13 Dec Happiness depends on money? Nup; it’s much more about health and friends!
via the Guardian by Phillip Inman
Most human misery can be blamed on failed relationships and physical and mental illness rather than money problems and poverty, according to a landmark study by a team of researchers at the London School of Economics (LSE).
Eliminating depression and anxiety would reduce misery by 20% compared to just 5% if policymakers focused on eliminating poverty, the report found.
Lord Richard Layard, who led the report, said on average people have become no happier in the last 50 years, despite average incomes more than doubling.
The economist and former adviser to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown said the study, called Origins of Happiness, showed that measuring people’s satisfaction with their lives should be a priority for every government. The researchers analysed data from four countries including the US and Germany.
Extra spending on reducing mental illness would be self-financing, the researchers added, because it would be recovered by the government through higher employment and increased tax receipts together with a reduction in NHS costs from fewer GP visits and hospital A&E admissions.
“Tackling depression and anxiety would be four times as effective as tackling poverty. It would also pay for itself,” he said.