"Political Ideology is a pathfinding book. Lane has produced our first sustained empirical explorations of the content, sources, and consequences of common political ideologies in psycho-social categories of analysis." -- Daniel Lerner, American Sociological Review

Political Ideology: Why the American Common Man Believes What He Does

Lane, Robert E.

Free Press of Glencoe

The Free Press

Political Life: Why and How People Get Involved in Politics

Macmillan Pub. Co.

Despite the fact that citizens of advanced market democracies are satisfied with their material progress, many are haunted by a spirit of unhappiness. There is evidence of a rising tide of clinical depression in most advanced societies, and in the United States studies have documented a decline in the number of people who regard themselves as happy. Although our political and economic systems are based on the utilitarian philosophy of happiness―the greatest good for the greatest number―they seem to have contributed to our dissatisfaction with life. This book investigates why this is so. Drawing on extensive research in such fields as quality of life, economics, politics, sociology, psychology, and biology, Robert E. Lane presents a challenging thesis. He shows that the main sources of well-being in advanced economies are friendships and a good family life and that, once one is beyond the poverty level, a larger income contributes almost nothing to happiness. In fact, as prosperity increases, there is a tragic erosion of family solidarity and community integration, and individuals become more and more distrustful of each other and their political institutions. Lane urges that we alter our priorities so that we increase our levels of companionship even at the risk of reducing our income.

The Loss of Happiness in Market Democracies

Business & Money

Economics

Yale University Press

After the End of History: The Curious Fate of American Materialism (Evolving Values For A Capitalist World)

"Robert E. Lane is one of the most prominent and distinguished critics of both the human impact of market economies and economic theory, arguing from much research that happiness is more likely to flow from companionship, enjoyment of work, contribution to society, and the opportunity to develop as a person, than from the pursuit of wealth and the accumulation of material goods in market economies. This latest work playfully personalizes the contrast through a dialogue between a humanistic social scientist, Dessi, and a market economist, Adam. It is all too rare to have the two sides talking to each other. Moreover, in Lane's witty and literate hands, it is an open-minded and balanced conversation, in which neither side has all the answers. His unparalleled grasp of interdisciplinary social scientific knowledge is brought to bear on the largest questions of human life: What genuinely makes people happy? How should human society be organized to maximize the quality of human lives?" --David O. Sears, Professor of Psychology and Political Science, UCLA  "Lane's deep knowledge of the sources of human happiness enables him to develop a powerful critique of economic theory." ---Robert A. Dahl, Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Yale University  Robert E. Lane is the Eugene Meyer Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Yale University. His previous publications include The Loss of Happiness in Market Democracies (2000) and The Market Experience (1991).

University of Michigan Press

"Robert E. Lane is one of the most prominent and distinguished critics of both the human impact of market economies and economic theory, arguing from much research that happiness is more likely to flow from companionship, enjoyment of work, contribution to society, and the opportunity to develop as a person, than from the pursuit of wealth and the accumulation of material goods in market economies. This latest work playfully personalizes the contrast through a dialogue between a humanistic social scientist, Dessi, and a market economist, Adam. It is all too rare to have the two sides talking to each other. Moreover, in Lane's witty and literate hands, it is an open-minded and balanced conversation, in which neither side has all the answers. His unparalleled grasp of interdisciplinary social scientific knowledge is brought to bear on the largest questions of human life: What genuinely makes people happy? How should human society be organized to maximize the quality of human lives?"--David O. Sears, Professor of Psychology and Political Science, UCLA"Lane's deep knowledge of the sources of human happiness enables him to develop a powerful critique of economic theory."---Robert A. Dahl, Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Yale UniversityRobert E. Lane is the Eugene Meyer Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Yale University. His previous publications include The Loss of Happiness in Market Democracies (2000) and The Market Experience (1991).

In a period when market economies are widely recognized as the most desirable form of economic organization, Robert Lane offers evidence that the major premises of market economics are mistaken. Lane shows that work, far from being a disutility, as economic theory would have it, is instead one of two major sources of lifetime satisfaction, and that money income, despite being a source of utility that compensates a person for his or her sacrifices at work, contributes very little to a sense of well-being. This reversal of the premises of market economics suggests a major, axial shift in the way we think about our economies. Lane proposes that the market be judged primarily by its capacity to yield two benefits: happiness and personal development, the latter defined as cognitive complexity, autonomy or a sense of being in control of one's own life, and self esteem. Traditional attention to production outputs and economic rewards has, says Lane, blinded us to the important ways in which the processes of production contribute to the two benefits of happiness and personal development. Lane lays the foundation for a form of economic analysis that attends to processes as well as outcomes and by drawing on psychology, sociology, and economic anthropology for extensive evidence employed to support his arguments, he provides the basis for a fundamental change in the way we think about economics and society. Robert Lane is the author of many books and articles, among them Political Life (1959) and Political Man (1972). He is a Past President of the American Political Science Association, Policy Studies Organization and International Society of Political Psychology.

The Market Experience

Cambridge University Press

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Lane, Robert E.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Lane, Robert E.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Lane, Robert E.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Political Ideology: Why the American Common Man Believes What He Does

Political Ideology: Why the American Common Man Believes What He Does

Political Life: Why and How People Get Involved in Politics

The Loss of Happiness in Market Democracies

After the End of History: The Curious Fate of American Materialism (Evolving Values For A Capitalist World)

After the End of History: The Curious Fate of American Materialism (Evolving Values For A Capitalist World)

The Market Experience

The Market Experience