The Asymmetric Experience of Positive and Negative Economic Growth: Global Evidence Using Subjective Well-Being Data

Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, George W. Ward (), Femke De Keulenaer (), Bert Van Landeghem, Georgios Kavetsos and Michael I. Norton ()
Additional contact information
George W. Ward: CEP, London School of Economics
Femke De Keulenaer: Ipsos
Michael I. Norton: Harvard Business School

No 8914, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Are individuals more sensitive to losses than gains in terms of economic growth? Using subjective well-being data, we observe an asymmetry in the way positive and negative economic growth are experienced. We find that measures of life satisfaction and affect are more than twice as sensitive to negative economic growth as compared to positive growth. We use Gallup World Poll data from over 150 countries, BRFSS data on 2.5 million US respondents, and Eurobarometer data that cover multiple business cycles over four decades. This research provides a new perspective on the welfare cost of business cycles and has implications for growth policy and our understanding of the long-run relationship between GDP and subjective well-being.

Keywords: subjective well-being; business cycles; economic growth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D03 D69 I39 O11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 38 pages
Date: 2015-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-fdg and nep-hap
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (17)

Published - published in: Review of Economics and Statistics, 2018, 100 (2), 362–375

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Related works:
Journal Article: The Asymmetric Experience of Positive and Negative Economic Growth: Global Evidence Using Subjective Well-Being Data (2018)
Working Paper: The Asymmetric Experience of Positive and Negative Economic Growth: Global Evidence Using Subjective Well-Being Data (2014)
Working Paper: The asymmetric experience of positive and negative economic growth: global evidence using subjective well-being data (2014)
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