Quotation of the Day…

by Don Boudreaux on October 7, 2014

in Curious Task, Data, Growth, Myths and Fallacies, Seen and Unseen, Standard of Living

… is from page 140 of Diane Coyle’s excellent 2014 book, GDP (original emphasis):

Meanwhile, it is above all important not to confuse GDP with social welfare.  The way the economy has changed has made the gap between GDP and welfare bigger than it used to be.  The acceleration in the variety of products, in customization, and in the blurring of the boundary between leisure and work in many creative professions and occupations – all of these mean that GDP growth increasingly underestimates increases in welfare.  Contrary to the popular impression that it exaggerates the improvement in our standard of living, the opposite may be true.

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