An analysis on the trends and factors in regional gaps of economic and satisfaction indexes

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This study aimed to analyze the trends and causative factors in satisfaction level and economic level among towns in Yamagata and Yamaguchi prefectures by using the structural equation model (SEM). The estimation results demonstrate that (i) both the economic situations and social capital (represented by trust, altruistic moral and human network) positively affected the satisfaction level, but there is a trade-off between these effects and (ii) the economic factor and social capital have indirect effects, affecting to satisfaction via other factors such as urbanization and degradation of the social capital.