After controlling for relevant variables, a direct association between educational attainment and psychological wellbeing was identified, underscoring the complexity of factors influencing psychological wellbeing, extending beyond education alone.
Educational attainment was directly associated with psychological wellbeing after controlling for relevant variables.
Multiple factors beyond education influence psychological wellbeing, including health, marital status, social relationships, and job status.
The study examined psychological wellbeing longitudinally over an eight-year period in the UK.
This research suggests that education level is directly linked to how well people feel psychologically, based on an analysis of over 68,000 people in the UK surveyed between 2010 and 2018. The researchers accounted for other known influences on wellbeing, such as physical health, whether someone is married, their social connections, and employment status, and still found that education played a meaningful role. However, the study also highlights that psychological wellbeing is shaped by many interacting factors, not education alone. Education may also work indirectly — for example, by influencing job status or social relationships — which in turn affect how happy and mentally healthy people feel. This suggests the relationship between education and wellbeing is more complex than a simple direct link. The practical implication of this research is that policies aimed at improving public mental health and happiness may benefit from supporting educational opportunities, while also recognizing that wellbeing depends on a broader network of life circumstances. Improving education alone may not be sufficient without also addressing health, employment, and social connection.
Oskrochi G, Oskrochi Y, Eskrootchi R. (2026). Factors associated with psychological wellbeing, is education one of them?. PloS one. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0340820