ZACHARY KARABELL

The kingdom of Bhutan replaced standard economic measures with measures of happiness as long ago as 1972. Yet Bhutan’s G.D.P. per head is still one of the lowest in the world, life expectancy is relatively low and infant mortality high, so it is easy to see why the king would not want anyone to mention the economy.

No single number has become more central to society in the past 50 years” than gross domestic product.

Until the early 20th century, significant economic hardship was so woven into human history and experience that it wasn’t yet seen as an aberration. Only the combination of a severe crisis and the belief that such crises not only could but should be prevented by collective government action led to the creation of unemployment statistics.

None of today’s leading indicators existed a century ago. They were invented to measure the economies of the industrial nation-states of the mid-20th Century… The 21st Century, however, is proving more difficult to measure.

Treating unemployment as a national problem is almost always a mistake. Employment trends vary dramatically by race, geography, gender and level of education. But none of that is reflected in the all-encompassing unemployment rate, and hence policies informed only by that number are bound to fall short.

Reality is complex, but the politicians and the public demand simple answers.

GDP has effectively become a proxy for national success or failure. It has the power to decide elections, overthrow governments, and launch popular movements.

No single number has become more central to society in the past 50 years” than gross domestic product.

Reality is complex, but the politicians and the public demand simple answers.

The kingdom of Bhutan replaced standard economic measures with measures of happiness as long ago as 1972. Yet Bhutan’s G.D.P. per head is still one of the lowest in the world, life expectancy is relatively low and infant mortality high, so it is easy to see why the king would not want anyone to mention the economy.

Until the early 20th century, significant economic hardship was so woven into human history and experience that it wasn’t yet seen as an aberration. Only the combination of a severe crisis and the belief that such crises not only could but should be prevented by collective government action led to the creation of unemployment statistics.

None of today’s leading indicators existed a century ago. They were invented to measure the economies of the industrial nation-states of the mid-20th Century… The 21st Century, however, is proving more difficult to measure.

GDP has effectively become a proxy for national success or failure. It has the power to decide elections, overthrow governments, and launch popular movements.

Treating unemployment as a national problem is almost always a mistake. Employment trends vary dramatically by race, geography, gender and level of education. But none of that is reflected in the all-encompassing unemployment rate, and hence policies informed only by that number are bound to fall short.