Large estimates of the benefits of microeconomic reform have been put forward in official studies. By contrast, Quiggin (1997) concludes that benefits of microeconomic reforms have been modest. A key area of disagreement relates to the claim that increased competition leads to increases in...

Cross-disciplinary ?happiness research? has made big progress in the measurement of individual welfare. This development makes it tempting to pursue the old dream of maximizing aggregate happiness as a social welfare function. However, we postulate that the appropriate approach is not to...

Purpose – The object of this paper is to demonstrate that the promotion of altruistic behavior can in fact be regarded as an instrument of public policy. Design/methodology/approach – This objective is achieved by adapting the standard theory of consumer behavior in microeconomics to the...

Purpose – The paper attempts to empirically assess whether GDP per capita or the human capital index is a better measure of happiness. Design/methodology/approach – Cross-country regressions are run to see how GDP per capita fairs in comparison to the human capital index in explaining...

Cross-disciplinary ‘happiness research’ has made big progress in the measurement of individual welfare. This development makes it tempting to pursue the old dream of maximizing aggregate happiness as a social welfare function. However, we postulate that the appropriate approach is not to...