Does More Equal Happiness or Prosperity?

We are conditioned to look at GDP (Gross Domestic Product) as a measure of economic progress for the country. The economists love this number. It gives them a standard to measure against. But, for the average person what does the GDP say about our lives? Are we happier because it’s high? Is the quality of life better? These are interesting questions tackled by The Growth Delusion.

This book, while examining difficult economic concepts, is written for the average person to understand. This may not be appropriate for experts, but it gives the average person insight into what the experts are talking about. Economists are traditionally caught up in looking at the wealth of nations and ranking countries on their economic progress. They believe that they understand the workings of the economy and are therefore justified in telling people whether they should be happy with the way the country is going.

In this book, the author discusses three major areas: the problems of growth; what growth tells us about ourselves and the developing world; and finally a look at the factors that relate to happiness and well-being. Although I enjoyed the first two sections, I found the last section most persuasive. The Industrial Revolution was great for the wealthy, but the poor suffered mightily. Are we heading for the same problems with our emphasis on growth? The poor and middle class plus the environment may suffer most for our emphasis on growth.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.