Keio Study: Happiness Passes Between Generations More Than Health
TOKYO – October 31, 2026 -- Happiness shows the strongest parent-child link among three well-being measures in Japan, with a rank-rank slope of 0.25, according to Keio University researchers. Self-reported general health followed at 0.22, and mental health was weakest at 0.13. All three associations were statistically significant.
The study by Kayoko Ishii, Zhi-xiao Jia and Isamu Yamamoto appeared in the journal Review of Economics of the Household. It uses data from the Japan Household Panel Survey, run in association with Keio's Panel Data Research Center.
Panel data tracks two generations within the same families
The survey began in 2004 and has followed the same individuals for more than 20 years. It was later extended to participants' adult children, including those no longer living with their parents, so the team could link parent and child records.