Well-being scales do not measure social desirability.
To examine the contention that well-being scales are contaminated by socially desirable responding, three well-being measures were correlated with peer ratings of neuroticism before and after controlling for Edwards' social desirability in a sample of 62 adult men and women. Because social desirability was correlated with rated neuroticism, "correcting" for social desirability bias decreased, rather than increased, the validity of well-being measures as judged against an external criterion. Findings support the position that self-reports of well-being can generally be taken as veridical assessments.
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McCrae
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009497:Neurotic Disorders; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012928:Social Desirability; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires