"[W]hile the problem of interpersonal comparability of utility is a tricky one, it is not insoluble in principle. It is conceivable that, perhaps several hundred (or a thousand) years from now, neurology may have advanced to the stage where the level of happiness can be accurately correlated to some cerebral reaction that can be measured by a ‘eudaimonometer’. Hence the definition of social welfare [in terms of the sum total of individual happiness] is an objective definition, although the objects are the subjective feelings of individuals."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Yew-Kwang Ng, Welfare Economics: Towards a More Complete Analysis (2004). Basingstoke: Hampshire, p. 4
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Yew-Kwang_Ng
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Yew-Kwang Ng
13 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Yew-Kwang Ng →
Related Quotes
"I myself regard enjoyment and suffering (defined more broadly to include milder pain and discomfort) as not only the …"
"I have also no difficulties saying that my welfare level is positive, zero, or negative. When I am neither enjoying n…"
"Though […] feelings are subjective to the sentient concerned, they exist objectively. That my toothache is subjective…"
"One way to see the unacceptability of welfare-independent rights is to ask the question ‘why Right X?’ to a very ulti…"
"[T]he real per capita income of the world now is about 7-8 times that of a century ago. If we proceed along an enviro…"
"As there are many areas of inadequate optimization (departures), and resource limitation and information costs preven…"
"With adequate safeguards and cautious preparation, genetic engineering could be used to relieve suffering and increas…"
"In my view...intrinsically, happiness is the only thing that is of value. Other things may have instrumental value. F…"
"In China, until about 100 years ago people believed that if your husband died, no matter how young you were, you coul…"
"When people’s income are low and at the survival, starvation level, then having enough to eat just to survive is very…"