Easterlin paradox
Finding in happiness economics
Why this is trending
Interest in “Easterlin paradox” spiked on Wikipedia on 2026-02-25.
Categorised under History, this article fits a familiar pattern. History articles often trend on anniversaries of notable events, when historical parallels are drawn in the news, or following popular media portrayals.
By monitoring millions of daily Wikipedia page views, GlyphSignal helps you spot cultural moments as they happen and understand the stories behind the numbers.
Key Takeaways
- The Easterlin paradox is a finding in happiness economics formulated in 1974 by Richard Easterlin, then professor of economics at the University of Pennsylvania, and the first economist to study happiness data.
The Easterlin paradox is a finding in happiness economics formulated in 1974 by Richard Easterlin, then professor of economics at the University of Pennsylvania, and the first economist to study happiness data. Easterlin further refined his finding during his subsequent long career at the University of Southern California.
The paradox states that, at a point in time, happiness varies directly with income both among and within nations; but over time, happiness does not trend upward as income continues to grow: While people on higher incomes are typically happier than their lower-income counterparts at a given point in time, higher incomes don't produce greater happiness over time.
Content sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0
