The metrics of subjective wellbeing: Cardinality, Neutrality and Additivity

Economic Record

Volumn 86, Issue 272, 2010, Pages 98-123

  Kristoffersen, Ingebjørg ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA   (Australia)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

DATA SET; ECONOMIC ANALYSIS; LIVING STANDARD; MEASUREMENT METHOD; METHODOLOGY; QUALITY OF LIFE; RESEARCH WORK;

EID: 77950125012     PISSN: 00130249     EISSN: 14754932     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-4932.2009.00598.x     Document Type: Article

References (90)

1. Akerlof GA. The Market for " Lemons": Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism. Quarterly Journal of Economics 1970, 84:488-500.
2. Akerlof GA. A Theory of Social Custom, of which Unemployment May be One Consequence. Quarterly Journal of Economics 1980, 94:749-75.
3. Alesina A, DiTella R, MacCulloch RJ. Inequality and Happiness: Are Europeans and Americans Different? NBER Working Paper #8198 2001, NBER, Cambridge, MA
4. Allen RGD. A Reconsideration of the Theory of Value, II. Econometrica 1934, 1:196-219.
5. Baker BO, Hardyck CD, Petrinovich LF. Weak Measurements vs. Strong Statistics: An Empirical Critique of S.S. Stevens's Proscriptions on Statistics. Educational and Psychological Measurement 1966, 26:291-309.
6. Becker GS. Irrational Behaviour and Economic Theory. Journal of Political Economy 1962, 70:1-13.
7. Becker GS, Lewis HG. On the Interaction between the Quantity and Quality of Children. Journal of Political Economy 1973, 81(Pt 1):s279-88.
8. Blanchflower DG, Oswald AJ. Well-Being over Time in Britain and the USA. Journal of Public Economics 2004, 88:1359-86.
9. Blanchflower DG, Oswald AJ. 'Happiness and the Human Development Index: The Paradox of Australia. Australian Economic Review 2005, 38:307-18.
10. Blanton H, Jaccard J. Arbitrary Metrics in Psychology. American Psychologist 2006, 61:27-41.
11. Borgatta EF, Bohrnstedt GW. Level of Measurement - Once over Again. Sociological Methods and Research 1980, 9:147-60.
12. Bouazzaoui B, Mullet E. Employment and Family as a Determinant of Anticipated Life Satisfaction: Contrasting Young Adults' and Elderly People's Viewpoints. Journal of Happiness Studies 2002, 3:129-52.
13. Bradburn NM. The Structure of Psychological Well-Being 1969, Aldine, Chicago
14. Bruni L, Sugden R. The Road Not Taken: How Psychology was Removed from Economics, and how it Might be Brought Back. The Economic Journal 2007, 117:146-73.
15. Clark AE, Oswald AJ. Satisfaction and Comparison Income. Journal of Public Economics 1996, 61:359-81.
16. Clark AE, Frijters P, Shields MA. Relative Income, Happiness, and Utility: An Explanation for the Easterlin Paradox and Other Puzzles. Journal of Economic Literature 2008, 46:95-144.
17. Colander D. Edgeworth's Hedonimeter and the Quest to Measure Utility. Journal of Economic Perspectives 2007, 21:215-25.
18. Conti G, Pudney S. 'If You're Happy and You Know it, Clap Your Hands! Survey Design and the Analysis of Satisfaction. 2008, http://www.iser.essex.ac.uk/publications/working-papers/iser/2008-39.pdf, [Cited 22 September 2009.] Available from:
19. Costa PT, McCrae RR. Personality in Adulthood: A Six-Year Longitudinal Study of Self-Reports and Spouse Ratings on the NEO Personality Inventory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1988, 54:853-63.
20. Cummins RA. The Second Approximation to an International Standard of Life Satisfaction. Social Indicators Research 1998, 43:307-34.
21. Cummins RA. Subjective Wellbeing, Homeostatically Protected Mood and Depression. Journal of Happiness Studies '
22. Cummins RA, Gullone E, Lau ALD. 'A Model of Subjective Well-being Homeostasis: The Role of Personality'. The Universality of Subjective Wellbeing Indicators: Social Indicators Research Series 2002, 7-46. Gullone E, Cummins RA, in, eds, Kluwer, Dordrecht
23. Davidson RJ. Anterior Cerebral Asymmetry and the Nature of Emotion. Brain and Cognition 1992, 6:245-68.
24. Diener E, Biswas-Diener R. Will Money Increase Subjective Wellbeing?'. Social Indicators Research 2002, 57:119-69.
25. Diener E, Larsen RJ. Temporal Stability and Cross-Situational Consistency of Affective, Behavioural, and Cognitive Responses. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1984, 47:580-92.
26. Diener E, Suh EM. National Differences in Subjective Well-Being'. Well-Being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, 434-50. Kahneman D, Diener ESchwarz N. in, eds, Russell Sage Foundation, New York
