Interdependent happiness is associated with higher levels of behavioral and emotional engagement among Filipino university students

In collectivist societies, individuals are likely to espouse a sociallyoriented construal of happiness. Yet previous studies on the consequences of happiness and well-being have mostly concentrated on examining how a personal construal of happiness optimized positive academic and psychological outcomes. This research explored the association of interdependent happiness with the behavioral as well as the emotional domains of academic engagement and disaffection among 220 Filipino university students enrolled in a private university through a cross-sectional investigation. Results of the hierarchical regression analyses demonstrated that interdependent happiness positively predicted behavioral and emotional engagement even after controlling for demographic variables (i.e., age and gender). Interdependent happiness did not predict both behavioral and emotional disaffection. Furthermore, the effect sizes between interdependent happiness and engagement domains ranged from ‘relatively small’ to ‘typical’. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed. Copyright © 2018 Psychological Association of the Philippines.