This paper examines whether the Solow growth model is consistent with the international variation in the standard of living. It shows that an augmented Solow model that includes accumulation of human as well as physical capital provides an excellent description of the cross-country data. The paper also examines the implications of the Solow model for convergence in standards of living, that is, for whether poor countries tend to grow faster than rich countries. The evidence indicates that, holding population growth and capital accumulation constant, countries converge at about the rate the augmented Solow model predicts. This paper takes Robert Solow seriously. In his classic 1956 article Solow proposed that we begin the study of economic growth by assuming a standard neoclassical production function with decreasing returns to capital. Taking the rates of saving and population growth as exogenous, he showed that these two vari- ables determine the steady-state level of income per capita. Be- cause saving and population growth rates vary across countries, different countries reach different steady states. Solow's model gives simple testable predictions about how these variables influ- ence the steady-state level of income. The higher the rate of saving, the richer the country. The higher the rate of population growth, the poorer the country. This paper argues that the predictions of the Solow model are, to a first approximation, consistent with the evidence. Examining recently available data for a large set of countries, we find that saving and population growth affect income in the directions that Solow predicted. Moreover, more than half of the cross-country variation in income per capita can be explained by these two variables alone. Yet all is not right for the Solow model. Although the model correctly predicts the directions of the effects of saving and

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A Contribution to the Empirics of Economic Growth

The literature on subjective well-being (SWB), including happiness, life satisfaction, and positive affect, is reviewed in three areas: measurement, causal factors, and theory. Psychometric data on single-item and multi-item subjective well-being scales are presented, and the measures are compared. Measuring various components of subjective well-being is discussed. In terms of causal influences, research findings on the demographic correlates of SWB are evaluated, as well as the findings on other influences such as health, social contact, activity, and personality. A number of theoretical approaches to happiness are presented and discussed: telic theories, associationistic models, activity theories, judgment approaches, and top-down versus bottom-up conceptions.

Subjective Well-Being

W. Wilson's (1967) review of the area of subjective well-being (SWB) advanced several conclusions regarding those who report high levels of "happiness". A number of his conclusions have been overturned: youth and modest aspirations no longer are seen as prerequisites of SWB. E. Diener's (1984) review placed greater emphasis on theories that stressed psychological factors. In the current article, the authors review current evidence for Wilson's conclusions and discuss modern theories of SWB that stress dispositional influences, adaptation, goals, and coping strategies. The next steps in the evolution of the field are to comprehend the interaction of psychological factors with life circumstances in producing SWB, to understand the causal pathways leading to happiness, understand the processes underlying adaptation to events, and develop theories that explain why certain variables differentially influence the different components of SWV (life satisfaction, pleasant affect, and unpleasant affect).

Subjective Well-Being: Three Decades of Progress

W Wilson's (1967) review of the area of subjective well-being (SWB) advanced several conclusions regarding those who report high levels of "happiness" A number of his conclusions have been overturned: youth and modest aspirations no longer are seen as prerequisites of SWB E Diener's (1984) review placed greater emphasis on theories that stressed psychological factors In the current article, the authors review current evidence for Wilson's conclusions and discuss modern theories of SWB that stress dispositional influences, adaptation, goals, and coping strategies The next steps in the evolution of the field are to comprehend the interaction of psychological factors with life circumstances in producing SWB, to understand the causal pathways leading to happiness, understand the processes underlying adaptation to events, and develop theories that explain why certain variables differentially influence the different components of SWB (life satisfaction, pleasant affect, and unpleasant affect) In 1967, Warner Wilson presented a broad review of subjective well-being (SWB) research entitled, "Correlates of Avowed Happiness" Based on the limited data available at that time, Wilson concluded that the happy person is a "young, healthy, welleducated, well-paid, extroverted, optimistic, worry-free, religious, married person with high self-esteem, job morale, modest aspirations, of either sex and of a wide range of intelligence" (p 294) In the three decades since Wilson's review, investigations into SWB have evolved Although researchers now know a great deal more about the correlates of SWB, they are less interested in simply describing the demographic characteristics that correlate with it Instead, they focus their effort on understanding the processes that underlie happiness This trend represents a greater recognition of the central role played by people's goals, coping efforts, and dispositions In this article, we review research on several major theoretical approaches to well-being and then indicate how these theories clarify the findings on demographic correlates of SWB Throughout the review we suggest four directions that researchers should pursue in the decades ahead These are by no means the only questions left to answer, but we believe they are the most interesting issues left to resolve First, the causal direction of the correlates of happiness must be examined through more sophisticated methodologies Although the causal priority of demographic factors such as marriage and income is intuitively appealing, it is by no means certain Second, researchers must focus greater attention on the interaction between internal factors (such as personality traits) and external circumstances As we shall see, demographic factors have surprisingly small effects on SWB, but these effects may depend on the personalities of those individuals being studied Thus, future research must take Person X Situation interactions into account Third, researchers must strive to understand the processes underlying adaptation Considerable adaptation to both good and bad circumstances often occurs, yet the processes responsible for these effects are poorly understood Research that examines how habituation, coping strategies, and changing goals influence adaptation will shed much light on the processes responsible for SWB Finally, theories must be refined to make specific predictions about how input variables differentially influence the components of SWB In the past, many researchers have treated SWB as a monolithic entity, but it is now clear that there are separable components that exhibit unique patterns of relations with different variables In each section of this article we discuss progress and opportunities in these four areas

