Prof Layard believes that the happiness of society does not necessarily equate to its
income. Most people want more income, yet, as societies become richer, they do not
become happier. Evidence from a range of sources shows that, on average, people
have grown no happier in the last fifty years, even as average incomes have more
than doubled. In fact, many countries have more depression, more alcoholism and
more crime than fifty years ago. This paradox is true of Britain, the United States,
continental Europe and Japan.
In this lecture Prof Layard discussed both explanations of and remedies for this
phenomenon including serious efforts by civic authorities to promote more pro-social
cultures among children and young people.
