Measuring Happiness · The Economics of Well-Being

Can money buy happiness? Is

income a reliable measure for life satisfaction? In the West after World

War II, happiness seemed inextricably connected to prosperity.

Beginning in the 1960s, however, other values began to gain ground:

peace, political participation, civil rights, environmentalism.

"Happiness economics" -- a somewhat incongruous-sounding branch of what

has been called "the dismal science" -- has taken up the puzzle of what

makes people happy, conducting elaborate surveys in which people are

asked to quantify their satisfaction with "life in general." In this

book, three economists explore the happiness-prosperity connection,

investigating how economists measure life satisfaction and well-being.

The

authors examine the evolution of happiness research, considering the

famous "Easterlin Paradox," which found that people's average life

satisfaction didn't seem to depend on their income. But they question

whether happiness research can measure what needs to be measured. They

argue that we should not assess people's well-being on a "happiness

scale," because that necessarily obscures true social progress. Instead,

rising income should be understood as increasing opportunities and

alleviating scarcity. Economic growth helps societies to sustain freedom

and to finance social welfare programs. In this respect, high income

may not buy happiness with life in general, but it gives individuals the

opportunity to be healthier, better educated, better clothed, and

better fed, to live longer, and to live well.

‘This

book helps to overcome the outdated economists' way of thinking that

postulates 'More is Better than Less.' The authors do that in a

substantial way, showing alternatives to this materialistic view, making

their book a fascinating experience to read.’ –Bruno S. Frey, Senior Professor of Political Economy, Zeppelin University, Germany; author of Happiness: A Revolution in Economics

‘The

authors have done a superb job of providing an authoritative review of

the most fundamental issues in happiness research to date. Measuring Happiness

is a fascinating book for anyone interested in human well-being and

happiness and is essential reading for doctoral students and researchers

wishing to take the field of happiness economics into the future.’ –Yannis Georgellis, Professor of Management, Kent Business School, University of Kent, UK

‘The

novelty of this book is not just in its clever and compelling way of

arguing that 'money does buy happiness'; it is the idea that our

reference points change when we measure happiness over time.’ –Ruud Muffels, Professor of Socio-Economics, Tilburg University, the Netherlands

Joachim Weimann is Full Professor of Economic Policy at Otto von

Geuricke University Magdeburg, and head of MaXlLab, the Magdeburg

Laboratory for Experimental Economics. Andreas Knabe is Full Professor

and Chair of Public Economics at Otto von Geuricke University Magdeburg.

Ronnie Schoeb is Full Professor of International Public Economies at

the School of Business and Economics, Freie Universitat, Berlin.