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Status, Happiness, and Relative Income

Author

Listed:
  • Beath, John

    (University of St. Andrews)

  • FitzRoy, Felix

    (University of St. Andrews)

Abstract

Models of status based on Frank’s (1985) count of the number of people with lower conspicuous consumption are inconsistent with the extensive empirical literature on happiness and well-being. The alternative approach to consumption interaction which uses some form of relative income has been developed in various contexts. These predict that a representative agent’s well-being will increase with real income or consumption. However, this is again inconsistent with the time-series evidence for advanced economies. In this paper we combine a simple model of relative income with a distribution of ability that correctly predicts both time series results of near constant utility, and the positive, concave cross-sectional relation between income, working time and happiness.

Suggested Citation

  • Beath, John & FitzRoy, Felix, 2007. "Status, Happiness, and Relative Income," IZA Discussion Papers 2658, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp2658
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Hamid Beladi & Sugata Marjit & Koushik Kumar Hati, 2024. "Growth impact of status seeking behavior: A counter example," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(1), pages 398-406, March.
    2. Corazzini, Luca & Esposito, Lucio & Majorano, Francesca, 2012. "Reign in hell or serve in heaven? A cross-country journey into the relative vs absolute perceptions of wellbeing," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 81(3), pages 715-730.
    3. David A. Weisbach, 2008. "What Does Happiness Research Tell Us About Taxation?," The Journal of Legal Studies, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(S2), pages 293-324, June.
    4. Marjit, Sugata & Roychowdhury, Punarjit, 2011. "Status, Poverty and Trade," MPRA Paper 33730, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Marjit, Sugata & Mandal, Biswajit, 2011. "Conspicuous Consumption, Social Status and Measures of Poverty – An Example," MPRA Paper 33745, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Apr 2011.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    status; happiness; relative income;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D01 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Behavior: Underlying Principles
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D6 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics

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