Income Inequality Explains Why Economic Growth Does Not Always Translate to an Increase in Happiness

Psychological Science
Shigehiro Oishi, Selin Kesebir

Abstract

One of the most puzzling social science findings in the past half century is the Easterlin paradox: Economic growth within a country does not always translate into an increase in happiness. We provide evidence that this paradox can be partly explained by income inequality. In two different data sets covering 34 countries, economic growth was not associated with increases in happiness when it was accompanied by growing income inequality. Earlier instances of the Easterlin paradox (i.e., economic growth not being associated with increasing happiness) can thus be explained by the frequent concurrence of economic growth and growing income inequality. These findings suggest that a more even distribution of growth in national wealth may be a precondition for raising nationwide happiness.

References

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Jun 27, 2008·Psychological Science·Jaime L Napier, John T Jost
Dec 15, 2010·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Richard A EasterlinJacqueline Smith Zweig
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Oct 31, 2012·Journal of Personality and Social Psychology·Ed DienerShigehiro Oishi

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Citations

May 18, 2016·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Jean-Louis MartinDaniel S Simberloff
Aug 24, 2017·Scandinavian Journal of Public Health·Mari Hagtvedt Vik, Erik Carlquist
Aug 5, 2017·Personality and Social Psychology Review : an Official Journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc·Piers SteelFrank Bosco
May 28, 2019·International Journal of Public Health·Annamaria PorrecaMarta Di Nicola
Jun 14, 2016·European Journal of Ageing·Tianyuan Li, Vivian Hiu-Ling Tsang
Oct 27, 2017·Quality of Life Research : an International Journal of Quality of Life Aspects of Treatment, Care and Rehabilitation·Kayonda Hubert NgamabaChristopher J Armitage
Jan 15, 2019·Collabra. Psychology·Ed DienerShigehiro Oishi
May 25, 2021·Social Indicators Research·Zeynep B Ugur
Jul 3, 2021·International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health·Liqin Zhang, Lin Wu
Jul 24, 2021·Journal of Adolescence·Jean M TwengeAstrid Le Roy

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