Money Matters: A Reality Check, with Help from Virginia Woolf

Schrecker, Ted

doi:10.1023/a:1006899225869

Money Matters: A Reality Check, with Help from Virginia Woolf

Schrecker, Ted

Authors

Ted Schrecker

Abstract

This article provides a qualified defence of economic indicators of human well being. Purchasing power obviously matters as a prerequisite for obtaining basic needs; abundant examples of human behaviour even in the richest countries in the world suggest that it matters for many other reasons, as well. Despite the shortcomings of indicators like GDP and GNP, richer nations (like richer individuals) have options that are simply not available to poorer ones. A particularly serious limitation of such indicators arises from their failure to take into account the distribution of income and wealth, both within and among nations. Higher income does not automatically lead to increased well being, but extreme caution is in order about attempts to dismiss its contribution, or to pathologize certain forms of consumption. While arguing the merits of a lifestyle less organized around consumption, proponents of sustainable development must acknowledge the strength of the evidence that money matters.

Citation

Schrecker, T. (1997). Money Matters: A Reality Check, with Help from Virginia Woolf. Social Indicators Research, 40(1-2), 99-123. https://doi.org/10.1023/a%3A1006899225869

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	Jan 1, 1997
Deposit Date	Jun 24, 2013
Publicly Available Date	May 12, 2014
Journal	Social Indicators Research
Print ISSN	0303-8300
Electronic ISSN	1573-0921
Publisher	Springer
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	40
Issue	1-2
Pages	99-123
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1023/a%3A1006899225869