台灣網際網路使用種類、社會資本與快樂程度

INTERNET USE TYPES, SOCIAL CAPITAL AND HAPPINESS IN TAIWAN

本文創新地將網際網路使用分為三類，並採用社會資本投資模型，探討台灣網際網路使用種類與快樂程度的關係。我們先使用台灣社會變遷調查資料庫中，變數齊全的2003年資料，並利用Ordered Probit與兩階段最小平方法估計實證模型。結論為社交性及娛樂性網際網路使用，可提升個人的社會資本、單獨性網際網路使用則降低之，而且社會資本與快樂有正向關係。我們再以此推論，估計變數不足的2000、2001、2002、2003、2005、2006、2008、2010等年度，共15,540筆資料。結論為跨年間，社交性及娛樂性網際網路使用與快樂程度為正向關係，而單獨性網際網路使用則與快樂程度為負向關係。

This paper innovatively categorizes internet use into three types, and utilizes the social capital investment model to explore the relationship between internet use types and happiness. First, we collect data from the Taiwan Social Change Survey in 2003, which collects sufficient data on the variables of interest. We then employ Ordered Probit and two-stage least square methods to estimate the empirical model. Our results show that internet use for social and recreational activities increases an individual’s social capital, while internet use for independent activities decreases it, and the relationship between social capital and happiness is positive. Subsequently, we employ these conclusions to infer and estimate other years with insufficient variable data. There are 15,540 observations for the years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2010. Across these years, we find that internet use for social and recreational activities is positively associated with happiness, but internet use for independent activities is negatively related with it.