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What can Economists Learn from Happiness Research?
Bruno S. Frey University of Zurich - Faculty of Business Administration - Institute for Empirical Research in Economics (IEW); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute for Economic Research); Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich Alois Stutzer University of Basel - Department of Business and Economics; Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) June 2001 CESifo Working Paper Series No. 503; Zurich IEER Working Paper No. 80 Abstract: Over the past few years, there has been a steadily increasing interest on the part of economists in happiness research. We argue that reported subjective well-being is a satisfactory empirical approximation to individual utility and that happiness research is able to contribute important insights for economics. We report how the economic variables income, unemployment and inflation affect happiness as well as how institutional factors, in particular the type of democracy and the extent of government decentralization, systematically influence how satisfied individuals are with their life. We discuss some of the consequences for economic policy and for economic theory.
Keywords: Economics, Economic Welfare, Subjective Well-Being, Utility JEL Classifications: A10, D60, I31 Working Paper SeriesDate posted: May 31, 2001 ; Last revised: September 01, 2004Suggested CitationContact Information
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