The Correlation Between GDP and Human Flourishing
Religion & Liberty Online

The Correlation Between GDP and Human Flourishing

Recently we considered a simple tool and metric for measuring economic well-being: real GDP per capita.

Yet such metrics feel can seem materialistic. What about the things that money can’t buy, we wonder, like health and happiness?

As economist Alex Tabarrok explains, while real GDP is an imperfect measure, it tends to be correlated with many of the non-monetary improvements that contribute to human flourishing.

Joe Carter

Joe Carter is a senior writer for The Gospel Coalition, author of The Life and Faith Field Guide for Parents, the editor of the NIV Lifehacks Bible, and coauthor of How to Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion from History’s Greatest Communicator. He also serves as an associate pastor at McLean Bible Church in Arlington, Va.