Why Prosperity Has Increased but Happiness Has Not

Re:Why Prosperity Has Increased but Happiness Has Not by another-cuppa on Thursday August 23, 2018 @05:41AM (#17825872)

So who does the work at home now? Both partners after they get home from work? That doesn't sound like a better deal to me.

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Re:Why Prosperity Has Increased but Happiness Has Not by JASchilz on Thursday August 23, 2018 @08:41AM (#17826725)

There are fewer hours of work done at home now. The increase in leisure time reflects a decrease in total labor: income-earning labor, labor around the house, etc. Figures in [1] break it out a bit, although the years-reflected are a bit different than I used above. Search for "60.9" to find the relevant table.

[1]: https://eh.net/encyclopedia/hours-of-work-in-u-s-history/

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Re:Why Prosperity Has Increased but Happiness Has Not by another-cuppa on Thursday August 23, 2018 @10:04AM (#17827313)

That compares the 1960s to the 1980s. A lot has changed in 30 years. In particular Financialisation has increased dramatically. Are there any more recent figures?

Also, less work being done at home isn't necessarily a good thing. More people eating microwaved ready meals or takeaways probably means lower quality of life overall.

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Re:Why Prosperity Has Increased but Happiness Has Not by JASchilz on Thursday August 23, 2018 @10:20AM (#17827450)

My comment was a rebuttal to the "single income earner" argument which suggests that in the post-war era we labored half as much as we do today.

I've got no other points to defend. But I'm happy to look at any of your points, and I understand and accept the argument that hours of leisure time is not a direct measurement of well-being. (:

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