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International Evidence on Well-being

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Author Info
Blanchflower, David G. () (Dartmouth College)

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Abstract

National Time Accounting is a way of measuring society's well-being, based on time use. Its explicit form is the U-index, for “unpleasant” or “undesirable”, which measures the proportion of time an individual spends in an unpleasant state. In this paper I review cross-country evidence on happiness and life satisfaction and consider whether these data will likely be replaced by the U-index. I find that first, that there are many similarities. According to both measures happiness is higher for the more educated, for married people, for those with higher income and for whites and lower for the unemployed; is U-shaped in age and un-trended over time in the USA although they are trended up in a number of EU countries and especially so in developing countries. Equivalent results are found using self-reported unhappiness data. Second, there is a large body of data on happiness that is unavailable on the U-index. For example, according to happiness research well-being across nations is lower the higher is the unemployment rate, the current inflation rate and the highest inflation rate in a person's adult life. Higher inequality also lowers happiness. Third, we know little about the predictive power of the U-index. Happiness and life satisfaction data seem able to forecast migration flows. Fourth, happy people are particularly optimistic about the future. Fifth, according to the happiness data the US ranks above France but the U-index suggests the reverse.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in its series IZA Discussion Papers with number 3354.

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Date of creation: Feb 2008
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Publication status: forthcoming in: Alan Krueger (ed.), National Time Accounting and Subjective Well-Being, NBER and University of Chicago Press
Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp3354

