Measures of GROSS NATIONAL HAPPINESS

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Measures ofGROSS NATIONAL HAPPINESS

• Ruut VeenhovenErasmus University Rotterdam
• Presentation at OECD World Forum on
• Statistics, Knowledge and Policy
• Istanbul, Turkey June 27-30Roundtable on
• Measuring Happiness and Making Policy

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Measures of GNH

• The greatest happiness principle
• What is happiness?
• Can happiness be measured?
• Measures of happiness in nations
• Average Happiness
• Happy Life Years
• Inequality of Happiness
• Inequality Adjusted Happiness
• unhappy
• Relevance for policy

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Greatest Happiness Principle
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Greatest happiness principlePhilosophy

• Morally good is what works out wellMorality
  appears in consequences
• Most moral is what produces greatest happiness
  for greatest number
• This philosophy is called utilitarianismApplied
  on public choice rule utilitarianism

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Greatest happiness principleVariants of
rule-utilitarianism

• Focus on average happinessStandard
  utilitarianism
• Focus on difference in happinessEgalitarian
  utilitarianism
• Focus on the least happyNegative utilitarianism

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What is happiness?
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What is happiness?Four qualities of life
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What is happiness?Four qualities of life
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What is happiness?Four kinds of satisfaction
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What is happiness?Four kinds of satisfaction
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Can happiness be measured?
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Measurement of happinessExample of a survey
question
Taking all together, how satisfied or
dissatisfied are you with your life as a whole
these days? 1 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9
10 Dissatisfied Satisfied
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Happiness in Switzerland 2000
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Happiness in Zimbabwe 2000
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Measures of happiness in nations
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Measures of happiness in nations

• Average Happiness
• Happy Life Years
• Inequality of Happiness
• Inequality Adjusted Happiness
• Unhappy

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Measures of happiness in nationsLink with
variants of utilitarianism

• Standard utilitarianism
• Average Happiness
• Happy Life Years
• Egalitarian utilitarianism
• Inequality of Happiness
• Inequality Adjusted Happiness
• Negative utilitarianism
• unhappy

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Measures of happiness in nationsAverage Happiness
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Average 0-10 happiness in 2000

• Switzerland 8,1
• USA 7,4
• UK 7,1
• Italy 6,9
• France 6,5
• Japan 6,2
• Russia 4,4
• Zimbabwe 3.3

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Average 0-10 happiness in 2000Change since 1973

• Switzerland ? 8,1
• USA 0,34 7,4
• UK 0,06 7,1
• Italy 0,96 6,9
• France 0,28 6,5
• Japan 0,00 6,2
• Russia ? 4,4
• Zimbabwe ? 3.3

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Measures of happiness in nationsHappy Life Years
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Measures of happiness in nationsHappy Life Years
MeaningHow long and happy people live in a
countryComputationLife-expectancy x 0-1
happinessExample Switzerland-
Life-expectancy 79 years- Average 0-10
happiness 8,1- HLY 79 x 0,81 64
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Happy Life Years in 2000

• Switzerland 63,9
• USA 57,0
• UK 55,2
• Italy 54,2
• France 51,4
• Japan 50,4
• Russia 29,2
• Zimbabwe 11,5

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Happy Life Years in 2000Change since 1973

• Switzerland ? 63,9
• USA 5,2 57,0
• UK 4,1 55,2
• Italy 11,5 54,2
• France 6,0 51,4
• Japan 4,4 50,4
• Russia ? 29,2
• Zimbabwe ? 11,5

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Measures of happiness in nationsInequality of
Happiness
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SD 0-10 happiness in 2000

• Switzerland 1,7
• USA 2,1
• UK 2,1
• Italy 2,1
• France 2,2
• Japan 2,1
• Russia 2,6
• Zimbabwe 3.0

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SD 0-10 happiness in 2000Change since 1973

• Switzerland ? 1,7
• USA - 0,03 2,1
• UK - 0,16 2,1
• Italy - 0,37 2,1
• France - 0,09 2,2
• Japan 0,09 2,1
• Russia ? 2,6
• Zimbabwe ? 3.0

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Measures of happiness in nationsInequality
Adjusted Happiness
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0-100 IAH in nations in 2000

• Switzerland 75
• USA 67
• UK 64
• Italy 62
• France 58
• Japan 55
• Russia 36
• Zimbabwe 23

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0-100 IAH in nations in 2000Change since 1973

• Switzerland ? 75
• USA 5,2 67
• UK 4,1 64
• Italy 10,5 62
• France 6,0 58
• Japan - 4,4 55
• Russia ? 36
• Zimbabwe ? 23

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Measures of happiness in nations Unhappy
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unhappy in 2000 (below 5 on 1-10)

• Switzerland 4,1
• USA 5,9
• UK 7,9
• Italy 9,6
• France 11,2
• Japan 14,5
• Russia 45,5
• Zimbabwe 56,7

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Happiness and kind of society
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Societal correlates of happiness in 95
nationsAverage happiness

• Economic affluence .61
• Political freedom .54
• Rule of law .58
• State welfare .22
• Income equality .18
• Tolerance .68
• R2 .73

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Societal correlates of happiness in 95
nationsExplained variance

• Average happiness 73
• Happy Life Years 81
• Inequality of happiness 51
• Inequality-Adjusted happiness 74
• Unhappy 77

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Societal correlates of happiness in 95
nationsSimilarity in correlations

• Difference in correlation with income-inequality
• No correlation with Average happiness
• Some correlation with SD-happiness
• All other correlations similarSame policies fit
  all variants of utilitarianism

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World Database of Happiness
http//worlddatabaseofhappiness.eur.nl