To rationally explain political participation, two factors must be taken into account:<OrderedList> <ListItem> <ItemNumber>a)</ItemNumber> <ItemContent> the opportunity costs of the time expended, and </ItemContent> </ListItem> <ListItem> <ItemNumber>b)</ItemNumber> <ItemContent> the productivity of time use in performing political activities. </ItemContent> </ListItem> </OrderedList> Ceteris paribus, the higher a), the lower is participation and the higher b), the...</itemcontent></itemnumber></listitem></itemcontent></itemnumber></listitem></orderedlist>

This paper endeavors to take up the neglected aspects of federalism and direct democracy. It emphasizes the mutual dependence of the two for reaching the goals of efficiency and trust. Direct democracy is seen to preserve federalism, but even more importantly, federalism is taken to enable and...

In economics there is presently an almost revolutionary development. The direct measurement of subjective welfare challenges traditional economics, inspires it, and opens new avenues for scientific research. The approaches and possibilities of an economic analysis of happiness are shown and...

Happiness research has dealt with a great number of determinants of well-being but has neglected the effect of war. Wars drastically reduce people’s happiness. The large psychic costs of soldiers, the suffering of civilians, and the material destruction are well documented. An important issue...

In a simple conceptual framework, we organize a multitude of phenomena related to the (mis)prediction of utility. Consequences in terms of distorted choices and lower well-being emerge if people have to trade-off between alternatives that are characterized by attributes satisfying extrinsic...

Bruno Frey argues that terrorism has been fought in the wrong way. Instead of focusing on deterrence and preemptive strikes, we should: (1) Reduce vulnerability by decentralizing society; (2) Strengthen positive incentives to leave the terrorist camp; and (3) Divert media attention from...

None

None