Economic Growth Evens-out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys

Andrew Clark, Sarah Flèche and Claudia Senik ()

No 633, SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research from DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP)

Abstract: In spite of the great U-turn that saw income inequality rise in Western countries in the 1980s, happiness inequality has dropped in countries that have experienced income growth (but not in those that did not). Modern growth has reduced the share of both the "very unhappy" and the "perfectly happy". The extension of public amenities has certainly contributed to this greater happiness homogeneity. This new stylized fact comes as an addition to the Easterlin paradox,offering a somewhat brighter perspective for developing countries.

Keywords: Happiness; inequality; economic growth; development; Easterlin paradox (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D31 D6 I3 O15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 32 p.
Date: 2014
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hap, nep-hpe and nep-ltv
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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https://www.diw.de/documents/publikationen/73/diw_01.c.439435.de/diw_sp0633.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2016)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2016)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2016)
Working Paper: Economic growth evens out happiness: evidence from six surveys (2015)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens-Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2014)
Working Paper: Economic growth evens-out happiness: evidence from six surveys (2014)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens-Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2014)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens-Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2014)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens-Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2014)
Working Paper: Economic Growth Evens-Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys (2014)
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