I quote the Financial Times a lot. That’s because (i) that’s what I actually read, (ii) they have some really good articles, and (iii) it’s a paper that not too many of you read here. Oh and (iv) I enjoy reading it. It’s what I do when I get to work, just before going to get my coffee. It’s actually a nice way to start the day… Actually, I also have to connect my computer to the bank’s servers, which is pretty slow. I am usually going through page 2 (European News) when I finally have access to internet and click on dailyKos and Moon of Alabama. I then go back and forth between the three…
Anyway, this is just to introduce you to tomorrow’s FT column on Happiness. (Yeah, I cheat – many articles are available online the previous evening already. That’s enjoyable too – the feeling of being there before all others).
Here goes…
I liked the sentence that I used as the title to that diary, and I thought I’d share this article which fits with the ‘zeitgeist’ here on MoA; I am especially happy to report that what I read in the Financial Times (the – smarter – European answer to the Wall Street Journal) and what I read here on MoA are rarely incompatible, which should tell you something about the other side…
John Kay: Winners and losers in happiness stakes (behind subscription wall)
[A] fascinating new book* by Richard Layard, the British economist, argues that we should make happiness, not growth, the object of our economic policies. At first sight, there is not a lot of difference – the countries with the highest productivity are also the happiest. But on closer inspection, there are interesting differences.
People in rich countries are generally happier than people in poor countries. But once basic needs for food, clothing and shelter are more or less universally met – higher gross domestic product does not seem to make societies happier. All affluent countries are rather happy. Within this group, the Danes and the Dutch are at the top and the French and Italians at the bottom but the differences are not large. A generous welfare system does not seem to fulfil either the fears of the right or the hopes of the left. The best assessment is that welfare adds happiness if, but only if, most people believe the system is fair.
(…)
People who say that video recorders are more important than fair trials and free speech are just wrong. Still, richer countries tend to be happier and, within a country, richer people tend to be happier. Since people care a lot about their relative income, equality adds to happiness. But in a subtle way: we compare ourselves to people like us, we envy the neighbours rather than Bill Gates. Nothing seems so corrosive of social welfare as the sense that people in similar circumstances are freeloading at work or on benefit. Fairness, trust and the strength of social bonds make us happier. They also do a lot to make us richer.
That is why the notion that greed is good is doubly flawed – perhaps trebly so, because you do not become happy by taking out more than you put in. Almost every survey shows that stable relationships and fulfilling jobs are the most important contributors of personal happiness.
This evidence points to policies appropriate for a society that aims to promote the happiness of its citizens. Such policies are family friendly, and provide generous benefits to the unemployed. Decent employment is available to anyone who wants a job but people who are fit to work must accept that this is a condition of benefit. The happy country maintains social homogeneity and institutionalises trust between citizens.
Again, these messages should not surprise many here. The interesting thing is that they come in a serious business publication and are based on the work of a renowned mainstream economist (whose book you can find here: Happiness: Lessons from a New Science (if you don’t mind Amazon), and an earlier summary of whose ideas on the topic can be found here (in html) or here (in pdf) from where the graphs on this post have been taken).
You may remember the story about child care ranking far behind watching TV among enjoyable activities. Well that table here shows where that came from…
Enjoy!