Relationship Between Life Satisfaction and Physical Health in Older Adults: A Longitudinal Test of Cross-Lagged and Simultaneous Effects

The emergence of positive psychology propelled scientific interest in the causal relationships between subjective well-being (SWB; e.g., happiness, life satisfaction [LS], positive affect) and physical health. However, it is becoming a controversial topic. Indeed, dependent on approach, LS is either considered a cause (top-down) or an effect (bottom-up). The aim of the present study was to investigate both cross-lagged and simultaneous effects between LS (as an enduring component of SWB) and physical health (as measured by self-perceived health and self-reported diseases), using 8-year longitudinal data from a sample of older adults. The study included 899 participants aged 64 to 97 years and assessed 5 times over an 8-year period. Cross-lagged and simultaneous models were specified and estimated using structural equation modeling. Both cross-lagged and simultaneous coefficients indicated that poor health significantly predicted subsequent levels of life dissatisfaction, but LS did not predict subsequent levels of health. These findings contradict, at least in our older sample, the postulates of positive psychology, and support the bottom-up approach to well-being as well as the popular adage, "As long as you've got your health."