The paradox of calculated happiness

Has the evolution from the GDP-era to the well-being era started? This book is a primer for those interested in alternatives to GDP as a measure of happiness

Beyond GDP: In Pursuit of Measuring Happiness

By Alok Ranjan

Published by 

Om Books

272 pages ₹399

 Gross domestic product (GDP) has been the dominant measure of well-being, despite being a highly unidimensional economic concept. This book is a comprehensive primer for all those interested in extensions, derivations, and alternatives to GDP as a measure of happiness. It deals with measures, metrics, and strategies relating to alternatives such as Gross National Happiness, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Human Development Index (HDI), the World Happiness Index, Subjective Well-Being (SWB), the OECD’s Better Life Index, and so on. 

Happiness, as the book observes, has been associated with different inputs by different sections: For the economists, it depends on GDP, higher income and consumption; for the sociologists, it is the quality of social support; for the

 

psychologist, it is personality traits and the state of mind; for the philosophers, it is the virtue ethics; and for the theologists, it is the virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Most of these are ignored by GDP-based approaches. Factors such as social trust, quality of work, freedom of choice, and political participation, which play a decisive role in influencing happiness have been ignored.

In the recent decades, various indices have tried to capture the other influencing factors in varying degrees and have tried to influence policies by publishing ratings of all countries. However, the obsession with measurement and comparison persists, which the World Happiness Report naively defended by stating, “factors generally used to explain human development (all measurable variables) are equally applicable to explaining happiness”. Most of these indices measure status  at a particular point in time (like GDP) rather than progress (growth rate), which is far more effective in motivating even those at the bottom to improve their lot, especially since happiness, as the author states, is more of a journey than a destination. 

Besides exploring pitfalls of GDP as a measure, and detailing Gross National Happiness pioneered by Bhutan, SDG, and MDG, the book devotes a large part to summarising the various Human Happiness Reports that started in 2012 as a joint initiative between Gallup and UN Sustainable Development Solutions. Each report deals with specific dimension of happiness. For example, the 2015 report introduced the concept of “quality adjusted life years”; 2016 talked of the inequality of well-being; 2017 drew attention to the contribution of social foundations to happiness; and 2021 dealt with the effects of the pandemic. Irrespective of whatever is being discussed, it is always Finland, Norway, Iceland, Ireland, and Denmark that are at the top, while Syria, Rwanda, Eritrea, Chad, and Afghanistan are taking turns at the bottom. India is ranked between 110 and 120 and China around the 90s. 

One wonders what transformational role these rankings play in policymaking. The writer believes that for better acceptance of these indices, the report should also list the five best practices from each country wherever placed. Every country has something to offer positively: Syria can teach others survival in continuous strife, the United States can teach us how to face pink slips, India on staying together despite diversity and raucous democracy, Rwanda on economic transformation after civil war, to suggest a few examples. 

The book is more descriptive than analytical or a critical review. There are several paradoxes mentioned. One is that income explains only 1 per cent of the variations in happiness, signifying very low correlation. Then how is it that only rich countries monopolise the top happiness ranks, even ahead of Bhutan, the pioneer of the concept, which ranks in the 80s and 90s? Second, is the assumption that people more satisfied with their life are more likely to vote. In India, it has been observed that the richer the citizen, the less likely they are to vote.  Third, the report posits a negative relationship between parenthood and life satisfaction, especially in rich countries. Fourth, it suggests that people in rural areas are happier than urban areas in richer countries but the opposite is true in poorer countries. A critical deep dive into these could have added significant value to the debate on the subject. 

The paradox of Finland, which has topped the list in most happiness rankings across years, needs to be unravelled. Ed Miliband, UK’s foreign secretary, famously said, “If you want the American dream, go to Finland.” But suicides are the third largest cause of death for Finns aged between 16 and 24.  Finns see themselves as reclusive, reticent, serene, and even depressed and doubt the rankings. A 2023 study suggested that they value their democracy, governance, free education, health care and trust their government. But the main source of their happiness comes from love for nature, sauna baths, summer holidays, hiking in pristine forests, fishing in rivers, chopping wood, kindling fire. Some of the latter activities are practised in many poorer societies rated at the bottom.   

The book rightly recalls several positively contradictory reports on India’s ratings. For example, a report by HappyPlus using a much larger sample size found India’s life evaluation score to be 6.84, nearly twice of WHR ratings. 

The sections on India, though good at detailing what is happening, could have provided critical inputs based on the author’s vast experience in the Indian Administrative Service. It is only to be expected that dealing with such a vast subject, with varied definitions and perception, would be a hazardous path. But one can agree with the author and the WHR that the evolution from the GDP-era to the well-being era has started.

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The reviewer is the author of Making Growth Happen in India