To what extent does wealth equate with happiness Essay

To what extent does wealth equate with happiness - Essay Example This was considered after recognizing that personal happiness has not increased in the Western countries regardless of the growth experienced in economic wealth (Penec, 2008:18). Brandon Keim noticed the same trend in China, where the Chinese have not achieved any life satisfaction from the two decades of speedy economic growth. The wealthy people are a bit happier than before, the middle class have not had any changes while life satisfaction for the poor has decreased sharply. This indicates flaws in the conventional system used to examine life satisfaction and happiness. Keim refers to a research conducted by Easterlin, an economist, who discovered that money only created happiness to a certain degree after which, people returned to the usual. Easterlin concluded that money could not buy happiness because after some crucial needs are met, life satisfaction begins to decline with increasing income. Of course, many theorists disapproved this theory (Keim, 2012). Domestic product incr eased by four times but surveys conducted in China showed a decrease in personal satisfaction. Could Easternlin’s theory or paradox be right after all? The wealth in China seems to be concentrated among the few wealthiest people, therefore, the surveys could have indicated just how much the Chinese people resent inequality. However, Penec’s article shows that money increases individual happiness but when the entire society becomes wealthy, people do not feel prosperous. People feel happy after they achieve a certain financial status but they get used to it and take it for granted. Other factors also play a role in an individual’s happiness, for example, type of job, stress levels, and environment factors (Penec, 2008:18). An article on The Economist, a weekly newspaper, analysed the situation in China indicating gain that the Chinese masses are not happy with their situation. In ancient China, Chinese leaders ruled by ensuring that their subjects were happy. Thi s is not the case with the country experiencing over five hundred protests every day. This shows that the people are not happy despite the immense economic success that China enjoys today. The main problem is the gap created between the wealthy and the poor, which has resulted to inequality among Chinese citizens where the poor are in a struggling situation while the wealthy decide on the country’s economy. The article tries to show that the people’s happiness does not depend entirely on a rapid economic growth but relies on proper distribution of a country’s expanding wealth (The Economist, 2012). Tim Weber, an editor, claims that there is a research that shows that money makes people happier. The only problem is that economists are finding it hard to describe happiness, therefore, making it hard to measure it. Weber notes that a high gross domestic product translates to a lower chid morality, better education, and better quality of life. These are some of the factors that economists measure when they explain happiness. Weber writes that though an individual can earn more money than everyone else, some factors such as education, literacy, life’s longevity, and health, can only reach to a certain level, therefore, an economist’s happiness cannot exceed a certain level. Weber also indicates that happiness is subjective meaning that people have

Brand Extension Marketing Plan Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brand Extension Marketing Plan - Research Paper Example Lavington Green Village is an estate that is mainly made up of high class persons who live luxurious lives. Therefore, the customers mainly demand products that will improve their living standards or increase their lifestyles. Low class products do not have an impact on the market since the people already have the product. This is known from the statistics taken by Clean-So Company. Secondary market trends; these will be short term price fluctuations in the market which may last for only a few days or weeks. Under this trend, the prices may rise or may fall. This trend will affect the way in which the customers view the product because; customers may generalize a price increase to have affected all the products in the market (Winer, 2004). Secular market trend; under this trend, customers are likely to change their tastes and preferences since the trend is long-term. Primary market trend; this trend will also influence the customers since it lasts for a year or more. Therefore, by at the end of one whole year the customers will have changed to other products (EconomyWatch, 2010). The market is growing since; statistics show that there has been a continuous increase in the users of the products each year. The population also keeps on increasing and hence, the users of the products keep on increasing in number. The growth trends observed includes cyclic and exponential trends. This is evidenced by the data which shows that the numbers of customers have been increasing exponentially. A growing market implies an increasing demand and hence; the company will address it by increasing the output. Strengths; the company has three key strengths which include; it has a strong marketing unit and hence can attract a large number of customers. The company also has qualified and experienced employees. Thirdly, it has the strength of being innovative and creative. However, the company