Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS)

Abstract

The Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) is a widely utilized and validated psychological instrument designed to provide a narrow focus measurement of an individual’s overall well-being. Specifically, it assesses global life satisfaction, which is defined as a cognitive judgement process—a subjective self-assessment of one’s life conditions against their own standards. Crucially, the SWLS is distinct from measures focusing on specific domains, such as positive affect or loneliness, concentrating instead on the holistic, cognitive evaluation of life quality.

Keywords

Satisfaction With Life Scale, SWLS, Ed Diener, well-being, global life satisfaction, subjective well-being, cognitive judgement, positive psychology, psychometrics

Authors

Diener, E., Emmons, R.A., Larsen, R.J., Griffin, S.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the SWLS is to quantify an individual’s subjective evaluation of their life quality. Developed to be a brief, efficient, and psychometrically sound tool, the scale measures how a person cognitively appraises their life against their own self-imposed standards and expectations. It serves as a fundamental criterion measure in well-being research, providing a stable, long-term reflection of perceived satisfaction, rather than ephemeral emotional states.

While highly effective in research settings and for initial assessment in fields like positive psychology practice, its application in strict clinical environments (e.g., assessing severe psychopathology) may be limited. However, its cross-cultural validity and sensitivity to significant life events make it an invaluable tool for global comparisons and longitudinal studies related to happiness and quality of life.

Construct

The SWLS measures the construct of life satisfaction, which is understood as a cognitive judgement process. This construct centers on the notion that satisfaction is not merely an emotional state but rather a considered evaluation of one’s life achievements and conditions relative to desired goals. This cognitive focus differentiates it from measures of affect (positive or negative emotion), ensuring the scale captures a stable, evaluative component of subjective well-being.

The instrument is specifically designed to assess global satisfaction across all domains of life, rather than focusing on satisfaction with specific areas such as career, health, or relationships. This global assessment relies entirely on the individual’s subjective internal standards, rather than external criteria imposed by researchers or societal norms.

Validity

The validity of the SWLS has been rigorously established across multiple studies since its inception in 1985. The initial development phase included testing against nine other subjective well-being scales, yielding strong evidence for convergent validity with an average correlation of r=0.57 across the nine measures. A two-month test-retest assessment during the initial validation phase demonstrated high temporal stability, with a validity coefficient of r=0.82.

Further studies, such as that by Kobau et al. (2010), confirmed these findings. Kobau et al. reported that the SWLS demonstrated good convergent validity, with correlations as high as r=0.75 when compared to other well-being measures, confirming the SWLS’s ability to measure the intended construct effectively.

Reliability

The internal consistency of the SWLS is consistently reported as excellent. During the initial 1985 validation study by Diener et al., internal validity, measured using Cronbach’s alpha, was determined to be 0.87. Subsequent research by Kobau et al. (2010) confirmed this high level of reliability, reporting an alpha coefficient of 0.89.

Test-retest reliability, which assesses the stability of scores over time, has also been shown to be acceptable across varying timeframes, ranging from short intervals (1–2 months) up to long-term periods (4 years). These findings demonstrate that the SWLS provides stable and consistent measurements of life satisfaction, suitable for longitudinal research.

Factor Analysis

The development of the SWLS began with an initial pool of 48 items tested on 176 University of Illinois students. This initial set included items related not only to life satisfaction but also to positive and negative affect. Through rigorous factor analysis, the scale was refined down to its final five-item structure.

The refinement process involved systematically removing all items that had factor loadings between 0.1 and 0.6. This methodology ensured that only items strongly related to the core construct of well-being (cognitive judgement) were retained, while all items specifically relating to emotional affect were excluded, resulting in a single-factor, narrowly focused scale.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire

Format: 5-item scale utilizing a 7-point Likert Scale response format.

Language Available: Translated into many languages and demonstrated to be valid across diverse cultures.

Population Group: General adult population (non-clinical research focus).

Age Group: Adults, typically ranging from 18 to 80 years old.

Population Details: Validated initially on university students (e.g., 176 students in Phase 1) and later confirmed on diverse groups, including a study on 53 elderly persons averaging 75 years of age, demonstrating favorable psychometric properties across age cohorts.

Test Methodology: Respondents rate their agreement with each statement using the 7-point scale, where 7 = Strongly agree and 1 = Strongly disagree. The scores are summed to provide a global measure of life satisfaction.

Keywords

Satisfaction, subjective well-being, quality of life, psychology scale, psychometrics, Ed Diener, cognitive assessment, life evaluation

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided in source.

Correspondence Address: Not provided in source.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The SWLS was first published in 1985. The scale is freely available for use in research and practice. It can be accessed online via academic and research websites, including the Authentic Happiness website (www.authentichappiness.org) and the official University of Illinois site (https://internal.psychology.illinois.edu/~ediener/SWLS.html).

Reference’s

• Diener, E., Emmons, R.A., Larsen, R.J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The Satisfaction with Life Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, 71-75.
• Pavot, W. G., Diener, E., Colvin, C. R., & Sandvik, E. (1991). Further validation of the Satisfaction with Life Scale: Evidence for the cross-method convergence of well-being measures. Journal of Personality Assessment, 57, 149-161.
• Pavrot, W., & Diener, E. (1993). Review of the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Psychological Assessment, 5, 164-172.
• Pavot, W., & Diener, E. (2008). The Satisfaction With Life Scale and the emerging construct of life satisfaction. Journal of Positive Psychology, 3, 137–152.

Items of the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

1. In most ways‚ my life is close to ideal.
2. The conditions of my life are excellent.
3. I am satisfied with my life.
4. So far‚ I have gotten the important things I want in life.
5. If I could live my life over‚ I would change almost nothing.

Response Scale (7-point Likert Scale): 7 = Strongly agree‚ 6 = Agree‚ 5 = Slightly agree‚ 4 = Neither agree nor disagree‚ 3 = Slightly disagree‚ 2 = Disagree‚ 1 = Strongly disagree.