The Spirit Level: Why Greater Inequality Makes Societies Stronger

Wilkinson and Pickett speak of the growing trends of anxiety and depression in America, and how they are increasingly appearing together, so much so that psychologists now treat both at the same time. Although people in America are living better than they ever have before, enjoying luxuries and technologies that their predecessors could never have imagined, there is a limit to how happy a society can be. As a result, although Americans have a lot of material wealth, that is no longer indicative of equal increases in happiness. This makes sense because there cannot be an infinite amount of happiness. Happiness and satisfaction with one's life is also contingent upon one's standing among people you know and live with. Absolute differences in income between different countries are less important than relative differences within them. We do not care if people in another country are more or less well off than us, what matters to us is how well our neighbors and friends are doing relative to us.

This raises the question of how we are supposed to be happier or feel better about ourselves when there is a limit to happiness, and happiness is not based on our skills and accomplishments alone, but on our peers' as well. The subsequent effects on our psychological well-being, including increases in both depression and self-esteem, had psychologists puzzled until they realized that there was a rise of a "bad" self-esteem that was more insecure and narcissistic. This makes me wonder how we will combat this unhealthy self-esteem and reduce stressors in society that feed and perpetuate these negative ways of perceiving ourselves.