Non-healthcare related personal quality of life advances since around 1955-1965 (improvements in food, clothing, entertainment, transportation, communication, etc.) do not increase personal happiness due to the hedonic treadmill, and most of the advances have come about as a means to capture consumers’ median increase in real wealth due to a more efficient economy caused by technological advances. Furthermore, if a consumer hypothetically had access to the 1960 basket of consumer goods produced using 2014 technology, a consumer could live at or above the current middle-class level of happiness by spending about $15,000 annually for an average household of three. ~85%.
Please note I am referring only to personal consumer goods and NOT business or technological improvements such as manufacturing techniques, computing power, automation, etc.
if a consumer hypothetically had access to the 1960 basket of consumer goods produced using 2014 technology
Can you elaborate on what this means. Do you mean that if we had more consumer goods of the year 1960, we would be as happy as the current middle class?
If we could choose to buy a 1960-era consumer good (telephone, radio, house, car) that was manufactured using modern manufacturing techniques and modern technology, many of these goods would be significantly cheaper to produce than anything available on the current market, and buying these goods instead of modern goods would result in zero net loss of happiness for the consumer.
A radio, for instance, would look and act exactly like a 1960-era radio, but it could use digital technology, integrated circuits, etc. to make it work. The functionality and appearance of the goods are what remains the same as 1960.
Irrationality Game:
Non-healthcare related personal quality of life advances since around 1955-1965 (improvements in food, clothing, entertainment, transportation, communication, etc.) do not increase personal happiness due to the hedonic treadmill, and most of the advances have come about as a means to capture consumers’ median increase in real wealth due to a more efficient economy caused by technological advances. Furthermore, if a consumer hypothetically had access to the 1960 basket of consumer goods produced using 2014 technology, a consumer could live at or above the current middle-class level of happiness by spending about $15,000 annually for an average household of three. ~85%.
Please note I am referring only to personal consumer goods and NOT business or technological improvements such as manufacturing techniques, computing power, automation, etc.
Can you elaborate on what this means. Do you mean that if we had more consumer goods of the year 1960, we would be as happy as the current middle class?
If we could choose to buy a 1960-era consumer good (telephone, radio, house, car) that was manufactured using modern manufacturing techniques and modern technology, many of these goods would be significantly cheaper to produce than anything available on the current market, and buying these goods instead of modern goods would result in zero net loss of happiness for the consumer.
A radio, for instance, would look and act exactly like a 1960-era radio, but it could use digital technology, integrated circuits, etc. to make it work. The functionality and appearance of the goods are what remains the same as 1960.
It’s plausible that a 1960s telephone could replace my parents’ landline phone. But if it replaced my smartphone, I think my happiness would decrease.
I have no opinion about the other things.