27. Diener E, Suh EM. Culture and Subjective Well-Being 2000, eds, The MIT Press, London, England, Cambridge, MA
28. Diener E, Sandvik E, Seidlitz L, Diener M. The Relationship between Income and Subjective Well-Being: Relative or Absolute?'. Social Indicators Research 1993, 28:195-223.
29. Diener E, Diener M, Diener C. Factors Predicting the Subjective Well-Being of Nations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1995, 69:851-64.
30. Diener E, Suh EM, Lucas RE, Smith HL. Subjective Well-Being: Three Decades of Progress. Psychological Bulletin 1999, 125:276-302.
31. DiTella R, MacCulloch RJ, Oswald AJ. Preferences over Inflation and Unemployment: Evidence from Surveys of Happiness. The American Economic Review 2001, 91:335-41.
32. DiTella R, MacCulloch RJ, Oswald AJ. The Macroeconomics of Happiness. Review of Economics and Statistics 2002, 85:809-27.
33. Dockery AM. The Happiness of Young Australians: Empirical Evidence on the Role of Labour Market Experience. Economic Record 2005, 81:322-35.
34. Easterlin RA. Does Economic Growth Improve the Human Lot? Some Empirical Evidence'. National and Households in Economic Growth: Essays in Honor of Moses Abramovitz 1974, 89-125. David PAReder MW. in, eds, Academic Press, New York and London
35. Ferrier-i-Carbonell A, Frijters P. How Important is Methodology for the Estimates of the Determinants of Happiness?'. The Economic Journal 2004, 114:641-59.
36. Frey BS, Stutzer A. Happiness and Economics 2002, Princeton University Press, Princeton
37. Gardner J, Oswald AJ. 'Does Money Buy Happiness? A Longitudinal Study Using Data on Windfalls'. 2001, http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/staff/faculty/oswald/marchwindfallsgo.pdf, Warwick University, Warwick, UK, [Cited 22 September 2009.] Available from:
38. Graaf Jvd. Theoretical Welfare Economics 1959, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England
39. Guttman L. What is Not what in Statistics. The Statistician 1977, 26:81-107.
40. Hayek FAv. 'The Pretence of Knowledge'. The American Economic Review 1989 [1974], 79:3-7.
41. Headey B. An Economic Model of Subjective Well-Being: Integrating Economic and Psychological Theories. Social Indicators Research 1993, 28:97-116.
42. Headey B. Life Goals Matter to Happiness: A Revision of Set-Point Theory. Social Indicators Research 2008, 86:213-31.
43. Headey B, Wearing A. Personality, Life Events, and Subjective Well-Being: Toward a Dynamic Equilibirium Model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1989, 57:731-9.
44. Headey B, Wooden M. The Effects of Wealth and Income on Subjective Well-Being and Ill-Being. Economic Record 2004, 80(Special Issue):S24-33.
45. Helliwell JF, Putman RD. Economic Growth and Social Capital in Italy. Eastern Economic Journal 1995, 21:295-307.
46. Hicks JR. A Reconsideration of the Theory of Value, I. Econometrica 1934, 1:52-75.
47. Houttakker HS. Revealed Preference and the Utility Function. Econometrica 1950, 17:159-74.
48. Juster FT, Courant PN. 'Integrating Stocks and Flows in Quality of Life Research'. Research on the Quality of Life 1986, 147-70. Andrews FM, in, ed, I.S.R., Ann Arbor
49. Kahneman D. Objective Happiness. Well-being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, Kahneman DDiener EN Schwarz. ', ', in, eds, Russell Sage Foundation, New York
50. Kahneman D, Diener E, Schwarz N. Well-being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, eds, Russell Sage Foundation, New York
51. Kahneman D, Krueger AB. Developments in the Measurement of Subjective Well-Being. Journal of Economic Perspectives 2006, 20:3-24.
52. Kahneman D, Tversky A. Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision under Risk. Econometrica 1979, 47:263-92.
53. Kahneman D, Wakker PP, Sarin R. Back to Bentham? Explorations of Experienced Utility. Quarterly Journal of Economics 1997, 112:375-405.
54. Kahneman D, Krueger AB, Schkade DA, Schwarz N, Stone AA. A Survey Method for Characterizing Daily Life Experiences: The Day Reconstruction Method. Science 2004, 306:1776-80.
55. Kalmijn W, Veenhoven R. Measuring Inequality of Happiness in Nations - in Search for Proper Statistics. Journal of Happiness Studies 2005, 6:357-96.
56. Katzner DW. The Misuse of Measurement in Economics. Metroeconomica 1998, 49:1-22.
57. Larsen RJ, Fredrickson BL. 'Measurement Issues in Emotional Research'. Well-Being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, 40-60. Kahneman D, Diener ESchwarz N. in, eds, Russel Sage Foundation, New York
