Is an Established Position the Ultimate Goal? An Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Established Positions on One's Subjective Well-being

Based on the unique personnel management system in China, this study uses data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) to examine the impact of established positions (bianzhi) on employees' subjective well-being and the mediating role of job satisfaction. The results show that established positions can lead to a higher level of subjective well-being compared to informal positions in the public sector and staff in the non-public sector, and job satisfaction plays a mediating role in this relationship. However, compared to informal staff in the public sector, established positions show no direct impact on the subjective well-being of formal staff in the public sector, and the direct impact is only reflected in comparison with staff in the non-public sector. Based on the research findings, this study suggests that in addition to paying attention to the phenomenon of the ultimate goal being an established position, it is also necessary to continuously improve people's subjective well-being by effectively improving their job satisfaction, thereby, to a certain extent, alleviating their current job anxieties.