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Related research
Keywords: pain; unhappiness; happiness; life satisfaction;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew J. Oswald, 2006. "On Leigh-Wolfers and Well-Being in Australia," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 39(2), pages 185-186, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew J. Oswald, 2000. "Well-Being Over Time in Britain and the USA," NBER Working Papers 7487, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. Kingdon, Geeta Gandhi & Knight, John, 2007. "Community, comparisons and subjective well-being in a divided society," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 69-90, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  4. Easterlin, Richard A., 1995. "Will raising the incomes of all increase the happiness of all?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 35-47, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew J. Oswald, 2007. "Hypertension and Happiness across Nations," NBER Working Papers 12934, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Andrew E. Clark & Paul Frijters & Michael A. Shields, 2008. "Relative Income, Happiness, and Utility: An Explanation for the Easterlin Paradox and Other Puzzles," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 46(1), pages 95-144, March.
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  7. Alan B. Krueger & David A. Schkade, 2007. "The Reliability of Subjective Well-Being Measures," IZA Discussion Papers 2724, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  8. Carol Graham, 2005. "Insights on Development from the Economics of Happiness," World Bank Research Observer, Oxford University Press, vol. 20(2), pages 201-231.
  9. Anzelika Zaiceva, 2006. "Reconciling the Estimates of Potential Migration into the Enlarged European Union," IZA Discussion Papers 2519, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  10. David G. Blanchflower & Richard B. Freeman, 2000. "Youth Employment and Joblessness in Advanced Countries," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number blan00-1.
  11. Wolfers, Justin, 2003. "Is Business Cycle Volatility Costly? Evidence from Surveys of Subjective Well-Being," International Finance, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 6(1), pages 1-26, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  12. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew Oswald, 2000. "The Rising Well-Being of the Young," NBER Chapters, in: Youth Employment and Joblessness in Advanced Countries, pages 289-328 National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!]
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  13. Paul Frijters & John P. Haisken-DeNew & Michael A. Shields, 2004. "Money Does Matter! Evidence from Increasing Real Income and Life Satisfaction in East Germany Following Reunification," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(3), pages 730-740, June. [Downloadable!]
  14. Bruno S. Frey & Alois Stutzer, 2002. "What Can Economists Learn from Happiness Research?," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 40(2), pages 402-435, June.
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  15. Theodossiou, I., 1998. "The effects of low-pay and unemployment on psychological well-being: A logistic regression approach," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 85-104, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  16. Blanchflower, David G. & Oswald, Andrew J., 2007. "Is Well-being U-Shaped over the Life Cycle?," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 826, University of Warwick, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
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  17. Andrew E. Clark, 2005. "Your Money or Your Life: Changing Job Quality in OECD Countries," IZA Discussion Papers 1610, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  18. Rafael Di Tella & John Haisken-De New & Robert MacCulloch, 2007. "Happiness Adaptation to Income and to Status in an Individual Panel," NBER Working Papers 13159, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  19. David G. Blanchflower & Chris Shadforth, 2007. "Fear, Unemployment and Migration," NBER Working Papers 13506, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  20. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew J. Oswald, 2005. "Happiness and the Human Development Index: The Paradox of Australia," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 38(3), pages 307-318, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  21. Bruno Frey & Alois Stutzer, 2005. "Happiness Research: State and Prospects," Review of Social Economy, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 63(2), pages 207-228, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  22. Blanchflower, David G., 2001. "Unemployment, Well-Being, and Wage Curves in Eastern and Central Europe," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 364-402, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  23. Clark, Andrew E & Oswald, Andrew J, 1994. "Unhappiness and Unemployment," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 104(424), pages 648-59, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  24. Andrew Leigh & Justin Wolfers, 2006. "Happiness and the Human Development Index: Australia Is Not a Paradox," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 39(2), pages 176-184, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  25. Nick Carroll, 2007. "Unemployment and Psychological Well-being," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 83(262), pages 287-302, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  26. Angus Deaton, 2007. "Income, Aging, Health and Wellbeing Around the World: Evidence from the Gallup World Poll," NBER Working Papers 13317, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  27. Nattavudh Powdthavee, 2003. "Are there Regional Variations in the Psychological Cost of Unemployment in South Africa?," Labor and Demography 0310006, EconWPA, revised 28 Oct 2003. [Downloadable!]
  28. Daniel Kahneman & Alan B. Krueger & David Schkade & Norbert Schwarz & Arthur Stone, 2004. "Toward National Well-Being Accounts," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(2), pages 429-434, May. [Downloadable!]
  29. Gerdtham, Ulf-G & Johannesson, Magnus, 2001. "The relationship between happiness, health, and socio-economic factors: results based on Swedish microdata," The Journal of Socio-Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(6), pages 553-557. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  30. Betsey Stevenson & Justin Wolfers, 2009. "The Paradox of Declining Female Happiness," NBER Working Papers 14969, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  31. Rafael Di Tella & Robert MacCulloch, 2007. "Happiness, Contentment and Other Emotions for Central Banks," NBER Working Papers 13622, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  32. Andrew E. Clark, 2007. "Born To Be Mild? Cohort Effects Don’t (Fully) Explain Why Well-Being Is U-Shaped in Age," IZA Discussion Papers 3170, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  33. Steven J. Atlas & Jonathan S. Skinner, 2009. "Education and the Prevalence of Pain," NBER Working Papers 14964, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  34. David G. Blanchflower, 2007. "Is Unemployment More Costly Than Inflation?," NBER Working Papers 13505, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  35. Ferrer-i-Carbonell, Ada, 2005. "Income and well-being: an empirical analysis of the comparison income effect," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(5-6), pages 997-1019, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  36. Anke C. Zimmermann & Richard A. Easterlin, 2006. "Happily Ever After? Cohabitation, Marriage, Divorce, and Happiness in Germany," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 32(3), pages 511-528. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  37. Winkelmann, Liliana & Winkelmann, Rainer, 1998. "Why Are the Unemployed So Unhappy? Evidence from Panel Data," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 65(257), pages 1-15, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  38. Rafael Di Tella & Robert MacCulloch, 2006. "Some Uses of Happiness Data in Economics," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 20(1), pages 25-46, Winter. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  39. Erzo F.P. Luttmer, 2004. "Neighbors as Negatives: Relative Earnings and Well-Being," NBER Working Papers 10667, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  40. Michael A. Shields & Stephen Wheatley Price, 2005. "Exploring the economic and social determinants of psychological well-being and perceived social support in England," Journal Of The Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 168(3), pages 513-537. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  41. Rafael Di Tella & Robert MacCulloch, 2005. "Partisan Social Happiness," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 72(2), pages 367-393, 04. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Arie Kapteyn & James P. Smith & Arthur van Soest, 2008. "Comparing Life Satisfaction," Working Papers 623, RAND Corporation Publications Department. [Downloadable!]
  2. Easterlin, Richard A., 2008. "Lost in Transition: Life Satisfaction on the Road to Capitalism," IZA Discussion Papers 3409, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  3. Steven J. Atlas & Jonathan S. Skinner, 2009. "Education and the Prevalence of Pain," NBER Working Papers 14964, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Pavel Luengas & Inder J. Ruprah, 2009. "Should Central Banks Target Happiness? Evidence from Latin America," OVE Working Papers 0209, Inter-American Development Bank, Office of Evaluation and Oversight (OVE). [Downloadable!]
  5. David G. Blanchflower & Andrew J. Oswald & Bert Van Landeghem, 2008. "Imitative Obesity and Relative Utility," NBER Working Papers 14337, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Fischer, Justina AV, 2009. "Happiness and age cycles – return to start…," MPRA Paper 15249, University Library of Munich, Germany. [Downloadable!]
  7. Blanchflower, David G. & Lawton, Helen, 2008. "The Impact of the Recent Expansion of the EU on the UK Labour Market," IZA Discussion Papers 3695, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  8. Luca Stanca, 2008. "The Geography of Economics and Happiness," Working Papers 140, University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Economics, revised Jun 2008. [Downloadable!]
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