Richard Layard on happiness economics.
About this Podcast: For economist Richard Layard, happiness lies at the heart of any successful society. His work advocates for the theory that happiness is the real measure of national success and our governments should focus on the well-being of their societies, rather than wealth alone. Layard de...
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| Format: | Audio Book |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
London :
SAGE Publishing,
2020.
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| Series: | Social science bites
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Connect to this podcast |
| Summary: | About this Podcast: For economist Richard Layard, happiness lies at the heart of any successful society. His work advocates for the theory that happiness is the real measure of national success and our governments should focus on the well-being of their societies, rather than wealth alone. Layard defines happiness economics using three key principles: how the state of a nation is evaluated based on happiness; that we should make happiness a priority in our everyday lives and produce the largest amount of happiness in the world that we can; and that the government should aim to produce the greatest happiness in people, with particular attention to preventing misery. "That was the view of Thomas Jefferson," Layard notes, "I think it was the right view." In this podcast, Layard discusses a successful qualitative approach for estimating our future lifespan, work productivity, and whether an incumbent government is re-elected. In addition, these estimations have proven to be more accurate than predictions based on the economy. Layard remarks, "Bill Clinton said, 'It's the economy, stupid.' I'm afraid he was the stupid one [...] It is pretty clear in our mental fabric that how you feel is of ultimate importance, and these other things [such as wealth or health] are a means to that end.". |
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| Physical Description: | 1 online resource (20 min., 47 sec.). |
| ISBN: | 9781529776959 1529776953 |