An Economist’s Lessons On Happiness: Farewell Dismal Science!

Description

Once called the “dismal science,” economics now offers prescriptions for improving people’s happiness. In this book Richard Easterlin, the “father of happiness economics,” draws on a half-century of his own research and that conducted by fellow economists and psychologists to answer in plain language questions like: Can happiness be measured? Will more money make me happier? What about finding a partner? Getting married? Having a baby? More exercise? Does religion help? Who is happier—women or men, young or old, rich or poor? How does happiness change as we go through different stages of life? Public policy is also in the mix: Can the government increase people’s happiness? Should the government increase their happiness? Which countries are the happiest and why? Does a country need to be rich to be happy? Does economic growth improve the human lot? Some of the answers are surprising (no, more money won’t do the trick; neither will economic growth; babies are a mixed blessing!), but they are all based on reason and well-vetted evidence from the fields of economics and psychology. In closing, Easterlin traces the genesis of the ongoing “Happiness Revolution” and considers its implications for people’s lives down the road. Preface......Page 6 Contents......Page 8 Brief Biographies......Page 12 List of Figures......Page 14 List of Tables......Page 16 1.1 The Path Via Paradox......Page 17 References......Page 20 Part I: First Lessons......Page 21 2.1 Happiness Yardsticks......Page 22 2.2 Short-Lived Ups and Downs?......Page 24 2.3 Telling It Like It Is?......Page 25 2.4 Different Things to Different People?......Page 26 2.5 Subjective Vs. Objective Measures of Well-Being......Page 29 2.6 The Best Measure?......Page 31 References and Further Reading......Page 32 3.1 The Happiness-Income Paradox......Page 33 3.2 Solving the Paradox......Page 37 3.3 The Good Life: Wanting and Having......Page 41 3.4 Social Comparison Revisited......Page 43 3.5 The Upshot......Page 44 References and Further Reading......Page 45 4.1 Tracking Health and Happiness......Page 47 4.2 Explaining Health and Happiness......Page 49 References and Further Reading......Page 52 5.1 Making Matches......Page 54 5.2 Breaking Up: Hard to Do?......Page 58 5.3 The Patter of Little Feet......Page 59 5.4 Assessing Family Life......Page 60 References and Further Reading......Page 62 6.1 Having Vs. Wanting......Page 64 6.2 What Can I Do to Increase My Happiness?......Page 65 References and Further Reading......Page 69 Part II: Next Lessons......Page 70 7.1 East Germany: The Eye-Opener......Page 71 7.2 The Former Soviet Union: More of the Same?......Page 76 7.3 China Clinches It......Page 77 References and Further Reading......Page 81 8.1 Happy Welfare States?......Page 83 8.2 Some Welfare State FAQs......Page 86 8.4 The Upshot......Page 88 8.5 Consumer Sovereignty and the Welfare State......Page 89 References and Further Reading......Page 91 9.1 Happiness Vs. GDP......Page 92 9.2 The Dashboard Approach......Page 96 References and Further Reading......Page 98 Part III: Q & A......Page 99 10.1 What’s Age Got to Do with It?......Page 100 10.2 Who Are Happier? Women or Men?......Page 104 References and Further Reading......Page 107 11.1 Winning the Lottery......Page 108 11.2 Why Do Happiness and Income Fluctuate in Step?......Page 109 11.3 Greener Grass? Misremembering Past Happiness......Page 112 11.5 Is All Utility Created Equal?......Page 113 11.6 Concluding Thoughts......Page 114 References and Further Reading......Page 115 12.1 What’s Most Important?......Page 116 12.2 Self-Evident Truths: The Matter of Democracy......Page 118 12.3 Do Cultural Differences Undermine Happiness Comparisons?......Page 120 12.4 Fair and Square: Environment, Income Inequality, Social Capital......Page 121 12.5 Inspiration and Afterglow: Religion, Volunteerism, Giving......Page 122 12.6 Exceptional Events......Page 123 12.7 The Thumbnail Happiness Test......Page 124 References and Further Reading......Page 125 13.1 Explaining Happiness......Page 126 13.3 Vetting Happiness, Gauging Happiness......Page 129 13.4 Methods: More or Less......Page 133 References and Further Reading......Page 136 14.1 How About Really Poor Countries?......Page 137 14.2 Why Are Richer Countries Happier?......Page 141 14.3 How Much Time Is in a Time Series?......Page 143 References and Further Reading......Page 147 Part IV: History Lessons......Page 148 15.1 Labor Pains and Birthday Greetings......Page 149 15.2 Formative Years......Page 153 15.3 Happiness in Bloom......Page 156 15.4 Lionel Robbins Lives On!......Page 157 15.5 Ever Onward!......Page 158 References and Further Reading......Page 159 16.1 Back to the Future: 50 Years On......Page 160 16.2 Industrialization: A Revolution in Living Conditions......Page 161 16.3 Next Up: The Demographic Revolution......Page 165 16.4 Timing and Geographic Diffusion......Page 170 16.5 Tracing the Source: The Scientific Revolution......Page 171 16.6 The Happiness Revolution......Page 173 References and Further Reading......Page 176 Glossary......Page 178 Index......Page 180