Longer life, higher welfare?

03/29/08

Permalink 04:03:45 pm, by damageva Email , 203 words, 100 views   English (US)
Categories: Non-Environmental, Europe, Academic Study/Journal Article, Costs and Benefits

Longer life, higher welfare?

Abstract: Whereas life expectancy continues to increase in most industrialized countries, many developing and transition countries are today confronted with decreases in life expectancy. Usual measures employed to compare welfare over time and space fail to deal with such demographic change and may lead to the so-called ‘repugnant conclusion’ that lower life expectancy involves higher welfare per capita. We illustrate this type of transmission channel using various welfare criteria and reference populations. We also consider feed-back effects from the demography on the economy using a neo-classical growth model. We show that the ‘repugnant conclusion’ can be avoided if we choose a lifetime welfare measure instead of a period (or snapshot) welfare measure. All concepts are illustrated empirically using a small sample of developed and developing countries.

by Michael Grimm 1 and Kenneth Harttgen 2
1. Institute of Social Studies, Kortenaerkade 12, P.O. Box 29776, 2502 LT, The Hague, The Netherlands; University of Göttingen, Germany; DIAL, Paris, France; DIW, Berlin, Germany; e-mail: grimm@iss.nl
2. University of Göttingen, Department of Economics, Platz der Göttinger Sieben 3, 37073 Göttingen, Germany; e-mail: k.harttgen@wiwi.uni-goettingen.de

Oxford Economic Papers via Oxford University Press
Volume 60, Issue 2; 2008; Pages 193-211
doi:10.1093/oep/gpm025
http://oep.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/60/2/193?etoc

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Environmental Valuation & Cost Benefit News covers legal, academic, and regulatory developments pertaining to the valuation of environmental amenities and disamenities, such as clean air, trees, parks, congestion, and noise. We apprise the reader about ways in which costs and benefits are measured, and the results of empirical studies. We hope that this information will allow public and private organizations to comprehend the risks and benefits of various actions, help disputants to resolve conflicts equitably and efficiently, and improve the quality of public policies. We will only discuss issues related to the empirical quantification of private and social costs and benefits and damages, and summarize information from daily newspapers, academic journals, legal publications, court decisions, professional newsletters commissioned studies, and on-line services. This newsletter is dedicated to the principal that all policies place values upon life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We believe that more information, explicit specification of assumptions, and rigorous analysis can help our society to better meet these ends. This site will increasingly serve, in conjunction with others, as a valuation database. We will include a wide range of studies, including non-environmental reports, because omission of a factor effectively values it at zero, and biases decisions. Heavy traffic has caused several site crashes. We are attempting to correct these problems. Apologies for any inconvenience.

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