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Subjective well-being: Three decades of progress

https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2651&context=soss_research

Subjective Well-being

Population, Labor Force, and Long Swings in Economic Growth: The American Experience.

The effect of changing demographic circumstances on the economic status of US pre-school children is examined using Current Population Survey data from 1965-1985 and 1988 in a multivariate regression analysis At any time point children living with single mothers are 25-30% poorer and those living with single fathers 12% poorer Doubling up of a single parent with parents or other adults improves the childs income about 50% Smaller family size improves the childs economic status by 7-11% per child Having a family head over 30 improves income by 30% compared to one under 25 Having another working spouse benefits a child by 50% or 4-19% for part-time work Trends over the period were evident: increasing proportion of pre-schoolers not living with 2 parents rose from 8-25%; proportion of those whose mother was never-married approached that of ever-married mothers by 1987; single parents living with other adults increased; proportion of young children living with only 1 other child rose from 25-60% Between 1965 and 1970 there was a trend toward younger 2-parent households but by 1965-1988 a family head over 30 rose from 45-60% Childrens mean income per adult equivalent rose 42% between 1964 and 1987 but most of this growth took place by 1974 The biggest effect on improved income was due to smaller family size and less so later childbearing The next most important factor was a working spouse Children of never-married mothers were disadvantaged because of mothers average work experience education race and industry The average status of young children has improved over the 20-year period while childrens poverty rates have risen due to growing share of those living with lower income single mothers

The effect of life cycle demographic decisions on the economic status of pre-school age children 1964-1987.

Introduction to "Population and Economic Change in Developing Countries"

Economic disruption in East Germany at the time of unification resulted in a noticeable drop in life satisfaction. By the late 1990s East Germany's life satisfaction had recovered to about its 1990 level, and its shortfall relative to West Germany was slightly less than that before unification. In West Germany life satisfaction was fairly constant before unification, but subsequently trended moderately downward, with Turkish life satisfaction declining noticeably relative to Germans. Changes in life satisfaction in East and West Germany both for Germans and foreigners are most closely associated with relative income variables, not absolute income.

Life Satisfaction and Economic Conditions in East and West Germany Pre- and Post-Unification

THE purpose of this paper is to examine two of the major issues at stake between Professor Kuznets and the Department of Commerce: (i) the way of netting the income totals when governmental output is included, and (2) the significance of distinguishing between a national income total valued at market prices and the same composite valued at factor cost. The nature of these issues may best be revealed, we believe, if the same data are used to illustrate the various concepts. Hence we shall employ Department of Commerce data to estimate the Kuznets concept presented in National Income and Its Composition, I9I9-I938. This concept has subsequently been revised, but to derive the wartime revisions from Department of Commerce data would necessitate arbitrary assumptions without any further clarification of the issues at stake,' while the specific quantitative form of Kuznets' most recent revision has not yet been indicated.2 In section I we compare, on the basis of Department of Commerce data for I939, Kuznets' concept of national income with that of the Department of Commercefirst at the final products level, then at the factor costs level. Section II presents our conclusions on the basic issues involved.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/info/1925727

Richard A. Easterlin

Papers

Population, Labor Force, and Long Swings in Economic Growth: The American Experience.

The effect of life cycle demographic decisions on the economic status of pre-school age children 1964-1987.

Introduction to "Population and Economic Change in Developing Countries"

Life Satisfaction and Economic Conditions in East and West Germany Pre- and Post-Unification

An Interpretation of the Kuznets and Department of Commerce Income Concepts