Events
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01 May 2004
Seminar Series 1 Lecture 4 - Prof Lord Richard Layard
Location:
Professor Lord Richard Layard, Founder, Centre for Economic Performance, London School of Economics: ‘Happiness’
Key ideas:
- Happiness is objective and measurable.
- Health improves happiness, and vice versa. Happiness is a good different to all others - it is the good.
- For populations above the poverty line, increasing income does not increase happiness.
- In general, people place more value on relative wealth / income than absolute.
- Individualism negatively affects happiness.
- Better concepts of the common good (compassion to others) and of the private good (compassion to oneself) are required.
- Public policy should be based on producing the greatest happiness.