Josje ten Kate MSc, a graduate from the Research Master Sociology of Culture, Media and the Arts, has won the NIDI Master Thesis Award 2015. Her thesis on Collectivism, marriage, and well-being: How and why the extent to which marriage leads to subjective well-being depends was awarded this prize ceremoniously on Wednesday, 25 November in Utrecht.
Collectivism, marriage and well-being
While it is commonly recognized that marriage has a positive impact on mental well-being, this influence appears to differ considerably between countries. According to Ten Kate, indications can be found that this can be related to collectivism. It was not clear whether the effect of marriage on well-being was larger or smaller in collectivist countries. To disentangle the role of collectivism, Ten Kate examined how the relationship between marriage and well-being varies in different European countries with different levels of collectivism, and how this can be explained.
NIDI Master Thesis Award
Ten Kate wrote her thesis under the supervision of Willem de Koster and Jeroen van der Waal. The award was presented Wednesday, November 25th in Utrecht by Leo van Wissen (director NIDI). The NIDI Master Thesis Award for the best master thesis in the field of the interdisciplinary study of population/demography is awarded every year at the Dutch Demography Day. The prize consists of a certificate and 500 euros.
Josje Ten Kate MSc
During her studies, Ten Kate was a research assistant and lecturer. Currently, she works as a junior researcher at the Department of Public Administration and Sociology at Erasmus University Rotterdam and researches social antecedents of mental well-being.