58. Lau ALD. Measurement of Subjective Wellbeing: Cultural Issues'. 2007, 9th Quality of Life Conference, Deakin University, Melbourne
59. Layard R. Happiness: Lessons from a New Science 2005, The Penguin Press, New York
60. Loewenstein G, Schkade DA. 'Woudn't it be Nice? Predicting Future Feelings'. Well-Being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, 84-105. Kahneman D, Diener ESchwarz N. in, eds, Russel Sage Foundation, New York
61. Long A. Happily Ever After? A Study of Job Satisfaction in Australia. Economic Record 2005, 81:303-21.
62. Lord F. On the Statistical Treatment of Football Numbers. American Psychologist 1953, 8:750-1.
63. Lucas RE, Diener E, Suh EM. Discriminant Validity of Wellbeing Measures. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1996, 71:616-28.
64. Lyuvomirsky S, King L, Diener E. The Benefits of Frequent Positive Affect: Does Happiness Lead to Success?'. Psychological Bulletin 2005, 131:803-55.
65. Ng Y-K. Happiness Surveys: Some Comparability Issues and an Exploratory Survey Based on Just Perceivable Increments. Social Indicators Research 1996, 38:1-27.
66. Ng Y-K. A Case for Happiness, Cardinalism, and Interpersonal Comparability. Economic Journal 1997, 107:1848-58.
67. Ng Y-K. From Preference to Happiness: Towards a More Complete Welfare Economics. Social Choice and Welfare 2003, 20:307-50.
68. Ng Y-K. Happiness Studies: Ways to Improve Comparability and Some Public Policy Implications. Economic Record 2008, 84:253-66.
69. van Praag BMS. Perspectives from the Happiness Literature and the Role of New Instruments for Policy Analysis. CESifo Economic Studies 2007, 53:42-68.
70. van Praag BMS, Ferrier-i-Carbonell A. Happiness Quantified: A Satisfaction Calculus Approach 2004, Oxford University Press, New York
71. Reinhardt T. A Measure of Happiness. Nature 2006, 444:418-19.
72. Romer D. Advanced Macroeconomics 2006, 3rd edn, McGraw-Hill, New York
73. Rozin P. Preadaptation and the Puzzles and Properties of Pleasure'. Well-Being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, 109-33. Kahneman DDiener ESchwarz N. in, eds, Russell Sage Foundation, New York
74. Samuelson PA. A Note of the Pure Theory of Consumer's Behaviour. Econometrica 1938, 4:61-71.
75. Saris WE. The Relationship between Income and Satisfaction: The Effect of Measurement Error and Suppressor Variables. Social Indicators Research 2001, 53:117-36.
76. Schwarz N. Cognition and Communication: Judgmental Biases, Research Methods, and the Logic of Conversation 1996, Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ
77. Schwarz N, Strack F. 'Reports of Subjective Well-Being: Judgmental Processes and their Methodological Implications'. Well-Being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology 1999, 61-84. Kahneman D, Diener ESchwarz N. in, eds, Russel Sage Foundation, New York
78. Stevens SS. On the Theory of Scales of Measurement. Science 1946, 103:677-80.
79. Stevens SS. 'Mathematics, Measurement and Psychophysics'. Handbook of Experimental Psychology 1951, 1-49. Stevens SS. in, ed, Wiley, New York
80. Stevens SS. Psychophysics 1975, Wiley, New York
81. Sweeny K, Carroll PJ, Sheppard JA. Is Optimism Always Best? Future Outlooks and Preparedness. Current Directions in Psychological Science 2006, 15:302-6.
82. Tellegen A, Watson D, Clark LA. On the Dimensional and Hierarchical Structure of Affect. Psychological Science 1999, 10:297-303.
83. Tukey JW. The Future of Data Analysis'. The Collected Works of John W. Tukey, Vol. III (1986) 1962, 187-389. Jones LV. in, ed, Wadsworth, Inc., Belmont, CA
84. Uzawa H. 'Preference and Rational Choice in the Theory of Consumption'. Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences 1960, 129-48. Arrow KJKarlin SSuppes P. in, eds, Standford University Press, Stanford, CA
85. Veenhoven R. Conditions of Happiness 1984, Kluwer Academic, Dordrecht
86. Veenhoven R. Is Happiness Relative?'. Social Indicators Research 1991, 24:1-34.
87. Veenhoven R. The Cross-National Pattern of Happiness: Test of Predictions Implied in Three Theories of Happiness. Social Indicators Research 1995, 34:33-68.
88. Velleman PF, Wilkinson L. Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, and Ratio Typologies are Misleading. The American Statistician 1993, 47:65-72.
89. Wooden M, Watson N. The HILDA Survey and its Contribution to Economic and Social Research (So Far). Economic Record 2007, 83:208-31.
90. Wooden M, Freidin S, Watson N. The Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey: Wave 1. The Australian Economic Review 2002, 35:339-48.