Question

Gross Domestic Product, as you have read, is generally among the most important measures of an economy's health, and by extension, a country's well-being of its citizens/residents. In this week's discussion, you may take the positions to assert, explain, and defend:

"GDP, given all its shortcomings (as described in the textbook), misses too many vital aspects of a society's well-being. Following is a list of other (more?) important considerations when assessing the well-being of a society's citizens/residents..."

Answer 1

Answer

GDP by definition is an aggregate measure that includes the value of goods and services produced in an economy over a certain period of time. True, GDP has a lot of shortcomings when it comes to measuring the society's well being. It surely takes into account the economic aspects into consideration, however, the living standards of an individual also include the health/ infrastructure systems of a country, air/ water quality etc. , which are not taken into consideration while calculating GDP.

• GDP does not account for leisure time.
• GDP includes what is spent on environmental protection, healthcare, and education, but it does not include actual levels of environmental cleanliness, health, and learning. GDP includes the cost of buying pollution-control equipment, but it does not address whether the air and water are actually cleaner or dirtier.
• GDP has nothing to say about the level of inequality in society.
• GDP also has nothing in particular to say about the amount of variety available.