Background
Lane, Robert Edwards was born on August 19, 1917 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Son of Robert Porter and Bess (Edwards) Lane.
(Despite the fact that citizens of advanced market democra...)
Despite the fact that citizens of advanced market democracies are satisfied with their material progress, many are haunted by a spirit of unhappiness. There is evidence of a rising tide of clinical depression in most advanced societies, and in the United States studies have documented a decline in the number of people who regard themselves as happy. Although our political and economic systems are based on the utilitarian philosophy of happiness - the greatest good for the greatest number - they seem to have contributed to our dissatisfaction with life. This book investigates why this is so. Drawing on extensive research in such fields as quality of life, economics, politics, sociology, psychology, and biology, Robert E. Lane presents a challenging thesis. He shows that the main sources of well-being in advanced economies are friendships and a good family life and that, once one is beyond the poverty level, a larger income contributes almost nothing to happiness. In fact, as prosperity increases, there is a tragic erosion of family solidarity and community integration, and individuals become more and more distrustful of each other and their political institutions. Lane urges that we alter our priorities so that we increase our levels of companionship even at the risk of reducing our income.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0300078013/?tag=2022091-20
(In a period when market economies are widely recognized a...)
In a period when market economies are widely recognized as the most desirable form of economic organization, Robert Lane offers evidence that the major premises of market economics are mistaken. Lane shows that work, far from being a disutility, as economic theory would have it, is instead one of two major sources of lifetime satisfaction, and that money income, despite being a source of utility that compensates a person for his or her sacrifices at work, contributes very little to a sense of well-being. This reversal of the premises of market economics suggests a major, axial shift in the way we think about our economies. Lane proposes that the market be judged primarily by its capacity to yield two benefits: happiness and personal development, the latter defined as cognitive complexity, autonomy or a sense of being in control of one's own life, and self esteem. Traditional attention to production outputs and economic rewards has, says Lane, blinded us to the important ways in which the processes of production contribute to the two benefits of happiness and personal development. Lane lays the foundation for a form of economic analysis that attends to processes as well as outcomes and by drawing on psychology, sociology, and economic anthropology for extensive evidence employed to support his arguments, he provides the basis for a fundamental change in the way we think about economics and society. Robert Lane is the author of many books and articles, among them Political Life (1959) and Political Man (1972). He is a Past President of the American Political Science Association, Policy Studies Organization and International Society of Political Psychology.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0521407370/?tag=2022091-20
(Why in prosperous market democracies today do so many peo...)
Why in prosperous market democracies today do so many people regard themselves as unhappy? Robert Lane draws on extensive research in many fields to show that the main sources of well-being in advanced economies are friendships and a good family life; income has little to do with happiness once a person rises above the poverty level. Lane urges us to alter priorities and emphasise companionship over higher income.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0300091060/?tag=2022091-20
Lane, Robert Edwards was born on August 19, 1917 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Son of Robert Porter and Bess (Edwards) Lane.
Bachelor of Science, Harvard College, 1939; Doctor of Philosophy, Harvard University, 1950.
Instructor to professor political science, Yale University, New Haven, 1948-1985; professor emeritus, Yale University, New Haven, since 1985.
(Why in prosperous market democracies today do so many peo...)
(In a period when market economies are widely recognized a...)
(Despite the fact that citizens of advanced market democra...)
("Political Ideology is a pathfinding book. Lane has produ...)
Captain United States Army Air Force, 1942-1946. Fellow British Academy. Member American Political Science Association (president 1970-1971), Policy Studies Organization (president 1973), International Society Political Psychology (president 1978-1979).
Married Helen Sobol, November 15, 1944. Children: Robert Lawrence, Thomas Edwards.