Author: Marginal Revolution University

They say what matters most in life are the things money can’t buy. So far, we’ve been paying attention to a figure that’s intimately linked to the things money can buy. That figure is GDP, both nominal, and real. But before you write off GDP as strictly a measure of wealth, here’s something to think about. Increases in real GDP per capita also correlate to improvements in those things money can’t buy. Health. Happiness. Education. What this means is, as real GDP per capita rises, a country also tends to get related benefits. As the figure increases, people’s longevity tends…