that to achieve the prosperity of society, it is necessary to reduce socio-economic inequalities and through various programs and projects strengthen people’s ability to establish and maintain supportive, compassionate social contacts