预览加载中,请您耐心等待几秒...
1/2
2/2

在线预览结束,喜欢就下载吧,查找使用更方便

如果您无法下载资料,请参考说明:

1、部分资料下载需要金币,请确保您的账户上有足够的金币

2、已购买过的文档,再次下载不重复扣费

3、资料包下载后请先用软件解压,在使用对应软件打开

Happinessandwealth:Moneycan’tbuymelove “ADMIRABLEindeed”ishowConfuciusdescribedamanwho,thoughlivinginamean,narrowstreetwithonlyasinglebamboodishtoeatfrom,“didnotallowhisjoytobeaffected.” TherelationshipbetweenhappinessandwealthremainsaconcernforChina’srulerstoday.Theirworkingassumptionhaslongbeenthattheirgriponpowerdependsonkeepingpeoplehappy.Andthat,theyreckon,dependsonnothingsomuchastheircontinuedabilitytopresideoverrapideconomicgrowth.Theyhavemanagedthisfordecades,butinrecentyearsinequalityhasgrownmoreextremeand,despiteplentyofsuccessstories(seearticle),unrestiscommon.Bysomecounts,asmanyas500protestsoccureverydayacrossthecountry.Allthishasfedfearsthateconomicgrowthalonemightnotbeenoughandthatthegovernmentneedsurgentlytoimprovethedistributionofthenation’sgrowingwealth. Tworecentacademicstudiessuggestrealityisrathermorecomplicated.Oneofthem,publishedinMay,trackedhowcontentasegmentofmainlyurbanpeoplesaidtheywerebetween1990and2010,aperiodduringwhichoutputandconsumptionperpersonincreasedatleastfourfold.Researchers,ledbyRichardEasterlinoftheUniversityofSouthernCalifornia,aneminent“happinessscholar”,wrotethatChinawasidealfortestingexpectationsofacorrelationbetweeneconomicgrowthandwell-being.Butwhattheyfoundwas“noevidenceofamarkedincreaseinlifesatisfaction”tomatchtheriseinprosperityduringthatperiod. Theotherstudy—“MythoftheSocialVolcano:PerceptionsofInequalityandDistributiveInjusticeinContemporaryChina”—waspreparedbyMartinWhyteofHarvardUniversity.Basedonnationalsurveydata,itfoundasurprisinglyhightoleranceofwealthdisparity.Thestudywasbasedonsurveysconductedin2004,butMrWhytesaidpreliminaryanalysisof2009surveydatashowedthatpeoplehadifanythingbecomeevenmoreoptimisticabouttheirprospects.Theproportionofrespondentssayingtheyexpectedtheirlivingstandardstoimprovewithinfiveyearsrosefrom62%in2004to73%in2009.“ItisamistaketothinkthatrisingincomegapsarethemainorevenaprimarysourceofpopulardiscontentinChina,”MrWhytesays.Itis,headds,proceduralinjustices,abusesofpowerandthelackofrec