Cultural Health Capital, Attitudes Toward End-of-Life, and Subjective Well-Being in Taiwan: The Role of Education

Objectives: This study examines health literacy and EOL pro-individualism as cultural health capital, their associations with EOL discussion and subjective well-being (SWB), and the moderating role of education. Methods: Using data from the 2017 Taichung Survey (N = 645) and the 2021 Taiwan Social Change Survey (N = 631), analyses combined logistic and OLS regressions with SEM for mediation testing, and evaluated the moderation by comparing across educational groups. Results: The results show that health literacy relates to higher happiness among the higher-educated and greater life satisfaction overall, whereas EOL pro-individualism relates to lower outcomes. Only formal EOL discussions show a positive link with happiness. Education moderates all associations with happiness. Discussion: Findings indicate that cultural health capital plays a dual role and underscore the relevance of formal EOL discussions. Policies could prioritize strengthening health literacy and promoting formal discussions while addressing cultural tensions between autonomy and family obligations.