When Reality Meets Perception: Well-Being Effects of Objective and Subjective Person-Culture Matches in Religiosity

Previous research found that religious individuals report higher well-being when they live in a religious country—that is, when there is an objective match —or when they perceive their country as religious—that is, when there is a subjective match . Objective and subjective person-culture matches are typically considered different operationalizations of the same phenomenon. The present research, in contrast, suggests that objective and subjective matches are two conceptually distinct phenomena, each independently contributing to higher well-being: Across 24 countries ( N = 10,195), individuals tended to experience higher global, psychological, and physical well-being when both objective and subjective matches were high. Notably, only objective (but not subjective) matches were related to higher social well-being and life satisfaction, whereas only subjective matches were related to positive affect. Thus, jointly investigating objective and subjective matches is crucial to avoid incomplete or even incorrect conclusions about person-culture match effects on well-being.