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First, it is a game. The one with largest number "wins". Second, people do not see how much more wealthy they are than most others. They see how much less wealt
by beefield 8y ago
First, it is a game. The one with largest number "wins". Second, people do not see how much more wealthy they are than most others. They see how much less wealthy they are to the ones having bigger jets and charity programs and whatnot.
- bitexploder 8y agoYep. Hedonic treadmill. It’s a nice theory/observation to summarize this behavior. It is amusing to note despite having more, less, or almost zero dollars, it doesn’t seem to make folks much happier. Hmm.
- tialaramex 8y ago"almost zero" is exaggerating. When humans worry about basic needs like food and shelter this makes them notably unhappy. In many countries even a basic full-time job might not alleviate poverty enough to take you up to this line where your basic needs are met and the Hedonic treadmill kicks in. And in the Industrialised North lots of people actually live _below_ zero, with consumer debt at unprecedented levels.
- bitexploder 8y agoI was thinking in the context of very wealthy individuals. So, let’s call almost zero an annual salary of 80-100k. https://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/commentaries/2016/10/21/happiness-revisited-a-household-income-of-75k https://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/commentaries/2016... — essentially above the so called “happiness” threshold.