Application of topic modelling and neural network analysis to analyze life satisfaction

Abtract This study aims analyze the important influencing factors that affect the life satisfaction of Koreans, and to identify the relative importance of these factors. For this purpose, we utilize academic papers on what influences life satisfaction, and questionnaire data from the survey on social integration conducted annually by the Korean Government. A topic modelling analysis method was used to derive important influencing factors, and a neural network analysis method, one of the machine learning methods, was used to analyze the relative importance of influencing factors. The analysis showed that the factor that had the greatest impact on Koreans’ life satisfaction was satisfaction with work. Other factors included self-esteem, level of worry and anxiety, and level of satisfaction with health status. The study used methods such as topic modeling and neural network analysis to derive the main factors affecting life satisfaction and analyze the relative importance of the factor involved. The study results suggest that in recognition of the importance of job satisfaction, future research should be expanded, and that the Korean Government should introduce various policies to increase job satisfaction.