Gross National Happiness

[Louisiana1976]

Traditionally when talking about or measuring the overall health and prosperity of a nation, policy makers and academicians turn to economic measures. While there are many different economic measures that are used, one of the most common is Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This is an estimate of the total value of all materials, foodstuffs, goods, and services that are produced by a country in a particular year. This is standardized as per capita GDP which allows for an easy comparison of countries with different overall populations.

Indicators such as GDP determine national policies. The almost universal use of GDP-based indicators as a measure of progress have justified policies which focus on rapid material progress at the expense of environmental preservation, cultural preservation, spiritual enrichment, and community cohesion. In recent years an increasing number of people are questioning why policy-makers should place so much emphasis on economic indicators while ignoring factors which may be more important to the people.

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http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/12/23/818413/-Gross-National-Happiness