> French Use Happiness As Economic Measure > AP Business Writer > 782 words > 10 January 2008 > Associated Press Newswires <javascript:void(0)> > . > PARIS (AP) - What price happiness? French President Nicolas Sarkozy is > seeking an answer to the eternal question -- so that happiness can be > included in measurements of French economic growth. > He's turned to two Nobel economists to help him, hoping that if > happiness is added to the count, the persistently sluggish French > economy may seem more rosy. > "It reflects a general feeling in Europe that says, 'OK, the U.S. has > been more successful in the last 20, 25 years in raising material > welfare, but does this mean they are happier?'" said Paul de Grauwe, > economics professor at Leuven University in Belgium. > "The answer is no, because there are other elements to happiness," > said Grauwe, once a candidate for the European Central Bank governing > council. > In terms of gross domestic product, the internationally recognized way > of measuring the size of an economy, French growth lagged behind the > U.S. throughout most of the 1980s and '90s and in every year since > 2001. > Although recent turmoil in financial markets may hit the U.S. economy > harder, the loss of speed in the world economy's biggest player will > also drag down growth in France. Economists say growth may fall short > of the government targets this year. > Sarkozy's move raised questions about whether he wants to ward off > disappointing growth numbers as a rise in oil and food prices combined > with a slowdown in the U.S. clouds the effect of his economic reforms. > > Since his election in May he has sought to boost growth, notably by > encouraging people to work longer than the much maligned 35-hour week. > > Sarkozy has often appeared impatient with the French economy's > lackluster performance, once declaring: "I will not wait for growth, I > will go out and find it." > Frustrated with the what he termed Tuesday "the growing gap between > statistics that show continuing progress and the increasing > difficulties (French people) are having in their daily lives," Sarkozy > said new thought should be given to the way GDP is calculated to take > into account quality of life. > At a news conference Tuesday, Sarkozy said he asked U.S. economist > Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the 2001 Nobel economics prize and a critic > of free market economists, and Armatya Sen of India, who won the 1998 > Nobel prize for work on developing countries, to lead the analysis in > France. > Sen helped create the United Nations' Human Development Index, a > yearly welfare indicator designed to gear international policy > decisions to take account of health and living standards. > Once the preserve of philosophers, measuring happiness has now become > a hot topic in economics. > A recent report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and > Development considers taking into account leisure time and income > distribution when calculating a nation's well-being. And the European > Commission is working on a new indicator that moves "beyond GDP" to > account for factors such as environmental progress. > Richard Layard, a professor at the London School of Economics and > author of the 2005 book "Happiness: Lessons from a New Science," said > Sarkozy may be seeking recognition for policies, popular in Europe, > that promote well-being but don't show up in the GDP statistics. > Governments are rated on economic performance, and this influences > policy in favor of boosting GDP, the value of goods and services > produced over a calendar year, he said. > "But people don't want to think they live in a world of ruthless > competition where everyone is against everyone," Layard said. > "Valuable things are being lost, such as community values, > solidarity." > His book shows that depression, alcoholism and crime have risen in the > last 50 years, even as average incomes more than doubled. > Jean-Philippe Cotis, the former OECD chief economist who took over as > head of France's statistics office Insee two months ago, said > Wednesday that a measure of happiness would complement GDP by taking > into account factors such as leisure time -- something France has a > lot of. > France's unemployment rate is stubbornly high, and when French people > do work they spend less time on the job -- 35.9 hours per week > compared with the EU average of 37.4. > Cotis said he looked forward to a "passionate" debate beyond the > traditional realms of his science. > "Statisticians are also interested in happiness," he said. > And so, it would seem, are presidents. > Basking in the happy glow of new love with model-turned-singer Carla > Bruni, Sarkozy showed on Tuesday that his concern for happiness is > universal. > A president, he said, "doesn't have more right to happiness than > anyone else, but not less than anyone, either." > ================================= >
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