Well-being and Public Policy: The Collective Pursuit of Happiness
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Well-being and Public Policy: The Collective Pursuit of
Happiness
Ulrich SchimmackUniversity of Toronto Mississauga
Public Policy
- Rules that influence individuals’ pursuit of happiness.
- What is (ideally) the goal of public policy?
- maximize citizens’ well-being
- ensure fair distribution of well-being
- The Criterion Problem:- What is well-being? - What is fair?
What is Well-Being?
A List ApproachAn individual with high well being
…A. is healthy B. is illA. is free B. is unfree
(imprisoned) A. is safe B. is threatenedA.feels happy B. feels unhappyA. is educated B. is uneducatedA. is rich B. is poor
What is well-being?
- Subjective definition: Preference Realization The match between an individuals’ actual and ideal life.
Classic Welfare Economics
- Paul Samuelson
- 1970 Nobel laureate
- Utility / Efficient Markets
- Income- Opportunity to realize
preferences- Limited to market goods
and services
2008 Ranking of Nations (IMF Data)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita
Human Development Index
- Amartya Sen
- 1998 Nobel laureate
- Capabilities
- Human Development Index- Income- Health- Education
Subjective Indicators
- Hadley Cantril
- Public Opinion researcher
- Cantril’s Ladder (1965)- Single-Rating
0 = worst possible life10 = best possible life
Subjective Indicators
All things considered, how satisfied are you with your life as a whole these days?
Please choose a number ranging from 1 = dissatisfied to 10 = satisfied.World Value Survey Results for Canada:1982 7.841990 7.882000 7.802006 7.72
1990-2000 Ranking of Nations
http://mappingglobalhappiness.wordpress.com/2008/11/01/results/happinessmap/
Well-Being and Wealth (PPP)
00.511.522.533.544.555.56
0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000 35000 40000
Linear r = .83, log-function r = .82Source. Schimmack (2007).
Summary
- Convergent evidence from different well-being indicators (GDP, HDI, LS).
- Wealthy nations have higher well-being than poor nations.
- There is no cut-off point.
- We are lucky to live in Canada.
Variation within Nations
- Most results are based on data from other, yet similar countries (USA, Germany).
- Results could be different in Canada.
"Americans who earn $50,000 per year are much happier than those who earn $10,000 per year," writes Gilbert, "but Americans who earn $5 million per year are not much happier than those who earn $100,000 per year."
Lucas & Schimmack (2009)
How Happy are the Super-Wealthy?
- Diener et al. (1985)
- Mailed Happiness Survey to Individuals on Forbes 500 (N = 49)
LS IQ m/cm f/cmAverage 3.70 100 178 165Forbes 4.77 115 185 172
Money and Well-Being
Scientific Evidence- Wealthier individuals are happier- Money buys (some) happiness
Policy Implications- Progressive taxes- Universal health care
Personality and Well-Being
- Twin studies- Same genes, different lives- Similar well-being
CBS Show “Giggle Twins”
Longitudinal Stability
- Life satisfaction is quite stable over time.
- About 50% of the variation among Canadians is influenced by personality dispositions.
- Life satisfaction only partially reflects life-circumstances.
Source. Schimmack et al. (in press).
Policy Implications?
- Change dispositions - Education (Positive
Psychology)- Psychotherapy - Drugs (Prozac)
- Social Policies- Tax cheerfulness
- Ignore dispositions- Focus on external factors
Source. Knabe, A. & Raetzel, S. (2007). Quantifying the psychological costs of unemployment. FEMM Working Paper, 12, April 2007.
Unemployment and Life-Satisfaction
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1980
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1993
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
-0.6
-0.5
-0.4
-0.3
-0.2
-0.1
0
0.1
0.2
WhiteBlack
Stan
dard
ized
Life
Sat
isfa
ctio
n
Source. Diener, Lucas, Schimmack, & Helliwell (2009).
Life Satisfaction of White and Black US Americans
Overall Conclusion
- Subjective measure of well-being are important.
- They often converge with objective indicators (wealth, unemployment, reduced prejudice).
- They do not provide simple policy solutions.
- They do not directly solve the problems of conflicting interests and sustainability.
Outlook
- Better information = better choices = better life
- Recognize and use diversity in preferences
- Accept some inevitable unhappiness
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