The Political Economy of Human Happiness

Both classical political philosophers and today’s politicians agree that a good society is one in which people are happy or satisfied with their lives. Happiness, of course, depends on individual traits and events, but there are also societal factors that can be affected by political choices.

Benjamin Radcliff uses surveys of happiness and tests a number of explanatory factors in a series of impeccable statistical analyses. The surprising fact is that the question of which society makes its members most satisfied with life has a clear answer, which is…? No spoiler here – read the book!