In this study, data will be obtained from a series of interviews to be conducted among the millennial Americans. Structural questions will be formulated and arranged in a sequential order of increasing complexity. Since this study is targeting millennials, the process of data collection will be simple because the population of interest has been identified already. Some of the interview questions will enquire about the marital status of respondents, level of satisfaction with the modern lifestyle, average annual salary and level of education. Participants will be asked to present their responses in an evaluation scale of 1 to 10, in which 1 implies a complete dissatisfaction while 10 represents complete satisfaction.
Having recorded all the responses from a sample of the target population, the researcher will apply a multimethod technique during data analysis. Here, both qualitative and quantitative methods will be utilised. Since qualitative data analysis is mostly used for non-numerical data, it will assist in understanding various aspects of the living standards in America[1]. On the other hand, quantitative data analysis will be helpful in the statistical evaluation of the figures obtained from these interviews[2]. Other important information will be obtained from the World Values Survey 6 which is a compilation of records covering a period of six years from 2010 to 2014.
Operationalization of the Concepts
Since this research was majorly based on qualitative data, there was need for operationalization in order to obtain statistics that can be presented[3]. Furthermore, the interviews were structured in a way that respondents were restricted only to choose values ranging in a scale of 1 to 10. From the analysis of data, it was established that the correlation between concept of study and the results obtained was positive. This implied that both data used and the statistical approaches applied in this research were effective.
Several theories have been brought forward to explain impacts together with the influence of marital status and income level on life satisfaction among millennial Americans. Such theories focuses to make sense of the available independent variables which exist in the research. The theory showcases that general life satisfaction is entirely dependent upon a discovery learning process since life satisfactions associated with the disparity of independent variables like the income level and the marital status[4]. The theories include, the income level theory which is detrimental factor to an individual and the general happiness in the society. It is clear that for Americans in lower earning category, an increase in come subsequently lowers the subjective well-being of the people.
Many millennial Americans do not experience life satisfaction because of the income level. Many millennial Americans have too limited income level which cannot enable them to fulfil the requirements and desires that would result in life satisfaction. The ability to have a high-income level is directly associated with the chances of having a greater life satisfaction[5]. The American millennial population exists in a society that has a lot of disparity when it comes to the individual and family wealth which is considered as a determinant of the income level of a young American millennial. The millennials who come from rich and able families are considered to have a greater level of life satisfaction compared to those from the families that are considered poor. The American millennial population would also consider the job availability and rewards of a given job as a determinant of the income level and consequently the level of life satisfaction[6].
However, the direct effect of income levels on the satisfaction of American Millennial is subject to endogenous effects in that life satisfaction is relative to other factors including stability of social relations witnessed in marriages and family. Marital Status is another theory which that people who enter marriage and stay within marriage have a higher tendency of being happy as opposed to the divorced or single counterparts[7]. The research by considered the American and Chinese population in the study. Establishing on the knowledge from the theory a focus on the American millennials in the contemporary time can provide in-depth knowledge in understanding the human happiness as far as income and marital status are concerned.
The American millenniums do not experience life Satisfaction because of the marital status. The amount of emotional investments input by American millennials on relationships and marital status almost dictates the entirety of the contributors to life satisfaction[8]. If the marital status of an individual member of an American population is considered to have a lot of negative characteristics like a bitter relationship, marriage or divorce, the level of life satisfaction is affected. The individual with a happier marital status either single or married experience a more fulfilling life satisfaction.
When a millennial American marital status is single, the ability to achieve life satisfaction is more likely that when married. The reason for the higher likelihood of life satisfaction in a single marital status the fact that there are fewer responsibilities of the immediate family to worry about than when in a married relationship[9]. Correlating the marital status and other demographic factors such as income levels which affect human happiness can help in reducing endogeneity in this research and theory formulation
Level of Measurement for each Variable
The following are the rating scales obtained from the interview;
Married – 6, Living together as married – 7, Divorced – 8, Separated – 7, Widowed Single – 8, Household Earning – 8, Satisfaction with life – 7
Therefore, after considering all the aspects of this study, the researcher concluded that millennials are only 70% satisfied with life. This was due to the varying factors of domestic problems and unstable financial income.
Bibliography
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[1] Jennings, Walter. Qualitative analysis of flavor and fragrance volatiles by glass capillary gas chromatography. Elsevier, 2012.
[2] Karaman, Mazen W., Sanna Herrgard, Daniel K. Treiber, Paul Gallant, Corey E. Atteridge, Brian T. Campbell, Katrina W. Chan et al. "A quantitative analysis of kinase inhibitor selectivity." Nature biotechnology 26, no. 1 (2008): 127.
[3] Smith, Jonathan A., ed. Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods. Sage, 2015.
[4] Ng, Eddy SW, Linda Schweitzer, and Sean T. Lyons. "New generation, great expectations: A field study of the millennial generation." Journal of Business and Psychology 25, no. 2 (2010): 281-292.
[5] Sago, Brad. "The Influence of Social Media Message Sources on Millennial Generation Consumers." International Journal of Integrated Marketing Communications 2, no. 2 (2010).
[6] Bonner, Fred A., Chance W. Lewis, Lisa Bowman-Perrott, Valerie Hill-Jackson, and Marlon James. "Definition, identification, identity, and culture: A unique alchemy impacting the success of gifted African American millennial males in school." Journal for the Education of the Gifted
33, no. 2 (2009): 176-202.
[7] Lenhart, Amanda, Kristen Purcell, Aaron Smith, and Kathryn Zickuhr. "Social Media " Mobile Internet Use among Teens and Young Adults. Millennials." Pew internet " American life project (2010).
[8] HASHIMOTO, KATHRYN. "A Pilot Study: Comparing African Destination Images among American Millenials." 25–27 June 2014, Le Meridien Hotel ISSN 169412225 Edited by Robin Nunkoo, Boopen Seetanah " Raja (2014): 569.
[9] Allison, Sheila. "Employment and the millenials." Youth Studies Australia [online] 32, no. 2 (2013): 81.
