EN
The article presents the results of research concerning the psychological welfare of population residing in rural areas. The collected material suggests that the level of happiness of rural population is comparable to that characterising the residents of highly urbanised areas. Economic capital, social and cultural capital are the factors that have the strongest influence on the population's contentment with life. Another factor important for the population's psychological welfare is the ability to adjust to the changing social and economic conditions. On the other hand, analyses of individual causes of satisfaction have revealed that family, relations with other people and place of residence are the sources of greatest contentment for rural population. This means that in the poorly developed regions the quality of life is as high as in the regions representing an advanced level of development. The high degree of psychological welfare can, therefore, be recognised as an element of social capital that may be utilised in the development of a given region.