It's How You Spend It

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One thing I’m constantly saying is that whether or not money helps make you feel better depends on what you do with it. This study says that it’s nice to spend money on other people, which is, believe it or not, a way of spending money. But would spending money on other people make us happier if we didn’t think it made them happier? Suppose we made a big circle with millions of people in it and everyone handed a $5 bill to the person on their left. Would we be happier?  Maybe that’s why we like Social Security so much! (That’s a joke. But how long before someone tries to use this study to argue that taxes make us happy?)

27 thoughts on “It's How You Spend It”

  1. “Suppose we made a big circle with millions of people in it and everyone handed a $5 bill to the person on their left. Would we be happier?”

    Dude, it’s called Christmas.

  2. “Suppose we made a big circle with millions of people in it and everyone handed a $5 bill to the person on their left. Would we be happier?”

    Dude, it’s called Christmas.

  3. “Suppose we made a big circle with millions of people in it and everyone handed a $5 bill to the person on their left. Would we be happier?”

    Dude, it’s called Christmas.

  4. It makes me happier to spend an amount of money that I choose on other people and their projects if I think it will do good.

    It makes me unhappier if others take an amount of my money that they choose and spend it on things that they think will do good.

    These two scenarios should not be confused.

  5. It makes me happier to spend an amount of money that I choose on other people and their projects if I think it will do good.

    It makes me unhappier if others take an amount of my money that they choose and spend it on things that they think will do good.

    These two scenarios should not be confused.

  6. It makes me happier to spend an amount of money that I choose on other people and their projects if I think it will do good.

    It makes me unhappier if others take an amount of my money that they choose and spend it on things that they think will do good.

    These two scenarios should not be confused.

  10. Hello Will,

    Professor Stephen Joseph, who I happen to agree with, said: “The things that are important are things to do with relationships, with other people, and things that help to promote meaning, the purpose in life. I think that’s what this study speaks to.” I imagine the money daisy chain would make the participants happy (simple, seemingly meaningless token exchanges usually do). Those who didn’t participate would be missing out on something that makes most people happy: solidarity. This is an empirical claim that requires confirmation, but the best science seems to suggest it is true. Perhaps your preoccupation with money is pathological.

    Excelsior!
    C.L.Sosis.

  11. Hello Will,

    Professor Stephen Joseph, who I happen to agree with, said: “The things that are important are things to do with relationships, with other people, and things that help to promote meaning, the purpose in life. I think that’s what this study speaks to.” I imagine the money daisy chain would make the participants happy (simple, seemingly meaningless token exchanges usually do). Those who didn’t participate would be missing out on something that makes most people happy: solidarity. This is an empirical claim that requires confirmation, but the best science seems to suggest it is true. Perhaps your preoccupation with money is pathological.

    Excelsior!
    C.L.Sosis.

  12. Hello Will,

    Professor Stephen Joseph, who I happen to agree with, said: “The things that are important are things to do with relationships, with other people, and things that help to promote meaning, the purpose in life. I think that’s what this study speaks to.” I imagine the money daisy chain would make the participants happy (simple, seemingly meaningless token exchanges usually do). Those who didn’t participate would be missing out on something that makes most people happy: solidarity. This is an empirical claim that requires confirmation, but the best science seems to suggest it is true. Perhaps your preoccupation with money is pathological.

    Excelsior!
    C.L.Sosis.

  13. That’s not a very nice thing to say. I am “preoccupied” with money because others have an ideological axe to grind against money, which leads them to systematically misinterpret otherwise perfectly clear data showing it’s huge importance to well-being. Perhaps you are one of those people.

  14. That’s not a very nice thing to say. I am “preoccupied” with money because others have an ideological axe to grind against money, which leads them to systematically misinterpret otherwise perfectly clear data showing it’s huge importance to well-being. Perhaps you are one of those people.

  15. That’s not a very nice thing to say. I am “preoccupied” with money because others have an ideological axe to grind against money, which leads them to systematically misinterpret otherwise perfectly clear data showing it’s huge importance to well-being. Perhaps you are one of those people.

  19. It’s interesting that those who decry other’s “preoccupation with money” usually seem to care a lot about that money changing hands.

  20. It’s interesting that those who decry other’s “preoccupation with money” usually seem to care a lot about that money changing hands.

  21. It’s interesting that those who decry other’s “preoccupation with money” usually seem to care a lot about that money changing hands.

  22. Hello Will,

    Personally, I just want to know the facts about subjective well-being, but I must admit that I’m concerned that you have an ‘ideological axe to grind.’ Most of us (besides Scrooge McDuck) agree that money is extrinsically valuable. If money is ‘hugely’ important to well-being it is because of what it does. Having it, I imagine, has some sort of negligible effect on well-being, but what we want to know is how we (and perhaps the government) should use it. For some strange reason, I believe that you believe that it is wrong for the government (or any other organization) to decide how people spend money, a priori, regardless of what the data shows. I might be wrong. So tell me, what data would convinve you that taxes are good for us. that taxes (well-spent)actually do (or can), as a matter of empirical fact, enhance our subjective well-being?

    Excelsior!
    C.L.Sosis.

  23. Hello Will,

    Personally, I just want to know the facts about subjective well-being, but I must admit that I’m concerned that you have an ‘ideological axe to grind.’ Most of us (besides Scrooge McDuck) agree that money is extrinsically valuable. If money is ‘hugely’ important to well-being it is because of what it does. Having it, I imagine, has some sort of negligible effect on well-being, but what we want to know is how we (and perhaps the government) should use it. For some strange reason, I believe that you believe that it is wrong for the government (or any other organization) to decide how people spend money, a priori, regardless of what the data shows. I might be wrong. So tell me, what data would convinve you that taxes are good for us. that taxes (well-spent)actually do (or can), as a matter of empirical fact, enhance our subjective well-being?

    Excelsior!
    C.L.Sosis.

  24. Hello Will,

    Personally, I just want to know the facts about subjective well-being, but I must admit that I’m concerned that you have an ‘ideological axe to grind.’ Most of us (besides Scrooge McDuck) agree that money is extrinsically valuable. If money is ‘hugely’ important to well-being it is because of what it does. Having it, I imagine, has some sort of negligible effect on well-being, but what we want to know is how we (and perhaps the government) should use it. For some strange reason, I believe that you believe that it is wrong for the government (or any other organization) to decide how people spend money, a priori, regardless of what the data shows. I might be wrong. So tell me, what data would convinve you that taxes are good for us. that taxes (well-spent)actually do (or can), as a matter of empirical fact, enhance our subjective well-being?

    Excelsior!
    C.L.Sosis.