Sørensen J. F. L. Rural–urban differences in life satisfaction: evidence from the European Union, Regional Studies. This paper uses data from the European Values Study 2008 to investigate rural–urban differences in life satisfaction across the European Union. Rural dwellers were found to have a significantly higher life satisfaction than city dwellers when holding socio-economic factors constant. This is systematically observed across three European Union country clusters defined by their level of affluence (gross domestic product (GDP)). With this background, the latter part of the paper explores the factors behind the higher life satisfaction in rural areas, focusing on differences in levels of insecurity, frames of comparison and levels of social interaction.

Sørensen J. F. L. Rural–urban differences in bonding and bridging social capital, Regional Studies. It is a common sentiment that rural areas are richer in social capital than urban areas. This hypothesis is tested here by drawing on data from a Danish survey (2011/2012) and by using the distinction between bonding and bridging social capital. Bonding social capital was found to be significantly higher in rural areas, whereas bridging social capital was found to be marginally higher in urban areas. The evidence thus partly refutes the hypothesis of higher social capital in rural areas. Among other results, the evidence suggests a degree of trade-off between the two forms of social capital.

In this paper, a national Danish survey is used to explore the rural happiness paradox in developed countries. This paradox revolves around the observation that rural residents tend to report higher subjective well-being than urban residents in developed countries. Based on three different rural-urban classifications, the paper provides a solid confirmation of the rural happiness paradox in Denmark. The paper tests three hypotheses regarding the factors behind the rural happiness paradox and finds strong support for two of the hypotheses. Thus, higher bonding social capital in rural areas and higher access to nature amenities in rural areas were found to contribute to the rural happiness paradox in Denmark. As for the third hypothesis, the paper finds no significant evidence that rural-urban differences in spatial location satisfaction (measured by the correspondence between actual and preferred residential location on the rural-urban continuum) contribute to the rural happiness paradox in Denmark.