Subjective well-being and objective living conditions: a dual approach to measuring sustainability in cities

This study addresses the gap between formal statistical indicators of development and residents’ perceptions of quality of life amid socio-economic transformation. The aim is to analyze discrepancies between objective living conditions and subjective well-being in two contrasting urban contexts. A dual approach was applied, combining the calculation of the Sustainable Urban Development Index (SUDI) based on 27 statistical indicators for 2022 and the analysis of data from a stratified sociological survey (N = 200) conducted in July-August 2024 in the capital city of Astana and the regional center of Kyzylorda. Data processing was performed using IBM SPSS Statistics 23. The analysis reveals a structural imbalance. Astana demonstrates a higher overall SUDI score (0.634) and strong infrastructure but reports lower subjective ratings in several domains, reflecting higher expectations. Kyzylorda, despite a moderate index value (0.527) and pronounced environmental challenges (0.287), exhibits a “satisfaction paradox,” whereby deficits in material conditions are partly offset by social capital. The findings confirm that improvements in quantitative indicators do not automatically lead to higher subjective well-being. The novelty of the study lies in demonstrating the compensatory role of social ties in resource-constrained urban contexts and in highlighting the value of integrating objective indicators and subjective assessments in urban sustainability analysis. Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests. Ethical approval This study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and relevant national regulations. The protocol was reviewed and approved by the Local Ethics Com... [2018 chars]